how to do coolant flush on 2002 4WD F250SD 5.4L

 

I want to know this also. It was easy back when the radiators had a cap on them. Now with just an overflow tank I'm not sure.

Budman

 

Drain it out the bottom of the radiator and refill in the overflow tank. After you think its full run it for a little while then top it off again. Check also after several full heat/cool cycles so you know its pulled all the water back into the radiator it can.

 

The main tube from the overflow tank goes down to the bottom of the radiator. So when you refill it how can the air get out of the radiator. Do you have to disconect a hose somewhere?

Budman

 

well i do it a bit differently...just a drain and refill will only change about half of the coolant. what i do is loosen the drain plug at the bottom and drain, and i see approximately how much comes out by pouring it into empty gallon jugs...if my memory serves me right my 99 5.4 only drained out about 10-12 quarts, could be wrong its been a while. also you will need to look in your manual and see what the complete capacity is of the system. think its about 22 or 24 quarts.
Then close it up and fill with straight water. keep the overflow cap off and start your truck with heater on full blast. let it come to normal operating temp (about 10 minutes) and then loosen the drain plug again WHILE it is running (have a hose ready or lots of water). keep a steady flow of water going in the radiator as it is draining and do this until the stuff coming out is clear water. a trick i learned so the water doesn't just go straight out the drain plug is to only loosen it half way, that way you get a good flush.
once it is clear water turn of the hose and let whatever is in the radiator to drain out.
now here is where you use all of the info you found...if the capacity is 24 quarts and you drained out 12 quarts the first time then you know you are about 12 quarts low right now, which is easy to make a 50/50 mix, just add straight coolant until it is full. if the numbers are different just go from there. also don't forget to check it every day for about 3 days as the level will drop a bit.

 

my coolant is yellow in my 02 should probably stick with the same.

 

The overflow tank has a small tube from the top of the radiator to the top of the tank, if I recall correctly. It bleeds itself.

The problem no one has mentioned is all the coolant still in the engine itself.

What I do, and it's probably the WORST thing you can do environmentally is to remove the thermostat, put the housing back, open the drain in the radiator, put the hose into the top of the radiator and turn it on, and start the engine.

When the stuff runs clear, eventually, turn off the engine, turn off the hose, and let the radiator drain out. Close the radiator drain.

Look in the owner's manual for the cooling system capacity, put in HALF that amount of 100% coolant (for a 50/50 mix) and fill it the rest of the way with plain water. That way, it's a 50/50 mix.

What I do is run propylene glycol so it's non-toxic and won't hurt the environment. The metals in it aren't so good, so if you really want to do the right thing, capture the runoff and dispose of it the right way.

You can also try removing the drains in the block for the water jacket, but those are usually impossible to get to and remove.

 

Here is how I did mine (6.0 but the concept is still the same). I used distilled water for the whole process.

Find out half of your cooling system's capacity (should say in the manual). That is how much coolant you will need (to get a 50/50 mix).

Drain the radiator. Refill with distilled water. Drive around with heater on until warmed up. Drain again, refill, drive. I did this about 4-5 times until the system was completely distilled water.

Drain again. Now add the the coolant. Okay, you now have the correct amount of coolant in the system. All you have to do is top off with water and you have a 50/50 mix. Done. Whole thing took me about 2 hours if you include the driving.

 

I do my vehicles almost like post 5# did but i drain radiator and fill up with hose water, turn on heater full blast and unhook upper radiator hose at the radiator. Run truck at operating temps and as the thermostat cycles the water i,m filling the radiator with water as its flushing the motor. Do that for a while until clear water comes out the top radiator hose, add and fill and cycle with new antifreeze until full.