Should I flush after 3rd heater core failure?
#1
Should I flush after 3rd heater core failure?
I am about to replace my 3rd heater core in as many years. It seems that about this time each year my heater core fails. This is getting really old! I am wondering what else besides the heater core is being damaged in my system?
1) Should I do a complete flush and refill with (4) gallons of Fleet Charge sca precharged coolant and enough distilled water to bring the system up to snuff?
or
2) Replace the heater core and take it to Ford and have them do a flush?
One is easier than the other and I didn't really want to spend all day doing this. The problem being that I usually have Ford do a system flush after a heater core replacement and it doesn't seem to help prevent a heater core failure. Could there be something else going on?
This truck sees light duty use and has only gone through about 35K miles since the first heater core replacement. That's three heater cores in three years in under 35K miles?! What is going on?
1) Should I do a complete flush and refill with (4) gallons of Fleet Charge sca precharged coolant and enough distilled water to bring the system up to snuff?
or
2) Replace the heater core and take it to Ford and have them do a flush?
One is easier than the other and I didn't really want to spend all day doing this. The problem being that I usually have Ford do a system flush after a heater core replacement and it doesn't seem to help prevent a heater core failure. Could there be something else going on?
This truck sees light duty use and has only gone through about 35K miles since the first heater core replacement. That's three heater cores in three years in under 35K miles?! What is going on?
#4
I decided to flush it myself and Murphy's law decided to poop on my head. I have made it no further than draining the radiator, removing the t-stat, and draining the passenger side of the block. Apparently the Ford dealership stripped off the heads of the screws holding the t-sat housing down when they changed the last t-stat. I did manage to get them out, but somehow lost two. I eventually found one after an hours search, but never the other. The drain plug on the driver's side refuses to come out and now has a piece of 1/4 drive extension stuck in it that I can't get out. It's now late enough in the day that by the time I go to town to buy a replacement bolt it will be dark. So now I have to call in sick to work tomorrow and with no sick days (we don't get sick days) I'll have to eat a days pay. Maybe I should have let Ford do it.
I've been working on cars since I was 13 and this has to be the absolute worst experience of my life. There is no way I could possibly convey the level of frustration today has brought me. Hopefully tomorrow will be a better day.
On reflection I think I was wise to do this myself even considering how horrible it has been as our Ford dealership would have just pi*sed me off by not doing the job right the first time. And just for the record, of my 10 or 12 trips to the dealer for service, not one was completed to my satisfaction. I must be one picky sob or they always put the idiots on my cars.
I've been working on cars since I was 13 and this has to be the absolute worst experience of my life. There is no way I could possibly convey the level of frustration today has brought me. Hopefully tomorrow will be a better day.
On reflection I think I was wise to do this myself even considering how horrible it has been as our Ford dealership would have just pi*sed me off by not doing the job right the first time. And just for the record, of my 10 or 12 trips to the dealer for service, not one was completed to my satisfaction. I must be one picky sob or they always put the idiots on my cars.
#5
#7
Hey brother, wow-- I sure do feel your pain! I just flushed my cooling system in November (twice) in 2 days! I screwed up (twice) by trusting my bride to purchase my coolant for me, and I also did this project in the dark and I also didn't carefully read the coolant jug carefully and I didn't verify the color of the coolant before pouring it in! Well, I completely flushed and refilled the system (4 gallons of straight coolant and the rest was distilled water). After finishing flushing, I reinstalled the thermostat and the gasket and refilled the system, but the only reason I re-did this was because the gasket leaked. I took a closer look at the degass bottle (this time with a flash light) and noticed it wasn't a deep green color-- it was a ****-yellow! Oh damn-- I was so mad!!! It was almost midnight! I turned around and bought the right coolant, anther 8 gallons about of demin water, more SCA from Ford, and re-did the whole thing the next night! I also lost one of my thermostat housing bolts and bought new ones from the auto parts store, that same evening. As usual, I have to double-stack the washers so the head of the 3 bolts sit up high enough so I can get a good torque on the bolt heads and not strip them! And no, I didn't pull the right and left side water jacket drain plugs because the passenger side (above the starter) was some kind of bolt stuck in there instead of the usual plug. Also, I couldn't get the driver side out anyway. I just drained and flushed the heck out of it until the system ran clear and I got not more little bits of crud also. And, to speed up your project, don't use the radiator drain valve. Instead, use a big plastic storage bin up under the lower hose. There is a center hose coming down from the degass bottle. Loosen the hose clamp, slide it back, and just yank the hose off (with the plastic bin underneath). Yes, expect to get soaked. You will have to drain/refill/drain a bunch of times but it sure beats trying to use just that tiny little radiator drain valve! So smile brother-- you'll be laughing about this in 10 years!
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#8
@ mesimpson66 - LOL. Sounds like you had it worse than I did. Thanks for the post. I don't feel so bad now.
Voltage in your coolant? If so you have electrolysis. Electrolysis will eat away at the aluminum components in your cooling system. How do you know if you have electrolysis going on in your cooling system?
Using a volt-meter set to the D/C scale, place the negative lead on ground, the engine block, or any known good ground and put the positive lead into your coolant. Any reading above .1v means you have electrolysis. Readings .09 down to .01 are ok. Mine read .35v so I definitely had an issue.
I wont go into electrolysis as there is a ton of info here and others on this site are more schooled on this than I am.
Voltage in your coolant? If so you have electrolysis. Electrolysis will eat away at the aluminum components in your cooling system. How do you know if you have electrolysis going on in your cooling system?
Using a volt-meter set to the D/C scale, place the negative lead on ground, the engine block, or any known good ground and put the positive lead into your coolant. Any reading above .1v means you have electrolysis. Readings .09 down to .01 are ok. Mine read .35v so I definitely had an issue.
I wont go into electrolysis as there is a ton of info here and others on this site are more schooled on this than I am.
#9
#13
I actually just re-read this thread ....... and NO you do not need to flush anything........Just install the new Heater core see if it leaks ...do not over tighten the clamps as they can " egg -out" the heater core inlet / outlet tubes .... it is like copper alloy so it is easy to destroy ........... rub out is another consideration however.... where the tubes exit the firewall needs to be protected....
#14
#15
read this if you think you have eletrolyis problems this is a tsb by ford
http://www.stangnet.com/images/stori...s/06-21-19.pdf
http://www.stangnet.com/images/stori...s/06-21-19.pdf