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radiator flush - READ ONLY

45 messages,  Last post on Nov 21, 2001 at 6:17 AM

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#6 of 45 The ultimate cleanout by jlflemmons Sep 21, 2001 (5:46 pm)
On my Safari van with rear heater, I got underneath and first drained the radiator and refilled with "soft" water. For those of you who don't live in central Texas with its super high calcium carbonate (read: disolved limestone)water, most of us have water softeners on our house plumbing. Then I removed the feed and return lines to the rear heater core. I put a hose from the softener to the return side and a hose to the sewer cleanout on the feed side. Ran the van for about 30 minutes with the water flowing through everything but the rear heater core, which was drained. Lots of crud came out of the hose even though the system had been drained and filled regularly. When the line to the sewer flowed clear for several minutes, I shut down the water, drained off about two gallons and added antifreeze to bring the total up to a 50/50 mix. That should do it!
#7 of 45 GM on water by joe3891 Sep 22, 2001 (8:40 am)
GM states that if the water is good enough to drink its good to mix with coolant,its worked for me since 1956.
#8 of 45 by sdayalani Sep 27, 2001 (5:46 pm)
havoline manufactures extended life coolants that are premixed with 50% water. that should take the guesswork out of what kind of water to use (or not use).
#9 of 45 50-50 by joe3891 Sep 28, 2001 (8:32 am)
Mixed costs too much.
#10 of 45 50-50 by gsleve Sep 28, 2001 (12:34 pm)
buy distilled water and mix you'll be fine
#11 of 45 Joe3891 by spokane Sep 28, 2001 (9:19 pm)
Joe, since 1956? That's a long time; you should be about ready for a coolant replacement.   Sorry, I couldn't resist. I, too, have normally used drinking water for 40+ years and had no significant problems. GM's Harrison radiators, however, seem to have a life of about eight years but it's my impression this is independent of the water chemistry.
#12 of 45 Why take a chance by q45man Sep 29, 2001 (6:47 am)
The factory fill of every manufacturer is deionized [no dissolved solids, no chemicals] water. Commonly made by distillation or ionic filters. Each engine may be different [iron block, aluminum heads, all aluminum, all iron, different alloys of aluminum, different radiator alloys,different water pumps, thermostat metals, etc]. Making a single formula of AF work under all circumstances is a big compromise in that you have things not needed for one and maybe not enough of some additive for another type of metal. Additive for iron really get in the way in all aluminum engines! In a perfect world you would mix pure Ethylene Glycol with pure water and select from a 8-16 ounce additive package to complement and protect your individual combination.....like most SemiEngines whose radiators last 500,000 miles. You would test the solution once-twice a year and add a suplemental amount of additive to corrrect for depletion.   If you think about it where does the crud that blocks radiators come from? From the unused additives interreacting in non normal ways, the glycol turns acidic and attacks the interior of radiator and moves metal to the colder bottom of radiator helped by gravity....the blocking pile builds from the bottom. Most common brands work ok for a while but draining the sludge build up and changing the additives is important because the new long life formula may contain 2-3 times [%] the volume of additives thus if something goes wrong there can be 2-3 times the build up in radiators.   Many consider my annual change while using [150k] long life AF excessive even wasteful, but it is just a part of my planned total maintenance.
#13 of 45 spokane by joe3891 Sep 29, 2001 (9:20 am)
We think the same because we grew up in the same era.The radiators now are alumium,plastic with gaskets, no wonder.   q45man If it makes you feel good i won't fault it.Some pay $4.00 to $5.00 for a quart of oil and change every 3000 mi.
#14 of 45 by Mr_Shiftright HOST Sep 30, 2001 (11:08 am)
Yep, that's what I do, and foolish or no (who can say for sure?) I've never lost an engine on any car I've owned. Maybe I do overspend on maintenance, but I definitely underspend on repairs. I've had terrific luck with all my vehicles.
#15 of 45 Custom radiators by q45man Oct 01, 2001 (3:18 am)
After dealing with thousands of Ultra Premium cars [Lexus, Infiniti, BMW], my analysis of the radiator situation lead me to have Griffen [they build all the NASCAR units] construct a special all aluminum [double thick] radiator for my car......the radiator will out live me and I'm only 53. To protect it I flush and refill every year.   The bulk of the aftermarket and a few dealers purchase look alike non factory units which cool 20% worse than OEM [fewer fins per inch], they weigh less [thinner aluminum, thinner plastic] but they cost 1/4 of OEM so the customer is happy for a while!

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