Where the work goes today
A car or van usually reaches you with a filter warning that regeneration hasn’t cleared. Once you’ve found and fixed the cause, whether a sensor, an injector, an EGR fault or a pattern of short journeys, the filter itself is often still full. On-vehicle treatments deal with soot and oil residue; they don’t remove the ash that builds up over a filter’s life.
That leaves two familiar options. Fit a new filter, which is often the most expensive part of the job for the customer, or remove the filter and send it to a cleaning service, which ties up a ramp or a parking space while you wait for it to come back. Either way, the cleaning margin goes to someone else and the turnaround isn’t in your hands.
Cleaning in-house keeps the whole job in your workshop: diagnosis, removal, cleaning, refitting and the conversation with the customer.
Which machine fits a garage
Most car and light commercial filters fit a car-and-van cabinet, so the choice is usually between the METClean E and the METClean S. Both clean the filter off the vehicle in a closed chamber; the difference is how much the machine does for you and what you can show the customer afterwards.
METClean E, the entry cabinet
Analogue control, the filter strapped down on the platform, and a compressed-air cold purge at the end of the wash. It suits a garage starting out with off-vehicle cleaning that wants a full cabinet process at a lower price than the S. Because it dries with cold air only, how dry the filter ends up depends on your compressor, and some filters need finishing on the vehicle.
METClean S, automation and a record
Touchscreen control, a pressure pre-test before cleaning, adjustable wash settings, hot drying and a printout with your company, technician, customer and filter serial number. It suits garages cleaning more often, or those who want a printed record to hand the customer with the invoice.
METClean DPF Lite, a bench machine
A lower-cost bench machine that runs a controlled cleaning cycle while the technician gets on with other work. It suits garages limited by floor space or budget. The operator still inspects and connects the filter before the cycle and checks it afterwards.
A cleaning job in a garage
The machine runs the wash on its own, so the technician’s time goes into the steps either side of it. In practice the job looks like this.
Diagnose and remove
Fix the fault that caused the blockage first; cleaning won’t stop a filter refilling if the cause is still there. Remove the filter and note its serial number.
Inspect
Check for cracks, melting, missing material or heavy oil contamination. A damaged filter needs replacing, and the customer needs to hear that before you clean it.
Connect and secure
Fit the adaptor to the filter’s outlet so it is washed against the exhaust flow, connect it to the wash hose and secure it in the chamber before closing the door.
Test and wash
On the S, run the pre-test first. Start the automatic sequence and the machine works through its wash stages while you carry on with other work.
Dry and refit
Hot dry on the S or cold purge on the E. Some filters, mainly combined filter and catalyst units, hold too much water to dry fully in the machine and are finished on the vehicle with a drive cycle.
Space, utilities and waste
A cabinet needs a level floor area with room to open the door and lift filters in and out, a dedicated electrical supply on the right protective device, compressed air and a water supply for filling the tank. The figures below come from the product master; where they still read “Awaiting approval”, we confirm them with you and your electrician before you order.
The water runs in a closed loop: it is pumped through the filter, filtered and settled, and used again for further cleans. When it reaches the end of its useful life, the used water, sediment and spent filter elements go through your approved waste route, in the same way you already handle used oil and coolant. Closed loop means less water used, not a waste-free process.
- METClean E dimensions
- Awaiting approval
- METClean E electrical supply
- Awaiting approval
- METClean S dimensions
- Awaiting approval
- METClean S electrical supply
- Awaiting approval
- METClean S compressed air
- Awaiting approval
- METClean E cleans per tank fill
- 20–30 expected
- METClean S cleans per tank fill
- 30–40 expected
Working out whether it pays
The case rests on a handful of your own numbers: how many blocked filters you see in a typical month, what you would charge for an in-house clean, what sending filters away costs you now in fees, courier time and tied-up bays, and the technician time each clean takes. Running costs include water, any cleaning product, filter elements and power. Against that sit the machine price, or the monthly cost if you finance it.
The profit calculator takes these inputs and shows how the figures change as volume and price move. It is a worked example on your assumptions, not a forecast, and we would rather go through your real job history with you than quote a payback period.
The S printout is useful when explaining the job to a customer, but it records a pressure reading under the machine’s test conditions. It is an indication of the filter’s condition, not proof that every channel is clear.
Training, support and limits
The S comes with delivery, fitting and on-site training covering loading, programmes, drying, testing and daily maintenance. The E and the Lite are installed by the buyer with remote onboarding from MET, and fitting and on-site training are available for the E at extra cost. Train more than one technician, so cleaning doesn’t stop when one person is on holiday. Day-to-day upkeep is mostly the water filters: draining the housings, washing the filter elements and topping up or changing the water.
In-house cleaning isn’t the right answer for every garage. If you only see the occasional blocked filter, an outside cleaning service may cost less. Cracked, melted or heavily oil-soaked filters need replacing whatever machine you own, and a filter that keeps blocking points to a fault on the vehicle, not a cleaning problem.
We are gathering case studies from garages running METClean machines. Until they are published, the most useful evidence is a demonstration on filters from your own workshop.
- METClean S installation
- We deliver the S and set it up in your workshop.
- METClean S training
- Loading, programmes, drying, testing and daily maintenance, on site with your team.
- METClean E warranty
- 12 months, parts only
- METClean S warranty
- 12 months, with an engineer to site where self-help isn’t possible
- METClean E installation
- Installed by the buyer, with remote onboarding from MET; fitting by MET is available at extra cost.
- METClean DPF Lite installation
- Set up by the buyer, with remote onboarding from MET.
See it on your filters
Book a demonstration at MET or at your workshop, or ask for a quote for the E or the S.