Cleaning out Radiators. advice needed.
Pete Lucas
>
> Hello fellow enthusiasts and backyard mechanics,
>
> What would be a good chemical to clean the gunk out
> of a radiator?
> The engine had a head gasket problem and oil got into
> the water as well as boiling nearly dry.
> I have asked at radiator repair places and the mean
> bastards will not tell me what they use.
Whats the radiator made of? Aluminium or brass?
If it's brass, you can use aggressive cleaners (i've used
caustic soda in the past, this shifts oily deposits really
well!). Don't do this with aluminium though, or you'll end
up dissolving the rad...
Alternatively, try "Fernox" descaler, as used on central
heating boilers.
//PJML//
Pete Lucas
> Hello Peter,
> The car is a Daihatsu Charade 1985, 3cyl, 1litre.
> Aluminium cylinder head.
> The radiator tubes look to me like brass with copper
> foil zig zag cooling fins between the capillary tubes.
> The top and bottom tanks are plastic held on by a
> brass crimping strip.
The caustic soda should be OK in that case, assuming you've taken
the rad. out of the car. Don't put caustic soda in the rad. while
it's still in the car, as it *will* eat the aluminium parts and
also do nasty things to the rubber of the radiator hoses!
> What is "fermox" ? I am in Sydney, central heating
> down here is as rare as rocking horse droppings.
Fernox is a commercial descaling product we use for getting the
sludge and other nasties out of the pipes of central heating
systems.
> I will try the caustic soda with the radiator out of the
> car. What quantity of caustic soda to the gallon do
> you recommend strength wise?
I buy my caustic soda as granules from the local hardware store;
i'd suggest you make up a mixture of about 200 grams of soda in
a half-gallon of water. Mix the two in a *plastic* bucket, note
that when the soda hits water it generates a *lot* of heat, so
take time with the mixing and let it cool down. Wear eye-protection
and rubber gloves - caustic soda solution will strip skin, and/or
blind you if it gets in the wrong places.
Then, put rubber bungs in the inlet/outlet ports of the radiator,
stand it upright, pour in the soda mix S L O W L Y [there may be
some frothing...], leave for a couple of hours to do its' stuff.
Drain out, flush thoroughly with water for at least ten minutes!
Remember to dilute the used soda-liquid thoroughly before disposing
of it, too.
I must have used this trick to give an "enema" to dozens of
radiators (on trucks, landrovers, farm equipment, generators)
over the years; it always seems to work. On a couple of occasions
it *has* revealed leaks that were previously concealed by buildups
of rust and scale.
//PJML//
Guy King
from Pete Lucas <pj...@not-for-mail.nerc-swindon.ac.uk> contains
these words:
> I buy my caustic soda as granules from the local hardware store;
> i'd suggest you make up a mixture of about 200 grams of soda in
> a half-gallon of water. Mix the two in a *plastic* bucket, note
> that when the soda hits water it generates a *lot* of heat,
Do make sure that you do it this way round.
Adding water to NaOH instead of NaOH to water is not a good way to
disfigure yourself, as it hurts too much.
--
| |\_/|
Guy King |~~(o o) Never put off till
Hounslow, Middlesex | /=(Y)= tomorrow what you can
guy....@zetnet.co.uk |( leave till the day after.
www.users.zetnet.co.uk/gking/ | \
Eric Richardson
>Fernox is a commercial descaling product we use for getting the
>sludge and other nasties out of the pipes of central heating
>systems.
Is it safe to use this in any system? I've got a volvo 480, and am not
sure what the different materials are in the cooling system.
Anyone help?
Eric
.
Andy Hewitt
No, they have a plastic/aly radiator. Use Holts rad flush instead (or
similar). Also beware of what the heater matrix is made of. Even though
you might have a copper radiator, the matrix may well be ally/plastic
(they have been for years).
