I have an aluminum intake off a Datsun 280Z that I would like to clean up. Main problem is it was sitting on a shelf in a barn for 8 years and a mouse decided to make a nest inside. I was able to remove all leaves, grass and poo, but it is now very corroded inside. It flakes off pretty easy but I can’t reach all of it. How can I clean this up?
Aluminum is pretty soft. Definitely be careful with any solvents or really rough abrasives. I'd imagine some kind of big-ass pipe snake would do the job pretty well. Out of curiosity, is it a carb manifold, or FI?
i took one of those twisted wire nylon brushes for dish washing, cut the handle off the end, put it in my cordless drill and used it to clean the intake runners from an 80's model chevy tuned port intake and it worked ok as long as i turned it slow and in the right direction to maintain the wire twists in the brush. that and soaking it in dish soap pulled out a lot of crap.
Very very short periods of reverse electrolysis? It would work, but I'm not sure how smooth it would leave surface. I'd try it for 10 minutes at a time or so and then clean it with a pressure washer.
I googled around, here's something:
http://www.ehow.com/video_4756151_aluminum-cleaner-recipe.html
Are extrude hones available? 
Soak in ospho ~1-2 minutes and run bottle brush in ports. It will foam some when it 1st goes in. Put on a rag and wipe diamond plate it works great. DON"T SPRAY IT they some say to do. it is an acid.
Home depot sells some sort of stuff they claim is the same but its way less acid then ospho.
If you can get inside far enough I'd be tempted to try some gentle glass bead or walnut shell blasting...
Intake is fuel injected with out EGR off a 76 Datsun 280Z
I thought about glass bead blasting or using a brush but was looking for a way to get to the areas I can’t reach or see. Acid sounds like it should work but my concern is it might eat away at any threaded holes or ports for the fuel injector ports. Never tried reverse electrolysis on aluminum. If it works it might be a good option since I can protect and threads or ports pretty easy.
Fill the inside with rubber-latex mold. Pull it out, clean and fill the holes, wrap in fiberglass or carbon fibre.
... another 10 minute job. 
Dish washer.
Don't let the missus see.
TSP or Trisodium Phosphate. I like it in the powder form but you can get it in a liquid. It's available at LowesDepot in the tile department. Mix it wrong with hot water and let it soak while agitating ocassionally. It will remove anodizing. It leaves the surface with a frosted appearance also. Similar to bead blasting but softer. A daub of silicone in the threaded holes will keep them pristine.
I have done this in a large ultrasonic tank to great effect.
I'm thinking a toilet brush sounds like the ideal tool for scrubbing inside this thing. A new one of course, you want to get the poo OUT
If it was anodized then you want to use LYE or drain cleaner but if you just want to clean then phosphoric acid is the way to go. Todays dish washer soaps suck they will turn it gray.
you can turn the ospho in to "BRITE DIP" with a SS cathode and a battery charger BUT it give off nasy fumes and is not recomended ect.....
44
you could just run ball flex hones in the ports and out the other end.
What about ultrasonic cleaning?
http://deiwhy.blogspot.com/ has directions about making your own.
Bob
I have used ball flex hones with great success. Easy and quick!
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