Sticky Vents - another option

[Terry]

Myself and others have shared various methods for dealing with sticky vents, panels and switches etc. My vents were fine but recently became sticky this year so needed attention.

During various net surfing I came across a recommendation for Dunlop 65 which is used to clean the fret board on guitars so I thought in the first instance I would give it a try. I don't think it has been mentioned here so I thought I'd post a couple of pictures for info.

I found that it did the job very well. A wipe with the fluid from a microfibre, left for a few minutes would soften just enough to transfer onto the cloth with a firm rub. Repeated a number of times over a hour or so would have it all off.

The fluid is gentle enough not to damage the plastic or flow onto unwanted areas. I did not let it flow into the recess where the arrows are marked so the recess area was untouched.

The resulting finish with the soft touch coating removed IMHO is good enough to leave as is but could also be sprayed with black satin paint if required.

 

[milkshaker0007]

:thumbsup: nice one Terry

 

[mon the fish]

Good result. Do you think this would work on the dash switches without disassembling them?

 

[sweeni]

That looks brilliant Terry. Thank you, Im gonna give this a try. :thumbsup:

 

[sweeni]

That looks brilliant Terry. Thank you, Im gonna give this a try. :thumbsup:

 

[Terry]

:thumbsup: nice one Terry

Thanks Paul, hope all is good with you.

 

[Terry]

Good result. Do you think this would work on the dash switches without disassembling them?

I think Dunlop 65 would work well. Not a great deal of product is needed to slightly soften the soft touch coating it's the firm rub off with the microfibre that gets it off, you see the results looking at the cloth and keep re-applying until it's all off. I used something else on my switches a while ago but I think Dunlop 65 would be better. A little spray with contact cleaner and the switch upside down should help remove any bits in the gaps.

This is what I used last time



This is the post from my 355 Spider Repair thread.

https://www.clubscuderia.co.uk/forum/showthread.php?55066-F355-Spider-Repair&p=800764#post800764

 

[Terry]

That looks brilliant Terry. Thank you, Im gonna give this a try. :thumbsup:

Hi Dave, I think well worth a try. :thumbsup:

 

[mon the fish]

I think Dunlop 65 would work well. Not a great deal of product is needed to slightly soften the soft touch coating it's the firm rub off with the microfibre that gets it off, you see the results looking at the cloth and keep re-applying until it's all off. I used something else on my switches a while ago but I think Dunlop 65 would be better. A little spray with contact cleaner and the switch upside down should help remove any bits in the gaps.

This is what I used last time

View attachment 158971

This is the post from my 355 Spider Repair thread.

https://www.clubscuderia.co.uk/forum/showthread.php?55066-F355-Spider-Repair&p=800764#post800764

Thanks - ordered, will give this a go over the winter. What's the difference between the two bottles?

 

[Terry]

Thanks - ordered, will give this a go over the winter. What's the difference between the two bottles?

The smaller bottle has a spray top whilst the larger bottle has a soft pad which is awkward to use but easily removed.

 

[mon the fish]

Thanks :thumbsup:

 

[ronrob]

Good to see that you're keeping your eye on us Terry. I also will try this out on my 355. The product is easily available in France, so no Brexit nonsense. Thanks!

 

[Kyodo]

Thanks for the Dunlop 65 heads-up. I have sticky stereo controls in my Boxster and this may be just the ticket. Funnily enough it's the same Becker unit they put in the sticky-prone 360.

 

[MalcH]

Will have to try this. Some of the centre console switches on my 360 are becoming quite sticky. Window switches aren't too clever either.
Hope you're well Terry and thanks.

 

[Mark Blanchard]

Dunlop 65 worked on the stereo buttons on my 360. Thanks for the reminder, need to do the ash tray.

 

[Mark Blanchard]

It's worth noting, lemon oil is very corrosive, so if you are cleaning the buttons in situ, don't let the liquid run down the sides of the buttons as it could corrode the switch mechanism behind (I know this as it rusts the strings when I lemon oil my guitar necks).

 

[mon the fish]

I'm planning on buying a spare switch from somewhere either to practice on, or as a backup incase I ruin one of my own - not been able to find one at a decent price yet though

 

[sweeni]

Hi Dave, I think well worth a try. :thumbsup:

Spent yesterday afternoon 'de-sticking' the switches on the dash and door/mirror controls on my 550.
Well pleased with the results, thanks for the info Terry :thumbsup:

 

[mon the fish]

Spent yesterday afternoon 'de-sticking' the switches on the dash and door/mirror controls on my 550.
Well pleased with the results, thanks for the info Terry :thumbsup:

How did you manage it - did you take each switch out in turn? Any specific tips for the 550?

 

[sweeni]

How did you manage it - did you take each switch out in turn? Any specific tips for the 550?

I removed the heater control panel by using a flat bladed screwdriver to prise it out. Just the single cable connector behind. Gently clamped in a vice and then sprayed the liquid onto unit and left to soak for a few mins. Tried rubbing with a cloth but that was very slow so tried a sponge scourer. Took some elbow grease and sore fingers. Finally dried off with a micro cloth then a good blow dry with compressed air.
With the switches they were not as badly affected. Again a flat bladed screwdriver to ease them upwards so they can be unplugged. Their faces were OK so only required clean the small switch part. The electric window controls on the doors were left in situ, couldn't see how to remove them and didn't want to risk damage, and scrubbed with the sponge scourer.
The really badly affected items were the door controls. Couldn't see how to remove them so again done insitu. These took a LOT of rubbing and a worn out scourer but after about 30mins on each they came up well. One point of note is that whilst none of the white lettering/signs etc were affected on the dash or heater controls the ones on the door controls marked 'LOCK' were so you may decided to mask these and leave sticky or simply accept they will be removed.