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SeaFoam - What the heck is it?


So often the XJ Owners Group Mailing List, forums and my e-mail run rampant with questions about SeaFoam... What is it for?  Where can you get it?  How do you use it?... but predominently... What the heck is it?  SeaFoam questions like these come up so often that I thought it appropriate to prepare something to answer everyone's questions about this mysterious elixir.


Gear World Recommends SeaFoam ]  •  [ Gear World Article - MMM Issue #116 ]  •  [ SeaFoam Web-Site ]


In a nutshell, SeaFoam is a magical "Auto-Marine Motor Treatment". It's a petroleum-based liquid that does all sorts of good things for your engine. What it's most widely known for is cleaning clogged carburetors, thereby often avoiding the need to remove and clean carbs the hard way. Many people, myself included, swear by it because it's so incredibly effective and generally awesome. No motorcycle owner should be without it. In fact, I keep about a dozen bottles or so on the shelf at any time.

Seafoam comes in a 473mL (16 fl.oz., 1 Pint) metal can which is either red, white & black (Canada) or red & white (U.S.A.). The picture below shows a Canadian can of Seafoam (left, Part# SF-16 C) next to its U.S. counterpart (right, Part# SF-16).


Rather than putting it into my own words, below is a list of things which SeaFoam is capable of as described on the product label.

SeaFoam: Product Label Claims
• injector cleaner
• carburetor & jet cleaner
• carbon cleaner
• fuel stabilizer
• diesel fuel conditioner & anti gel
• frees sticky lifters-rings
• de-icer anti gel
• upper cylinder lube
• removes moisture from oil and fuel
• helps pass emissions tests
• cures hesitations, stalls & pings
• smooths rough idles
• oxygen sensor safe
• cleans dirty engine parts internally
• cleans catalytic converter odours
• removes harmful gums, varnish & carbon
• increases RPMs, vacuum & compression
• restores power & pickup
• cleans PCV valve systems
• works & performs instantly

It's difficult to quantify the degree to which any of the above claims apply but I will say this - it works especially well for cleaning varnish buildup in fuel system jets & passages and it seems to be just as good for fuel stabilization as some use-specific products on the market. If your Maxim-X has carburetion "issues", treating the fuel with various concentrations of SeaFoam is an excellent starting point and will likely save you a lot of time, trouble and unnecessary cost.

There seems to be no limit to where this product can be used. The table below lists the engine applications for which SeaFoam claims to be appropriate as well as some means of application as described on the product label.

SeaFoam: Engine Applications
• cars
• trucks
• tractors
• motorcycles
• snowmobiles
• snowblower
• inboard boat motor
• outboard boat motor
• lawnmower
• chainsaws
• add to crankcase oil
• add to gas or diesel fuel tank
• good for all engines: 2-cycle, 4-cycle, diesel
• oxygen sensor safe
• pour through carburetor or throttle body
• feed through manifold vacuum line
• use in injector cleaning machines
• fill into diesel fuel filters
• use to store & fog engines
• good to -60°F (-51°C)

As per the product label, when SeaFoam is added to the fuel in a gas tank, it should be added at an average rate of approximately 8mL per Litre (1 oz. per U.S. gallon). The label indicates that 1 can of SeaFoam will treat approximately 30 to 95 Litres of fuel (8 to 25 U.S. gallons).

While that may be true and may do exactly as the product label claims, experience and experimentation have shown that higher concentrations are more effective and achieve the goal more quickly and more thoroughly. Personally, I've divided SeaFoam fuel treatments into three categories that I've found work very well for my motorcycle:

SeaFoam: Treatment Concentrations
Maintenance Dose
• add ¼ can of SeaFoam, at every 5th or 6th fill,
  to a full tank of gas (11½ Litres, 3 U.S. gallons)
Soft Treatment
• add ¼ to ½ can of SeaFoam, at every fill,
  to a full tank of gas (11½ Litres, 3 U.S. gallons)
Hard Treatment
• add ½ can of SeaFoam to reserve
  volume of gas (3 Litres, ~ ¾ U.S. gallons)

The MAINTENANCE dose should be self-explanatory - just add the specified amount of SeaFoam at regular intervals to keep the fuel stabilized, to prevent varnish build up and to clean carbs with a minimal build up of varnish. I personally like to add a ¼ can at every 5th fill. It's a considerably higher concentration than the bottle suggests but in my experience the advertised concentration just doesn't do the trick, especially in cases of more than minimal carb congestion.

