Air Filters, How They Work and How To Maintain Them?

For most bike owners, bikes are their pride after all they are long lasting companions in all your journey-long or short. But sentiments apart, there are few bike owners who might not have ample knowledge with the technicalities of their vehicle and end up going to the mechanic or service stations to rectify the smallest of snags.

And most of the times the mechanic will be aware of your ignorance and bill you exuberantly for the no reason at all. This is could be an important reason for you to be updated about the various parts of the bike and their functionality that will save you from getting duped.

For instance the air filters in your bike; their basic function is to prevent dust from entering the engine, which could cause serious damage to the performance of the bike. And if your bike is fitted with paper filter then change it regularly according to the instructions given by the manufacturer.

How does the air filter work in your bike?

The air and fuel burn in the cylinder and it is this burning or combustion that produces torque/power in the engine. This is where the function of the air filter comes into picture. It prevents dusty air to enter into the engine. Because for the bike to give the best performance the air and fuel mixture ratio should be just be perfect or rather balanced, it cannot be very rich or very lean that can be harmful to the engine. Therefore, this function of the air filter makes it vital to keep it in good shape. If the air filter is choked with dust particles the airflow to the engine get blocked, which results in improper fuel burning and thus reduces the engine performance greatly. The dirt gets settled inside the metal of the engine piston and so files away the piston insides like actually an emery paper. So never run a motorbike without air filter or the cleaner and see that you maintain it too. A well maintained air filter indirectly affects the engine performance.

Tips To Maintain Air filters

  • Regular change of air filter is very important if you are using dusty roads frequently. Especially for foam type of air filter regular cleaning is a must.
  • If you prefer to clean the filter yourself then look in the bike manual and locate the air filter, remove it and clean the air filter with a quality cleaner and take while wringing the foam filter.
  • The next thing in the process is to soak the filter in branded filter oil to clean it up and also ensure that you remove off the excess oil from the filter.
  • Let the filter dry for a few minutes and then fit it back in its correct location.
  • Remember to use the filter oil recommended in the bike manual and see to that you remove the oil from the sponge filter else the engine cannot function properly.

Air filters are inevitable parts in a motorbike. Clean them and maintain them as often as possible, because you will note that if its maintained it gives long life to your engine; paying your decent efforts.