overheating

[Bobby Nettles]

what can u use to clean the inside of a aluminum radaitor

[koab26]

BOBBY I DRIVE AN IMCA STOCK CAR AND RUN A 362 CI. CHEVY SMALL BLOCK WITH A HOLLEY 350 2 BARREL CARB. I HAD OVERHEATING PROBLEMS DURING MY 20 LAP FEATURES IN WHICH THE TEMP. GAUGE WOULD READ 260 DEG. SO I ALREADY HAD AN ALUMINUM WATER PUMP SO I WENT TO A 1 TO 1 PULLEY SYSTEM AND THE LARGEST WATER RESTRICTOR AND I ALSO USE HALF ANTI FREEZE AND DISTILLED WATER. BINGO MY TEMP. DROPPED TO 195 TO 200 AFTER A 20 LAP FEATURE PLUS CAUTION LAPS. HOPE THIS GIVES YOU SOME IDEAS, GOOD LUCK.

[Scott Lewis]

what can u use to clean the inside of a aluminum radaitor

Hey Bobby, jack the radiator up and put a Ford under it! LOL. Really though other than the comercial cleaners out there I'm not sure on what REALLY can clean it out. You could try CLR in just the radiator but i wouldn't let it get into the engine. I do know that running distilled water has helped in preventing that build up of deposits in it.

[texana55]

Hope this doesn't sound too dumb.... But, with aluminum radiators that have been sitting a while, we've pulled them out of the car, sealed up the hose inlet and outlet, and filled them up with cheap bleach. Let them sit a day or two or three, and then rinse them real, real good to get all of the chemical out of the radiator. Then use the distilled water of whatever you use, but no faucet water. This has worked real well for us several times with breaking down deposits. Must be rinsed very well. We've never had any residual motor issues from the bleach. Never do this unless you pull the radiator out though. We also agree with the 1 to 1 pulley system.

[CuttingEdgeRacing]

I ALSO USE HALF ANTI FREEZE AND DISTILLED WATER.

 

Better not get caught at the track with that anti freeze! I know we get fined if we drop that stuff on the track (road racing).

 

Use water wetter..you won't get in trouble with the track.

[Truck99]

Anti freeze does not cool better than water, so why risk getting in trouble over it? It it designed to prevent freezing of your coolant. Use distilled water and a good "wetting" product like purple ice or water wetter.

[rsanders18]

just a tip on water wetter ,fabric softner is the same just use smaller amount ( 1 cup) works for me and that 410

also instead of antifreeze use a couple drops of soup it acts as lube for water pump and helps water get contact w course surface of inner cyl walls. if this sounds like bs to you dont try it but the proof is in the reliability of my equipment that you never see overheat

[zoom]

just a tip on water wetter ,fabric softner is the same just use smaller amount ( 1 cup) works for me and that 410

also instead of antifreeze use a couple drops of soup it acts as lube for water pump and helps water get contact w course surface of inner cyl walls. if this sounds like bs to you dont try it but the proof is in the reliability of my equipment that you never see overheat

 

 

SOUP?????

 

Chicken noodle, tomato or bean and bacon?

 

I have heard of a couple of drops of dawn dishwashing liquid to break the surface tension of the water, but SOUP?

[fast3]

it is tomato soup

[texaswicked]

if you want to clean it just pull it out and take it to radiator shop.. they will clean it good and save you alot of hassle... if they clean it and it still over heats then you need to look for other problems.. but water wetter and water are just fine after you know for sure its clean....also make sure bottom hose on radiator is not collapsin at high rpms.. that will cause it to over heat too....

[Bobby Nettles]

thanks to all and by the way rsanders18 ment to say SOAP not soup

[1-Crew]

Antifreeze (ethylene glycol) does not cool any better than water alone but it does raise the boiling point (and lower the freezing point). It is simple chemistry, any mixture will freeze at a lower temperature than either of the two components of the mixture. The same is true of boiling where the mixture will boil at a higher temperature than either of the two components of the mixture.

 

In a typical automotive cooling system, the enemy is something called "nucleate boiling" which occurs when a localized hot spot develops and allows boiling to occur at that point even if the overall system is lower than boiling temperature. Once nucleate boiling begins, there are trapped steam bubbles in the system that quickly work their way through the system, lowering cooling efficiency.

 

The other problem common to automotive cooling system is boiling that occurs at the water pump. As the impeller of the water pump moves, it creates a low pressure region behind each blade. Water boils at a temperature proportional to the pressure so if the water is close to the boiling point, the lower pressure behind the water pump blade can be enough to initiate boiling. This is commonly referred to as cavitation but is really boiling at a low temperature. The end result is the same, a sudden reduction in coolant flow (since steam is compressible).

 

I would never use bleach to clean mineral deposits, sodium hypochlorite is a strong oxidizer and will corrode aluminum quickly. It will not attack most common mineral deposits. A much better choice would be a a dilute acid solution like Lime Away (phosphoric and citric acids).