The SOFT treatment is a little more aggressive and is beyond simple maintenance or prevention. Just add the specified amount of SeaFoam to the specified amount of fuel, at every fill for a period of time - several weeks if necessary. Normal operation at that concentration of SeaFoam should correct minor carburetor congestion problems while also keeping the fuel stabilized. Continue this treatment method until the problem is resolved, then switch to a MAINTENANCE dose for continued prevention.

The HARD treatment is an aggressive method of clearing stubborn carburetor congestion. This is something you might try if your carburetor problems are more pronounced but you just don't want to remove the carbs to do the job right. For a HARD treatment, just add the specified amount of SeaFoam to the specified amount of fuel, then run the bike for 5 to 10 minutes. That should be long enough for treated fuel to get cycled through the entire fuel system. At that stage, park the bike somewhere flat, on the centre stand, and allow it to sit over night to give the SeaFoam time to breakdown whatever it can. In the morning, let the bike idle until it's up to operating temperature (unless your idle is too horrible to speak of), then take it out for a good run at all speeds until the tank is nearly empty (use up the entire 3L of treated fuel while driving). When the tank is nearly empty, fill in only 3L (~ ¾ U.S. gallon) - of fresh fuel, just the reserve volume - then pour in another HARD treatment amount of SeaFoam and again let the bike sit level over night. Repeat the cycle 2 or 3 times, or until you believe you've accompished all you can. In most cases 2 or 3 HARD treatments should suffice but sometimes no amount of SeaFoam can clear the carbs adequately. If you find that there's little or no improvement after a number of treatment cycles, you may have to resort to removing & opening the carbs for a thorough cleaning - sometimes that's just unavoidable.

You should be prepared for poor operation, a rough idle and excessive amounts of smoke when doing the HARD treatment, especially if you exceed a ½ can of SeaFoam or you don't have a full 3L of fresh fuel in the tank. In any case, that's a MUCH higher concentration than specified on the bottle and often plays havoc with the smooth operation of your X engine. In some cases, when it's just not possible to maintain idle or even keep the engine running at that high concentration of SeaFoam, it may be necessary to add more fresh fuel to the mix and to drain the highly concentrated mixture from the float bowls . Remember, the HARD treatment is intended only for the WORST cases of carburetor congestion so you may not want to do it unless you know it's truly necessary.

A very common reason for poor performance & related symptoms is varnish buildup in your carburetors and that's where SeaFoam really shines. Even if you believe that your carburetors are in perfect condition, SeaFoam may surprise you. If you have plans to have your motorcycle carburetors tuned in the near future, it would be wise to run through a few SeaFoam fuel treatments beforehand to make sure you're not going to have the carbs adjusted out of sync just to offset effects of possibly restricted jets. I highly recommend regular maintenance doses at the very least.... perhaps every 5th or 6th fill of the tank.

I've never treated the oil in a crankcase with SeaFoam before so for now, I'll defer to the instructions. As per the product label, when SeaFoam is added to oil in a crankcase, it should be done in such concentrations that 1 can of SeaFoam treats 9.5 Litres (2.5 U.S. gallons) of oil. Unfortunately, that's all the detail the label provides and that isn't quite enough. There's no mention of whether the engine can be run under load or whether it must simply idle in neutral. There's also no mention of how long this treatment is to be applied. Should the SeaFoam cycle through the engine for only minutes or should it remain there for months? There really isn't enough detail to ensure that damage isn't done by its use and that's why input from some XJ owners would be more valuable here. When I have some instructions based on prior XJ owner use, I'll add those details here. Until then,use your own judgement.... and by that I mean ask someone who knows better.

SeaFoam seems to be a lot more plentiful south of the border, in the U.S.A. It apparently ranges in price from about USD $3.99 to USD $7.99 depending on where you buy it, in what quantities and whether it's on sale or not. In the Great White North, Canada, SeaFoam is available at fewer stores and costs from about CAD $10.29 to CAD $14.00, again depending on the source, the quantity and the sale.

To help you locate a source for SeaFoam near you, I've compiled the following lists for both Canada and the U.S.A. based on input from XJ owners who have previously purchased SeaFoam for themselves and others. Where available, the list shows cities and stores where SeaFoam has previously been purchased with a corresponding price. For store chains, I've provided links to store locators and a known price range for SeaFoam at the corresponding stores. I'd be happy to include additional information if you're willing to send it to me.

