15L Heated Ultrasonic Parts Cleaner for Valve Bodies

A 15 liter (4 gallon) 304 stainless ultrasonic tank with 360 W of 40 kHz transducer power and a built-in heater rated up to 400 W. The digital panel sets the timer from 1 to 30 minutes and the bath temperature anywhere from 20 to 80 C (68 to 176 F). The tank and the parts basket are both 304 stainless, there is a drain valve in the side so you are not tipping four gallons of dirty solution into a bucket, and inset handles plus non-skid feet keep it manageable on a bench. Shipping weight is 20.6 lb in a 17.5 x 15.8 x 13.8 in box.

The 4 gallon basin is the reason to buy this size instead of a countertop unit: a GM 4L60E or 4L80E valve body, a Ford 6R80 or 10R80 body, a 62TE or a 6T70 casting all lay flat in the basket with solution over the top of them. Bench routine is the same every time. Strip every valve, spring, retainer and checkball out of the casting first and keep them in order, then lay the bare casting in the basket with the machined face up. Fill with water and a water-based parts degreaser, run the degas cycle for a couple of minutes to drive the air out of the fresh solution, set about 60 C, and run 15 to 20 minutes. Pull it out, rinse, then blow every bore and cross-drilling out with compressed air and dry it completely before you start putting valves back in. Use a water-based cleaner, not a caustic one - caustic solutions attack aluminum castings.

The problem this fixes is the one a brush and a parts washer cannot reach. Varnish and clutch material settle in the small cross-drilled passages and behind the checkball seats, and that is what makes a valve hang up: delayed or harsh 1-2, converter clutch shudder and P0741, solenoid performance codes on a body that tests fine electrically. Cavitation gets into passages a bore brush will never see. It also handles solenoid bodies, separator plates, pump halves, filter screens, throttle bodies and injector hardware, so it earns its bench space between transmission jobs.