How The Snorkel Upgrade Snorkel Head Replacement Works

Upgrades to your off-road 4x4 should not open a door to more problems. A snorkel without a snorkel head pre-cleaner could become a problem due to the unfiltered air with dust, rain, even bugs getting in your snorkel. We have found the ultimate solution that has been used for decades across major OEMs(Original Equipment Manufacturers) like Caterpillar, Cummins, and John Deere. It’s rugged, tested in the worst environments like landfills, mining operations and has become the air pre-cleaner of choice installed on every Military JLTV (the humvee replacement). 

It’s tried and true track record is rooted in its patented centrifugal force technology. It’s this industry-leading technology that has extended filter life and run-time for vehicles in the worst environments. 

So what is this technology and how does it work? For simple starters here is a 3 step breakdown on how the technology works. 

1. Air is sucked in from the bottom of the air pre-cleaner
2. The air is spun by a rotor inside the dome which pushes the heavier than air particles to the inside wall of the dome
3. The heavier than air particles are then spun around the inside wall of the dome until they are pushed out the ejection slit on the side of the dome.

 

It’s these three steps that make the  Sy-Klone Series 9000 an optimal universal snorkel head addition that removes your worries of debris coming in from your snorkel head by using centrifugal force to separate particles out of the air before going into your engine snorkel.

So how does the rotor spin? What is it powered by? Well let’s take a step back and think about what all engines need: 1) Air, 2) Fuel, 3) Ignition. The air your engine needs is pulled through its intake, creating enough suction to pull air through your air filter. Almost like your engine is a vacuum cleaner.  It’s this same suction or air pull coming from your engine that spins the rotor inside the dome. The rotor spins without creating any major additional pull on your engine due to its optimized and patented airflow design. While the rotors are spinning new force is created. The force created is called centrifugal force. 

Are you currently drawing unfiltered air into your engine snorkel? Does your vehicle currently have a regular snorkel head? Ever wondered about issues with standard snorkel heads, like rain, snow or heavy dust, even bugs coming in directly to your filter? 

Yes, your snorkel helps your engine by pulling cooler air from a higher point outside of your vehicle vs the hot air next to your engine and yes it can help you go deeper into the water without worry of hydro lock. Unlike when your air intake in under your hood, the snorkel does open you up to other debris coming in that would not normally make it under your hood. This is why you see people with engine snorkels turning their snorkel head to face backwards or to the side, or you see different variants of snorkel head covers. 

So what is a centrifugal force? Let’s go back to one of our favorite examples. The carnival ride that spins you on a swing and pushes you further out as it spins. For those of you who need a visual to see this example below is a picture of this type of ride.

A pre-cleaner that uses centrifugal force pushes the debris out of the air like this ride pushes it’s riders away from the center.  If you would like to read more about why you should add a snorkel pre-cleaner to your Jeep, truck or SUV… check out one of our latest blog posts here:  https://snorkelupgrade.com/blogs/news/why-add-a-snorkel-and-snorkel-head-pre-cleaner-to-your-off-road-vehicle

Take a look at this video that shows the snorkel pre-cleaner in action. 

You can see suction coming in from the engine as it pulls the air and debris that comes with it. As the air and debris are sucked in they quickly are ejected out the ejection slit on the side of the dome. Now there are other pre-cleaners that claim to use centrifugal force but these claims are very weak. Why? In most cases, these pre-cleaners have slanted stationary louvers that create a light spinning motion on the air before going into the pre-cleaner and then collected in a bowl to be later dumped out. 

You can see the main components of this “dust bowl” pre-cleaner here:

Notice the dust in the collector bowl.  These types of pre-cleaners are notorious for needing maintenance and is one of the reasons it is easy to take apart. Which can both cause a headache or another to do after you get back from your off-roading adventure or even stop you in the middle of your adventure to clean it. 

The Sy-Klone Series 9000 was designed to be a maintenance-free engine air pre-cleaner. The only thing you need to do to keep this pre-cleaner running is the simple first step of installing it on your snorkel head. Allowing you to ride without a worry in any and all extreme weather you come across in your 4x4.

People are already using this product on their Jeeps, Trucks, and SUVs. Here are some in action:    

 

In summary: Don’t let the environment rain on your snorkel parade. Rain, snow, sleet, dust, bugs, sand, are all enemies of your engine and a snorkel without a pre-cleaner can add concerns when riding in these conditions. It’s time to fully enjoy your time in these situations without intake concern. Remove the thought of debris entering your snorkel once and for all with the centrifugal air pre-cleaner made by Sy-Klone. 

Have any questions on retrofitting this technology to your snorkel? Email us at Isaac@snorkelupgrade and we will help you figure out your sizing, installations and use cases for your snorkel upgrade. 

We are dedicated to bringing you the best air pre-cleaning solution for your vehicle.