Rice Nuker
Let the Coal Roll!
Howdy,
This is a thread about cooling systems. Radiator types, fan setups, coolant type, cooling system maintenance.
I see about a thousand threads each summer about how an engine is running hot. I cant understand why there are so many cooling issues. What are some successful combinations? What are points to address that ensure success.
Why are there sooo many overheating issues?
I see and hear lots of stories where people put electric fans on and then have never ending overheating issues.
Stock mopar clutch fan flows 5500 cfm. Most dual electric fans flow 3000 - 4000 total.
I ran 455 Olds motors for years in mid 80s gm cars, like monte carlo, olds cutlass, camaro, trans am. I have never had a heating issue for more than a month. Some motors had milled heads 10.5 - 1 pistons, mild cams, and headers, others were used stock bomber motors.
When I swapped in a used 455 out of some big *** delta 88, it usually had 80 - 140k on it. Lots of times the engine was full of rust and would run hot, clog the radiator full of rust chunks, piss me off.
This condition is very typical. Engine is half full of sediment and hard coated scale from years of bullship. The radiator is half full of bs too from either being old or the engine has pumped crap all thru the radiator.
I am not sure but I willing to bet that hot tanking an engine will not remove much of this type of build up unless they run it thru an acid vat and pressure wash out all the passages thoroughly after the hot tank.
Anyway, amazingly lots of people almost shi5 their selves when they hear what used to be a very typical cleaning procedure that I thought up one day. I am sure a hundred thousand others thought this up before me but before the internet you had to come up with your own procedures.
Drain cooling system per appropriate local practices.
Remove thermostat. Pull top radiator hose off radiator. Stick garden hose into the IN port of the radiator with a rag around it to seal it decently. Leave radiator cap completely loose to allow for varying volume. Run garden hose at half throttle. Start the engine and rev it up and down for 15 minutes or so while allowing the top radiator hose to blast out onto the ground. Tons of inert crap will fall out. Run the flush until water flows absolutely clear. Take a break, have a smoke and a splash of bourbon, do it again.
This flushes the block of most loose chunks and sediment.
Take the radiator off the car and lay it on its face so the in / out ports face up, pet-**** closed, lid on.
Pour it full of standard swimming pool grade muratic acid and let it sit for 20 minutes. Use expandable freeze plug rubber corks to plug both inlet and outlet after it is full.
Oh wow muratic acid!?? Call the aspca and a bunch of hippies students from berkley so they can have a sit in while failing to better society.
Yes acid. People swim in it. I pour a gallon in my pool and chunk my nephew in to stir it around. Granted that is 10000 - 1 so.. who cares.
If you feel the need, wear gloves and some basic goggles. I recommend cheap nerd chemistry type goggles. I wear them all the time cause I like to rock.
If your radiator has holes in it when you are done, it already had holes in it, they were just clogged with gunk and the radiator was clogged and fubared anyway. If you find little holes after cleaning, solder them up or take the radiator in and have it repaired by a old timer that knows how to repair radiators.
Anyway, slosh the radiator back and forth occasionally and at the end of 20 minutes, slosh back an forth for 10 more minutes more vigorously, or as much as possible. Total 30 minutes.
Drain muratic acid into a bucket half full of water to dillute a little bit for disposal. Then toss in a couple 3 spoons of baking soda and let it sit. This releases gas (hydrogen, oxygen, something I dont know) so do it outside, not in the living room or kitchen. Obviously dont cover the container, put a tube out of it and capture the gasses for further experimentation.
This bucket is now close to inert and you can pour it down the toilet if you want or put it on a plant to see if it likes it.
Flush thru radiator with garden hose for 5 minutes from the bottom outlet with a rag around the hose so any debris pumps out the top.
Install radiator in car.
Fill car with 1 gallon water, 1 gallon muratic acid, then top off with water.
Run engine for 30 minutes with no thermostat with a piece of screen over the upper radiator inlet port.
