How to tell if dirt bike air filter is dirty?

Question

How to tell if 1994 Honda xr100's air filter is dirty?

Answer 1

if in doubt,blow it out

Answer 2

Its dirty! and should be cleaned after each day of riding. Visit your local shop and buy the proper filter oil and cleaning agent. If the bike is a 94 its also way past due for a filter change.

Answer 3

Pretend it's a wash rag and wipe your hands with it.

If your hands are gritty afterwards - it's dirty.

Answer 4

Just assume it's dirty and replace it.

Answer 5

a visual inspection is really the only way.

it's only about a 10-15 minute job to clean it.  merely remove the filter elemet (kinda like an open cell foam) from the filter holder (holder merely holds the element in a tubular shape), use dishwashing detergent (not dishwasher soap, but like palmolive, joy, etc. sink type soap) and warm water.  squish it in the soapy water and rinse, repeat until the water is clear.  sling the snot out of it several times to remove the water (a hair dryer works well or toss in the clothes dryer for a few minutes).  drizzle air filter oil onto the filter, stuff in a one gallon zip lock back, squeeze as much air out of the bag as possible and zip closed.  squeeze / massage the bag until the oil is evenly distributed throughout the filter, stick back on the filter holder (probably wouldn't hurt to clean it too if it looks dirty), reinstall in the filter box on the bike.

you really should clean the filter element after every other day ride in dusty conditions at a minimum...

Answer 6

It will look dirty. I usually take them off and drop them on the pavement from a couple of feet and see what flies out of them.

Answer 7

KelleyXR is absolutely right!!!

just clean it... it's easy, cheap and needs doing quite frequently.

back in the day, I used to merely get a small container of gasoline in a well ventilated area, pull the filter element off the holder, squeeze in the gasoline several times, take an air hose to dry the gas out, spread some 2 stroke or motor oil(this was before the sticky oil filter oil of today was available) on the element, squeeze thoroughly with hands (messy!!!) until evenly saturated, stick the element back on the holder, and be back riding in 10-15 minutes...

the oil on the element is so any dust will stick to it instead of going on thru into your carb and on into your engine....

just clean it and have a clear conscience that you are maintaining your bike properly.