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Overheating!! Time for a Rad flush


TimFX

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How about some more info on your "overheating symptoms"?

Was this rad cleaned out?, did you ever pull the waterpump and water distribution tube and clean them out and to verify its condition?

Many times the engine coolant passage get crudded up, and you need to pull frost plugs and clean them out.

 

Anyways, give us an update of the overheating temps, symptoms and what has been done to date......

Edited by 55 Fargo Spitfire
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I tried that Prestone stuff at Canadian Tire. Not great. I put two bottles of it in there and ran it a couple of weeks. Flushed it out. It did very little. I recommend pulling the rad. It's easy to do. Pull all hoses and fill and flush the rad a few times in the driveway. I did it like this a few times and the gushing outflow is what you need to see. Then you know the rad is pretty clear. If you do not get a good stream, time to take to the rad shop for a professional flush. Worked for me.

https://youtu.be/8J6Zy9FVLRo

 

Your radiator is only one part of all the parts that effectively work together to cool your engine. It is a good place to start, flushing and cleaning out the rad. However this may or may not help with your overheating issues.

Other cooling system items include:

Hoses condition, rad cap, water distribution tube, scale and rust in your block, waterpump, clear clean air external passages in rad, thermostat, bent fan blades.

An engine can also run hot if it is running lean, or has incorrect spark timing. 

A poorly tuned engine, and a marginally acceptable cooling system, may seem to  be effective all year except when the hot days of July and Aug in the northern hemisphere are here. There comes a point where it just cant cool enough, with the increased ambient temps. You may very well have reached this point.

Edited by keithb7
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I flushed my 38 rad with rain water many times one summer a few years ago.      It had not run hot, but needed cleaning anyway.

"Soft water", (rain water or from a water conditioner), makes a good cleaning agent.      I only added coolant, no water.   Several

years now since, and the cooling system looks very good.....

coolant.JPG

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11 minutes ago, Robert Horne said:

I flushed my 38 rad with rain water many times one summer a few years ago.      It had not run hot, but needed cleaning anyway.

"Soft water", (rain water or from a water conditioner), makes a good cleaning agent.      I only added coolant, no water.   Several

years now since, and the cooling system looks very good.....

coolant.JPG

Interesting cooling system monitor..

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8 hours ago, medium_jon said:

Thanks @Robert Horne . Yes, search for Boiler Sight Glass and a nice number of Pyrex glass tubes come up around that price on ebay

Are you using the hose that goes to/from the heater valve at the back of the engine

I installed the glass on the hose that comes from the heater and goes to the water pump, easy to see the coolant.....

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Flushed the rad till it ran clear. 

Refilled with 50/50 

strangely, it only took half the amount of fluid that's listed in the manual

is there another drain on the engine for the fluid that's inside the block?

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Yes thats it. Just twist it until the coolant flows out. No need to try and remove the drain assembly completely. 

Edited by keithb7
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Clearly, I have not done the whole job. 

Back at it tomorrow.

drain the block (pick the crud) remove the lower rad hose and flush multiple times. 

 

Its all all a great learning experience. 

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