SeaFoam: North American Sellers
CANADA
Auto Value Parts Stores
   Calgary, Alberta, Canada
CAD $14.00

Base Automotive
   Scarborough, Ontario, Canada
CAD $?.??

CarQuest (Canada)
   Barrie, Ontario, Canada
   Bracebridge, Ontario, Canada
   Burlington, Ontario, Canada (2416 Industrial St.)*
   Oakville, Ontario, Canada
   Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, Canada
   Toronto, Ontario, Canada (980 Queen St. E.)
CAD $7.99 to $13.00


CAD $7.99*


CAD $9.95
Ideal Supply (Napa)
   Huntsville, Ontario, Canada
CAD $15.00

Khapco Automotive Parts
   Toronto, Ontario, Canada (44 Sumach St.)
CAD $11.95

NAPA (Canada)
   Brandon, Manitoba, Canada
   Kitchener, Ontario, Canada (808 Courtland Rd. E.)
   Ottawa, Ontario, Canada (J-17 Enterprise Dr.)
   Waterdown, Ontario, Canada (23 Dundas St. E. at Hwy 5/6)
CAD $10.20 to $11.90

CAD $11.90
CAD $10.20
CAD $10.29
• Wayne's Auto Supply
   Huntsville, Ontario, Canada
CAD $?.??

U.S.A.
Ace Hardware
   Spokane, Washington, U.S.A.*

USD $4.99*
Advance Auto Parts
   Woodstock, Georgia, U.S.A.
   San Antonio, Texas, U.S.A.
   Pennsylvania, U.S.A.
USD $5.44 to $5.99



AutoZone
   Lansing, Michigan, U.S.A.
   San Antonio, Texas, U.S.A.
   West Toms River, New Jersey, U.S.A.
USD $5.49 to $6.99



Blain's Farm & Fleet
   Wisconsin, U.S.A.
   Illinois, U.S.A.
   Iowa, U.S.A.
USD $5.99



CarQuest (U.S.A.)
   San Diego, California, U.S.A.*
   San Antonio, Texas, U.S.A.
USD $4.99 to $6.98
USD $4.99*

Kragen Auto Parts
   Riverside, California, U.S.A. (6160 Arlington Ave)
USD $6.99

Menards
   Grand Rapids, Michigan, U.S.A.
   Iowa City, Iowa, U.S.A.*
USD $4.88 to $4.99

USD $4.88*
Mills Fleet Farm
   Wisconsin, U.S.A.
USD $5.99

• Murray's Discount Auto Centre
   Lansing, Michigan, U.S.A.
USD $6.99

NAPA (U.S.A.)
   San Antonio, Texas, U.S.A.
   Forked River, New Jersey, U.S.A.
USD $6.00 to $7.99


Northern Tool & Equipment
   South Carolina, U.S.A.
   Virginia, U.S.A.
   Houston, Texas, USA*
USD $3.99 to $5.00


USD $4.54*
O'Reilly Auto Parts
   San Antonio, Texas, U.S.A.
USD $5.99
USD $42.99 / U.S. gal.
Pep Boys
   San Antonio, Texas, U.S.A.
   East Toms River, New Jersey, U.S.A.
   San Diego, California, U.S.A.
USD $5.99 to $6.99



Wal-Mart
   Texarkana, Texas/Arkansas, U.S.A.
USD $7.99

*** Listed prices are for the 473mL (16 fl.oz., 1 Pint) metal can and do not include local taxes
**** Prices shown are from the most recent inquiries - some may no longer be correct as they're likely to change

Of course SeaFoam Sales Co. does not sell to people directly but they can certainly help source their product so I've provided their contact information here as well with an additional link to their distributors page:

SeaFoam Sales Co.
P.O. Box 5178
Hopkins, Minnesota
ZIP 55343-1178
U.S.A.
www.seafoamsales.com
www.seafoamsales.com/buy.htm

So, if this sounds like an endorsement of SeaFoam... well, I guess it sort of is... but it's certainly not official. Remember, this page was created just to answer questions about SeaFoam for those people who will inevitably ask. It will undoubtedly save a few people some time in repeatedly typing the same e-mail replies to the same SeaFoam questions. I certainly hope this page is helpful & provides some answers.