I suspect you might get a collect groan about the Seafoam question (and then a collective, "Welcome to the forum.") Might be a good time to learn the search function on this forum. I put "Seafoam" in as a search term and 11 pages of 272 posts were returned. If you read through them you'll prob find that some people swear by it. Some think it won't hurt anything, and some think it's useless. I tend to run a few tankfuls through a few times a year and put 3-4 oz in the crankcase 50-100 miles before draining the oil. I've got 98,000 miles on the bike and it's never needed fuel system work, so maybe it's helped--I donno.

 

Welcome, go for it.

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Follow the directions carefully, you simply don't pour the entire bottle in. I would say use it only if you need to, like problem starting.

 

I have been using it for years in all my rides.

 

For what reason?

Whether or not it is "good" or "bad" all depends on what you are trying to accomplish. Without a purpose in mind, fuel additives are good for the producer of such products & the supply chain because using them transfers money from you to them. That might be bad for you, depending on how much money you have to throw away.

If you have a specific goal in mind maybe you can get valuable responses from forum members.

 

Thanks guys..i just bought the bike...so i wanna use seafoam to clean out fuel system and maybe even pour a small amount in the engine oil before changing it..

 

i wanna use seafoam to clean out fuel system

Unless you see rust in the tank, the best way to do that is to run a couple of tanks of clean, high quality 87 octane fuel from a reliable station through the engine, preferably at speeds above 45 MPH. Maybe change the fuel filter first -- not as easy as it should be so it might not be worth the effort.

Seafoam, B12 Chemtool, Techron and the like are all interesting products that might offer benefits in some specific cases but NOT ONE of them is a better solvent that gasoline. There is nothing they can clean from the fuel system that good gasoline wouldn't clean better.

 

I use it in everything. All my bikes get some from time to time, run it in all 3 trucks, lawnmower . I first used it in my 2001 spirit 1100 and noticed a big difference within the first tank. In my case it just started to run better. Good luck.

 

Look at this..

Homebrew Sea Foam (SeaFoam) Motor Treatment Recipe

Have you ever accidently started to put diesel into your tank and realised what you were doing and stopped after a few ounces have gone in.. Did you wonder if you had damaged the engine, should you drain the whole tank..

John.

 

I think most people fail to realize that Gasoline is a solvent.

 

Old timers like me used to wash our greasy hands with gasoline after repairing our vehicles. Stopped bleeding from most any cuts we incurred while working, too. (Don't know whether to post a grinning or frowning smilie for that part.)

Most people don't even know that water is a solvent. Or that solvents are what is used to clean carburetors and fuel lines. Or that oil (main component of Seafoam and the others) is not a solvent.

 

my bike (1999 vlx600) sat for a long time and ran rough. siphoned the tank, put in high test. still ran rough. started using sea foam. bike wouldn't idle (clogged slow jet - bike shop wanted $450 to clean it). put the petcock on reserve then it ran so bad i gave in and pulled the gas tank and carb. the screen that should have covered the tube in the gas take had ridden up and all the rust in the tank flow thru the reserve hole at the base of the petcock, so that is why the bike ran worse. the fuel line at the carb has a small coned shape screen that was full of chips of varnish (i think this was the result of using seafoam. the slow jet had black slimy stuff on it (i'd insert a picture but i don't understand the process on how to do this) and the bowl had rust particles in it. Cleaned everything, put a new screen on the petcock, put NON-ETHANOL gas in the tank. bike runs better than ever. Ethanol binds water and the humidity in florida makes that a given for rust in a steel gas tank. Use seaform knowing it could loosen up contaminants that may clog stuff, but if used from the start could keep things clean and never get issues.

 

put in high test

What did you think that would do for you?

Higher octane doesn't mean enhanced cleaning. All it means is resistance to detonation -- totally meaningless in our low-compression engines.

Higher octane is also achieved by adding ethanol -- so 87 octane e10 is actually 90% lower-than-87-octane gasoline.

 

I was told by a "gear head" that it was a high compression engine and required hi test to run right. so i start using it and swear it ran quieter at high speeds. I do feel it is running even better on the non-ethanol gas, but who knows. i just wanted to share my experience with seafoam and brag that a 65 year old grandmother can still turn a wrench and fix her carb problems. ha ha

 

Nothing high compression about any Shadow. It doesn't do anything but lighten your wallet.

 

I know it works fantastic in the crank case to clean things up. I did my daughters Jeep a couple years back to replace pistons in it and bearings. After running the Seafoam for about a 100 or so miles I tore it down and everything looked brand new like clean inside instead of a 173K gunked up engine it looked like it only had a few miles on it.

 

My Sturgis riding buddy added seafoam to his oil, rode home, some 1700 miles, then carried his Bike to the shop because the clutch started slipping...
Was it the Seafoam that caused this?? I dunno!

Good Luck, and WELCOME
Dennis

 

The additive market is huge. Most (if not all) auto parts stores dedicate more shelf space to additives than anything else. Additives are as American as Apple Pie, and they make a lot of people rich, and that's a good thing.

Personally, for me; I think additives are a waste of money except for maybe some fuel stabilizers.
Don't get me wrong, I don't want to discourage anybody from using them, I want these companies to continue sell their product and make gobs of money. It's capitalism and I'm all for that......

Seriously though, don't expect SeaFoam to fix or cure any problems.
Phil