--
Live to Ride ------- Andy Hewitt -------
Mac PPC, CB750KZ, Trekky (& any Sci-Fi), Volvo 740GLE
<http://web.ukonline.co.uk/ahewitt/index.htm>
Pete Lucas
>
> The message <374BF8...@not-for-mail.nerc-swindon.ac.uk>
> from Pete Lucas <pj...@not-for-mail.nerc-swindon.ac.uk> contains
> these words:
>
> > I buy my caustic soda as granules from the local hardware store;
> > i'd suggest you make up a mixture of about 200 grams of soda in
> > a half-gallon of water. Mix the two in a *plastic* bucket, note
> > that when the soda hits water it generates a *lot* of heat,
>
> Do make sure that you do it this way round.
>
> Adding water to NaOH instead of NaOH to water is not a good way to
> disfigure yourself, as it hurts too much.
Same's true for diluting concentrated sulphuric acid down to
the strength needed for batteries...
"Alas, alas for little Johnny;
Little Johnny is no more
For Johnny added H20
To H2SO4"
The general rule is to add the "nasty" ingredient to the water,
not the other way round.
//PJML//
John Crighton
What would be a good chemical to clean the gunk out
of a radiator?
The engine had a head gasket problem and oil got into
the water as well as boiling nearly dry.
I have asked at radiator repair places and the mean
bastards will not tell me what they use.
Thanks in advance,
John Crighton
John Crighton
<pj...@not-for-mail.nerc-swindon.ac.uk> wrote:
>Whats the radiator made of? Aluminium or brass?
>
>If it's brass, you can use aggressive cleaners (i've used
>caustic soda in the past, this shifts oily deposits really
>well!). Don't do this with aluminium though, or you'll end
>up dissolving the rad...
>
>Alternatively, try "Fernox" descaler, as used on central
>heating boilers.
>
>//PJML//
Hello Peter,
The car is a Daihatsu Charade 1985, 3cyl, 1litre.
Aluminium cylinder head.
The radiator tubes look to me like brass with copper
foil zig zag cooling fins between the capillary tubes.
The top and bottom tanks are plastic held on by a
brass crimping strip.
What is "fermox" ? I am in Sydney, central heating
down here is as rare as rocking horse droppings.
I will try the caustic soda with the radiator out of the
car. What quantity of caustic soda to the gallon do
you recommend strength wise?
Once the radiator is back in the car some chemical
cleaner that will not harm the brass radiator tubes
or the aluminium cylinder head would be good to
know.
Thanks for your quick response,
Regards,
John Crighton
Pete Lucas
>
> HI there,
>
> >Fernox is a commercial descaling product we use for getting the
> >sludge and other nasties out of the pipes of central heating
> >systems.
>
> Is it safe to use this in any system? I've got a volvo 480, and am not
> sure what the different materials are in the cooling system.
Don't use Fernox or caustic soda on an engine/rad thats aluminium;
check this out thoroughly! there may be aluminium parts like
inlet manifolds, thermostat-housings, water-pumps... even if the
main rad. is a soldered-brass jobby, the heater-rad. could be
an aluminium one.
Putting sodium hydroxide on sluminium results in an interesting
material called sodium aluminate... which is water soluble!
//PJML//
A. Ratcliffe
your radiator. Better to be safe than sorry :)
--
Andrew
E-MAIL: ra...@btinternet.com
John Crighton <jcri...@sia.net.au> wrote in message
news:374cbae...@news.connect.com.au...
> Hello fellow enthusiasts and backyard mechanics,
>
> What would be a good chemical to clean the gunk out
> of a radiator?
> The engine had a head gasket problem and oil got into
> the water as well as boiling nearly dry.
> I have asked at radiator repair places and the mean
> bastards will not tell me what they use.
Chris Wilson
mailed to John Crighton]
In article <374cbae...@news.connect.com.au>, jcri...@sia.net.au
says...
> Hello fellow enthusiasts and backyard mechanics,
>
> What would be a good chemical to clean the gunk out
> of a radiator?
> The engine had a head gasket problem and oil got into
> the water as well as boiling nearly dry.
> I have asked at radiator repair places and the mean
> bastards will not tell me what they use.
> Thanks in advance,
> John Crighton
Get somewhere to steam it out, using a concentrated solution of
traffic film remover detergent in the water. This should shift all but
solidified material. if it has got solidified blockages, a rodding
through may help, but efficiency never returns, as the flow is much
reduced.
--
Best Regards,
Chris Wilson
mailto:ch...@formula3.demon.co.uk