best way to clean air vents in cab?

[chevytruckclassics]

well the 67' k10 (originally a c10) is done and back on the road after 17 years! and after driving it a LOT of mouse nest and leaves came out of the side air vents in the cab by the pedals. (if you guys dont know what im talking about ask for pics and ill post some) i was wondering what the best way to clean them was? my vaccum hose wont fit in it well. i just figured to just keep driving it until all the crap comes out!

[MidLifer]

Here's a thread that tells you how to get the vent doors off, then you can get your vacuum hose in those hard-to-reach places:

http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=497939

Or you can just get the truck up to about 40 and pull the vent open and use the "blow it out on your legs" method...LOL

[Mister-B]

Originally Posted by chevytruckclassics

well the 67' k10 (originally a c10) is done and back on the road after 17 years! and after driving it a LOT of mouse nest and leaves came out of the side air vents in the cab by the pedals. (if you guys dont know what im talking about ask for pics and ill post some) i was wondering what the best way to clean them was? my vaccum hose wont fit in it well. i just figured to just keep driving it until all the crap comes out!

I reached down in a year ago or so and pulled out what I could. I've driven countless miles with them open, sometimes at 70 mph with a strong side wind, and I STILL get tons of leaves and ground up stuff that blows out. It's like a bottomless pit. I'll have to check out how to get in there with a vacuum
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[etindoll]

I am proud someone asked this today I was just getting ready to do a search. I opened the vents in mine this weekend and it looked like the discharge on my lawnmower blew leaves all in the cab of the truck.

[TheSeeker]

Once they are cleaned out to your liking, to cut down on most of the big debris, you can buy some mesh/metal mesh and cut to fit under the cowl vents. This allows the fresh air in, but keeps the big junk out. I will find the receipts for the stuff and post what im talking about if you guys want.

[PanelDeland]

Take the cowl panel off and you can reach all the way down in there.When you get it as clean as you can lay under the rear of the front fender and check to make sure the drains are clear.Then you can wash it out if you want.A quick drive with the vents open drys them quickly.If you wash it out before you clear the drains,you have to lay in the water or if they're clogged,you get it in the face.As said above,install some screens in the cowl.You can get them from a vendor or make your own.

[ChevLoRay]

...and, if it has been parked a while, there may be some wasp nests in those ducts and hidey-holes.

[LockDoc]

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I just take the vent doors out and vacuum them out.

LockDoc

[MikeyMan]

I've used my electric leaf blower to loosen up the crap. Point it in the vent, then down the side of the cowel, and back and forth. It gets a lot of the light stuff out. You can also try to use a flexible rubber or vinyl hose as an extension on a shop vac.

When my truck is parked outside, I've come up with a temporary cover for the cowel. I took some of those magnetic sheet vent covers and cut them into strips, then place them over the cowel openings. Keeps the leaves & whirrlybirds out when the truck sits outside.

[nightmare]

Originally Posted by TheSeeker

Once they are cleaned out to your liking, to cut down on most of the big debris, you can buy some mesh/metal mesh and cut to fit under the cowl vents. This allows the fresh air in, but keeps the big junk out. I will find the receipts for the stuff and post what im talking about if you guys want.

Keeps the big stuff out. Now for the dirt and dust that gets in there, that's a different story. I pull the vent doors and just vacuum that out. I've also cleaned out the drain holes too.

Here's a link to LMC's Page 90 where the Cowl Vent Trash Guards are that I purchased. I got the regular steel ones, and painted them.

[swamp rat]

Sure glad this thread came up because i'm planning on pulling the cowl this weekend for the same reason, figure i'll pull the vents too.

I got about 20 years of Fir tree needles stacked up in there i'll bet.

One more note to add, I have 3 auto parts stores in town that are decent and don't employ a computer jocky just out of a 18 month trade school, these guys know the products and have lots of catalog's ect. I went to ine of these stores yesterday to get a wiper arm removal tool, he said they just pulled a bunch of stuff off the wall to send back to the tool mfgr, he said after so many years they figured its not worth stocking any more, but he went in back and looked and sure enough there was one in that return pile and pulled it for me, he said they will not stock it any more. At another place they said it wasn't even in there catalog any more and go find a snap on truck..

The moral of the story is i think its time to buy some of these little specialty tools before they cant get them at all...

[Mister-B]

Originally Posted by swamp rat

Sure glad this thread came up because i'm planning on pulling the cowl this weekend for the same reason, figure i'll pull the vents too.

I got about 20 years of Fir tree needles stacked up in there i'll bet.

One more note to add, I have 3 auto parts stores in town that are decent and don't employ a computer jocky just out of a 18 month trade school, these guys know the products and have lots of catalog's ect. I went to ine of these stores yesterday to get a wiper arm removal tool, he said they just pulled a bunch of stuff off the wall to send back to the tool mfgr, he said after so many years they figured its not worth stocking any more, but he went in back and looked and sure enough there was one in that return pile and pulled it for me, he said they will not stock it any more. At another place they said it wasn't even in there catalog any more and go find a snap on truck..

The moral of the story is i think its time to buy some of these little specialty tools before they cant get them at all...

Well, that's interesting because Oreillys has the wiper arm removal tool, and they're a big national chain. The tool isn't just for our trucks. Basically any vehicle with that style arm
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[1995flstc]

Great information. Thank you all!

[71CHEVYSHORTBED402]

Shop vac/blower. Still my favorite tool.

[Greasey Harley]

I open the vent doors and run a garden hose in the upper cowl on full blast.
Washes all kinds of stuff out. right out the vents, on to the floor then out the doors.
I hose out the cab corners and rockers at the same time.
I let it run 'till the water runs clear then let the truck dry in the sun.

Probably not a good idea if you have plush carpet, but it works great in trucks with rubber mats.
I do this at least once a year, come to think of it, It's about that time.

[BRL]

You guys missed it!

Cruising down the road about 55, and decided I needed some fresh spring air.

Dang cab looked like some old time movie pop corn machine going 55 down the highway!

Got screens on the cowl now, but that doesn't seem to stop those mice!

Considered tossing a grenade in the cowl vents, but that might possibly bulge that thick '69 Detroit sheet metal!

Almost worth it though!

[mike16]

I just pulled my own cowl to install a radio antena and was just thinking the same thing. I recall reading another post on putting a screen back in there to keep the bigger bits out