From the May/June 2011 issue of ATV Rider Magazine
There are many items to regularly maintain on your ATV, and one of the most important is your air filter. As the first line of defense for your engine, the air filter has to be kept clean and well oiled for many reasons. The first of those could be that dirt, even really fine dust, can wreak havoc on the cylinder and the engine’s internal working parts. The piston rings in your engine will be the first to suffer from premature wear, and the particles that enter the combustion chamber act as a harsh abrasive to the cylinder walls and piston. Having a filter that offers more horsepower by being less restrictive than the stock filter sounds great and does as it says, but not without a cost.
The process of increasing your engine’s power by reducing the filter media’s ability to catch dust and dirt particles is just asking for trouble, so we wanted to show you how to properly clean, reoil and install your filter. Using the Twin Air system we can clean and prep the air filter for install. Twin Air has been developing air filters for ATV and side-by-side vehicles for many years, and with the company’s background coupled to the engineers’ research I tend to believe they know what they are doing. The Twin Air dual-stage filters are designed to increase airflow and to ensure the highest level of filtering ability, and our 2004 Yamaha Grizzly 660 is tired and in need of some serious attention, so let’s dig in.
The airbox and box top should be inspected regularly to make sure no rocks or branches have broken or cracked the plastic housing. Having a crack in the box not only would let in dirt but could attract unwanted water or mud into the airbox as well. There is a small clean-out plug cap on the bottom of most airboxes to collect debris and excess moisture that gets in; this needs to be in place to prevent the water, dirt and mud from coming in.
After removing the filter from its cage, clean it really well. Wearing rubber gloves is suggested to keep the dirty oil off your hands and your skin. CAUTION: If you’re considering using gasoline or any other harsh cleaner, know that they may work well but can possibly dissolve the glue that holds the filter together. This will ruin the filter and your attitude. Did I mention they can be extremely flammable as well? Kerosene-based cleaners may still be flammable, but they are less harsh and very easy on the filter itself. We strongly recommend using specific foam filter cleaning solutions that are readily available at most ATV shops for the best and safest method possible.
After removing the filter from its cage, clean it really well. Wearing rubber gloves is suggested to keep the dirty oil off your hands and your skin. CAUTION: If you’re considering using gasoline or any other harsh cleaner, know that they may work well but can possibly dissolve the glue that holds the filter together. This will ruin the filter and your attitude. Did I mention they can be extremely flammable as well? Kerosene-based cleaners may still be flammable, but they are less harsh and very easy on the filter itself. We strongly recommend using specific foam filter cleaning solutions that are readily available at most ATV shops for the best and safest method possible.
After soaking the filter in a filter cleaner using the cleaning tub from our Twin Air system, we gently worked out the dirt and old oil from the filter. You’ll then want to rinse the filter in warm, soapy water to ensure it’s completely clean. When you’re convinced the filter is dirt-free, it is good to give it a final rinse to make sure there’s no soap left in the foam.
When we finished cleaning our filter we discovered the stocker needed to be replaced. The filter material was tearing apart in our hands, and the glue that holds the seams together was almost nonexistent. It served its purpose for plenty of rides over six long years and was due to be replaced with a new unit from Twin Air.
CAUTION: Wringing out the filter can have a damaging effect on the filter and is not advised.
After the filter has dried out enough, usually a few hours to be completely moisture-free, we broke open the oiling tub from our Twin Air system and began covering the filter with oil. Be sure to get a liberal amount of filter oil on the filter inside and out. Squeezing the excess oil out of the filter and into the oil tub means you will not waste the oil. Massage the filter until the oil evenly coats the foam surfaces inside and out, then throw the storage lid on the tub so you can use the excess oil during your next filter cleaning.
The next step is to let the filter sit in a clean, dry area to ensure that all layers of the filter are moisture-free. We used our Pit Posse filter cleaning station to help with this task. This little organizer works well in the shop or the trailer and has hangers for multiple filters as well as space for our gloves and other cleaners. The paper towel dispenser is another great feature of this cleaning station, so you can easily grab a sheet or two when wiping your hands clean or trying to dry the filter out faster before reoiling.
Now that the filter is clean and reoiled to do battle with the elements, the final step we need to do is to clean the mounting surface in the airbox as well as the airbox itself. Using the contact cleaner in the Twin Air system kit we sprayed a little on a clean rag to get the box and mount surface clean. It’s always good to use just a thin layer of waterproof grease on the face of the filter if it mounts against the filter box. This is just a little more insurance so the sneaky little dust particles are kept away.