I have an airraid filter and was wondering if its okay to clean it with other filter cleaning kits out there (i.e k&N) as local parts shop doesnt have anything else. Are they prettymuch all the same ingredients?

 

I would have to assume so. I dont see why there would be a difference.

 

when i purchased my k/n fipk it came with a cleaning kit and extra oil for the filter.

 

...uhm...I have no clue about CAI filter maintenance...I have a K&N...its been on for maybe 600-700miles...how often should I be cleaning it...and what do I need...do I need a cleaner kit?

 

It would be perfectly fine using a different brand cleaner for your filter. Just don't oil the filter if it is a dry filter.

Curt, I cleaned and oiledthe filter on my last car every 20,000 miles. That's the interval that Injen recommends. I'm sure that K&N has their own standard and it should have been in the instructions that came with the intake.

 

Notice the little yellow capped 'thingie' on the air intake tube of this Cummins, it is over on the left side of the picture in the middle, with
a red bar showing underneath the yellow cap....

It is the 'Filter Minder'
which is a peak value recording vacuum gauge
that records when high intake restriction is high.

To know when to clean a filter
you really need to go by what one of these devices tells you.

Why don't the 'oiled gauze' filter makers like KN, etc
put one of these Filter Minders on their 'premium' kits
when Dodge includes one as standard?

Because the CAI makers don't want the customer to realize
how quickly the oiled gauze element gets dirty and clogs up:

 

K&N cleaner and oil are what you should use on an Airraid.
Interesting point - Airraid used to be K&N's biggest customer for filter elements until they started making their own elements.

 

Well bought the K&N kit and restored it to its like new look. It was getting pretty bad causeI've been driving on the ranch for the last couple months and at 27K miles (20K of those since i isntalled the airraid) it was getting pretty black. The oil was even the same tone of red when it came out of the box originally Its defiantely sucking a bit better now too and with the summer gas prices going up hoping to get at least a half mpg better :P

 

GOING BY THIS CHART YOU HAVE POSTED ON HERE WHICH OF THESE FILTERS PERFORMS BEST. IT LOOKS TO ME LIKE THE AC DELCO BUT IM NOT SURE IF IM READING IT CORRECTLY.

 

Yes but that graph alone is not enough to choose a filter by. You also have to wonder how much dust each filter caught and prevented from continuing into the engine.