Adding a screen is easy.
Cut it 1/2 inch bigger than the tube and carefully fold back the excess over the tube. Install upper hose over the screen. The screen is very important from this point on.
Alternate to screen is:
http://autocoolantfilter.com/
Next, drain engine using local disposal practices. This drained mixture has very mild acid and is a little stronger than vinegar so what ever. Use it to aggravate weeds that sprout out of your driveway.
Put in new screen on rad inlet or clean your existing one.
Fill engine with water and 2 tablespoons of baking soda. Run engine with radiator cap loose for 30 minutes.
Drain engine.
Do the garden hose flush into the top rad port with top hose flowing onto ground for 10 minutes again.
Clean your screen, add 50/50 water coolant. Dont use pure coolant as it does not cool properly and pure water will rust out and corrode your cooling system in very short order.
A good coolant should be slightly acidic.
This has worked on every vehicle I had an overheating issue with with the exception of when i had holes in my radiator.
I have never had one single issue ever with this procedure and the results are excellent.
I always ran a heavy duty clutch fan about 1/2 - 3/4" from radiator with no shroud (although a shroud would be much better).
I always ran a stock napa or autozone water pump.
I always ran a used radiator designed for a 305 / 350 chevy (mid 80s car factory radiator). In other words I ran radiators way smaller than what the factory would for a 455 4 barrel and my machine ran great.
I always had an air dam either below the radiator core support or below the bumper. Both or either force air thru the radiator during driving.
I never had air conditioning.
The next level to cooling system protection is this NAPA bypass coolant filter mount and it is cheap insurance to a clean system. You can get the filter at NAPA and change it like once a year or two (looks like an oil filter).
http://www.napafilters.com/filterlookup/PartDetail.asp?Part=4019
Please contribute useful reasonably organized information, and do not contribute vague or incoherent jibber jabber comments.
Also, ask any decently prepared questions you wish.
Smart *** comments welcome if they are included in a useful summary of information or dialogue. Fire at will.
.
This is a thread about cooling systems. Radiator types, fan setups, coolant type, cooling system maintenance.
I see about a thousand threads each summer about how an engine is running hot. I cant understand why there are so many cooling issues. What are some successful combinations? What are points to address that ensure success.
Why are there sooo many overheating issues?
I see and hear lots of stories where people put electric fans on and then have never ending overheating issues.
Stock mopar clutch fan flows 5500 cfm. Most dual electric fans flow 3000 - 4000 total.
I ran 455 Olds motors for years in mid 80s gm cars, like monte carlo, olds cutlass, camaro, trans am. I have never had a heating issue for more than a month. Some motors had milled heads 10.5 - 1 pistons, mild cams, and headers, others were used stock bomber motors.
When I swapped in a used 455 out of some big *** delta 88, it usually had 80 - 140k on it. Lots of times the engine was full of rust and would run hot, clog the radiator full of rust chunks, piss me off.
This condition is very typical. Engine is half full of sediment and hard coated scale from years of bullship. The radiator is half full of bs too from either being old or the engine has pumped crap all thru the radiator.
I am not sure but I willing to bet that hot tanking an engine will not remove much of this type of build up unless they run it thru an acid vat and pressure wash out all the passages thoroughly after the hot tank.
Anyway, amazingly lots of people almost shi5 their selves when they hear what used to be a very typical cleaning procedure that I thought up one day. I am sure a hundred thousand others thought this up before me but before the internet you had to come up with your own procedures.
Drain cooling system per appropriate local practices.
Remove thermostat. Pull top radiator hose off radiator. Stick garden hose into the IN port of the radiator with a rag around it to seal it decently. Leave radiator cap completely loose to allow for varying volume. Run garden hose at half throttle. Start the engine and rev it up and down for 15 minutes or so while allowing the top radiator hose to blast out onto the ground. Tons of inert crap will fall out. Run the flush until water flows absolutely clear. Take a break, have a smoke and a splash of bourbon, do it again.
