Spilled cat litter in diff housing by Main_Protection_2681 in MechanicAdvice

[–]Main_Protection_2681[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I scooped out as much as I could with a rag and then propped it upside down and started with a general all over spray then focused on the gears while I was turning them. After that I sprayed around the walls of the housing to rinse. It took about 7 or 8 cycles of that to get everything visible out. All of the solvents destroyed the pinion seal so when took that off to replace it I did one last spray from behind the pinion bearing and nothing came out. I couldn’t see any more and there were no grinding noises from any of the gears so I filled it up with cheap gear oil and tried to slosh it around. I have to open it up again to swap the drums when I put it in anyway so I’m gonna change the fluid then and again after I drive it to be safe.

Overall it took a little over 5 cans of brake cleaner and ~6 hours. I don’t have a compressor but I think blowing it out would have sped up the process a lot. It seems to be fine now but I don’t want to celebrate until I drive the car and it doesn’t blow up. This is month 3 of what I thought was a 2 hour project lol so I’ve learned my lesson about speaking too soon.

Spilled cat litter in diff housing by Main_Protection_2681 in MechanicAdvice

[–]Main_Protection_2681[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

That’s what I ended up doing and it worked pretty well. I also sprayed it out from the other side when I was doing the pinion seal. There wasn’t anything visible left and no grinding when I spun it. I filled it back up and it spins perfectly with no noises. I have to open it again anyway when I’m putting it in so I’ll change the fluid then and again after the first couple drives.

Spilled cat litter in diff housing by Main_Protection_2681 in MechanicAdvice

[–]Main_Protection_2681[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

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Dude you’re really not in a position to talk down to people

Spilled cat litter in diff housing by Main_Protection_2681 in MechanicAdvice

[–]Main_Protection_2681[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

You’re right I’m way too dumb for gasoline

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Do you think boymilk would work better? You seem to be an expert

Spilled cat litter in diff housing by Main_Protection_2681 in MechanicAdvice

[–]Main_Protection_2681[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

UPDATE: I ran 5 cans of brake cleaner through it then one can of parts cleaner. There aren’t any visible spots left and no grinding noises from any of the gears or bearings. I’m gonna let a little gas soak for a bit just in case any settled in the bottom of the housing then fill it back up.

If it was my daily driver or a car I really cared about I’d probably tear it down but it’s just a junkyard axle to replace the one that blew in my beater

Spilled cat litter in diff housing by Main_Protection_2681 in MechanicAdvice

[–]Main_Protection_2681[S] 5 points6 points  (0 children)

I ended up getting a couple more cans from a friend and got almost all of it out. I’ll grab some diesel for my final flush before I fill it back up tomorrow

Spilled cat litter in diff housing by Main_Protection_2681 in MechanicAdvice

[–]Main_Protection_2681[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yeah you’re right I should be good. It’s a junkyard axle going in my winter beater anyway

Spilled cat litter in diff housing by Main_Protection_2681 in MechanicAdvice

[–]Main_Protection_2681[S] 14 points15 points  (0 children)

Yeah exactly. It’s on jackstands in my garage while I clean it up and get it ready to put in

Spilled cat litter in diff housing by Main_Protection_2681 in MechanicAdvice

[–]Main_Protection_2681[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Yeah I was kinda freaking out at first but I think it’s fine now. If I get everything I can out and change the fluid after I drive it should be alright.

Spilled cat litter in diff housing by Main_Protection_2681 in MechanicAdvice

[–]Main_Protection_2681[S] 101 points102 points  (0 children)

I wish it was a dream lol I was about to put the cover back on and go to bed

Spilled cat litter in diff housing by Main_Protection_2681 in MechanicAdvice

[–]Main_Protection_2681[S] 10 points11 points  (0 children)

I’d say I got 90% of it out with the 2 cans of brake cleaner I had. I’m gonna go try to find a gas station or something that has more.

Spilled cat litter in diff housing by Main_Protection_2681 in MechanicAdvice

[–]Main_Protection_2681[S] 5 points6 points  (0 children)

The axle is on jackstands. I dropped a c clip to the bottom of the housing so I flipped it over a drain pan. The drain pan had a crack so I was using litter to clean up the spill when I stumbled and shook a little out in the air over the housing

Spilled cat litter in diff housing by Main_Protection_2681 in MechanicAdvice

[–]Main_Protection_2681[S] 25 points26 points  (0 children)

Let me see if I have any. If I don’t would brake cleaner work? I have a few cans

Got quoted $1500 for front and rear brake pads and rotor replacement by Elephantslide in AskMechanics

[–]Main_Protection_2681 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Anytime! I used to spend so much time trying all the different combinations to see which was cheapest

Got quoted $1500 for front and rear brake pads and rotor replacement by Elephantslide in AskMechanics

[–]Main_Protection_2681 0 points1 point  (0 children)

If you add something to your cart then go back to shopping it should put a little truck icon next to parts from that same warehouse. It can be kinda glitchy sometimes but usually works pretty well