This flushes the block of most loose chunks and sediment.
Take the radiator off the car and lay it on its face so the in / out ports face up, pet-**** closed, lid on.
Pour it full of standard swimming pool grade muratic acid and let it sit for 20 minutes. Use expandable freeze plug rubber corks to plug both inlet and outlet after it is full.
Oh wow muratic acid!?? Call the aspca and a bunch of hippies students from berkley so they can have a sit in while failing to better society.
Yes acid. People swim in it. I pour a gallon in my pool and chunk my nephew in to stir it around. Granted that is 10000 - 1 so.. who cares.
If you feel the need, wear gloves and some basic goggles. I recommend cheap nerd chemistry type goggles. I wear them all the time cause I like to rock.
If your radiator has holes in it when you are done, it already had holes in it, they were just clogged with gunk and the radiator was clogged and fubared anyway. If you find little holes after cleaning, solder them up or take the radiator in and have it repaired by a old timer that knows how to repair radiators.
Anyway, slosh the radiator back and forth occasionally and at the end of 20 minutes, slosh back an forth for 10 more minutes more vigorously, or as much as possible. Total 30 minutes.
Drain muratic acid into a bucket half full of water to dillute a little bit for disposal. Then toss in a couple 3 spoons of baking soda and let it sit. This releases gas (hydrogen, oxygen, something I dont know) so do it outside, not in the living room or kitchen. Obviously dont cover the container, put a tube out of it and capture the gasses for further experimentation.
This bucket is now close to inert and you can pour it down the toilet if you want or put it on a plant to see if it likes it.
Flush thru radiator with garden hose for 5 minutes from the bottom outlet with a rag around the hose so any debris pumps out the top.
Install radiator in car.
Fill car with 1 gallon water, 1 gallon muratic acid, then top off with water.
Run engine for 30 minutes with no thermostat with a piece of screen over the upper radiator inlet port.
Adding a screen is easy.
Cut it 1/2 inch bigger than the tube and carefully fold back the excess over the tube. Install upper hose over the screen. The screen is very important from this point on.
Alternate to screen is:
http://autocoolantfilter.com/
Next, drain engine using local disposal practices. This drained mixture has very mild acid and is a little stronger than vinegar so what ever. Use it to aggravate weeds that sprout out of your driveway.
Put in new screen on rad inlet or clean your existing one.
Fill engine with water and 2 tablespoons of baking soda. Run engine with radiator cap loose for 30 minutes.
Drain engine.
Do the garden hose flush into the top rad port with top hose flowing onto ground for 10 minutes again.
Clean your screen, add 50/50 water coolant. Dont use pure coolant as it does not cool properly and pure water will rust out and corrode your cooling system in very short order.
A good coolant should be slightly acidic.
This has worked on every vehicle I had an overheating issue with with the exception of when i had holes in my radiator.
I have never had one single issue ever with this procedure and the results are excellent.
I always ran a heavy duty clutch fan about 1/2 - 3/4" from radiator with no shroud (although a shroud would be much better).
I always ran a stock napa or autozone water pump.
I always ran a used radiator designed for a 305 / 350 chevy (mid 80s car factory radiator). In other words I ran radiators way smaller than what the factory would for a 455 4 barrel and my machine ran great.
I always had an air dam either below the radiator core support or below the bumper. Both or either force air thru the radiator during driving.
I never had air conditioning.
The next level to cooling system protection is this NAPA bypass coolant filter mount and it is cheap insurance to a clean system. You can get the filter at NAPA and change it like once a year or two (looks like an oil filter).
http://www.napafilters.com/filterlookup/PartDetail.asp?Part=4019
Please contribute useful reasonably organized information, and do not contribute vague or incoherent jibber jabber comments.
Also, ask any decently prepared questions you wish.
Smart *** comments welcome if they are included in a useful summary of information or dialogue. Fire at will.
.
