Gsmblue Posted October 2, 2018 Author Share Posted October 2, 2018 I think your dog has a new home. Anyway, job well done. Now it is time to drive it? I need to get the radiator switched out, it is leaking pretty bad! I have the replacement, I will get the lower hoses tomorrow and my friend is coming to help change it out on Thursday. Never done a radiator before!! Any advice? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gsmblue Posted October 2, 2018 Author Share Posted October 2, 2018 I need to get the radiator switched out, it is leaking pretty bad! I have the replacement, I will get the lower hoses tomorrow and my friend is coming to help change it out on Thursday. Never done a radiator before!! Any advice? You can see the drips under the front bumper! I really need to get that sorted.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary Lewis Posted October 2, 2018 Share Posted October 2, 2018 You can see the drips under the front bumper! I really need to get that sorted.... I always make a mess changing a radiator. There's more coolant than you think, and it is tough getting all of it. It'll hide in the radiator hoses, especially the lower one. And the drain petcock will leak and/or dribble. So drain it the best you can. I like to use a 5 gallon bucket to drain it into because it has a wide mouth, which catches most of the dribbles. But the petcock is going to put it onto the radiator support, which will run all over the place, so I like to have a hose handy to wash things down. I've tried placing a small hose on the petcock, but it didn't help much. And sometimes debris in the coolant partially plugs the petcock, in which case a wire may help clear it. Then when you have the radiator drained as best you can remove the lower radiator hose. And be prepared for coolant to be hiding in there. If your coolant is new, meaning w/in the last year, you could reuse it. But given the debris you'll find in it, and the short two year life of the additives in coolant, replacement is the best bet. But the system won't take as much as you think it should on the first go. That's because it'll be full of air. And getting the air out takes time. I like to fill it up initially and start the engine with the radiator cap off. Some times you'll see the level go way down and you can add more coolant. But, as the engine gets warm the level will come up and then its time to put the cap on. Now you need to do several cycles of warming it up and letting it cool, all the while making sure that the coolant recovery bottle has plenty of coolant in it. As it warms up it'll push coolant into the bottle, but as it cools down it'll pull it back, so you want to make sure it has enough so that it never pulls air back. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1986F150Six Posted October 2, 2018 Share Posted October 2, 2018 I always make a mess changing a radiator. There's more coolant than you think, and it is tough getting all of it. It'll hide in the radiator hoses, especially the lower one. And the drain petcock will leak and/or dribble. So drain it the best you can. I like to use a 5 gallon bucket to drain it into because it has a wide mouth, which catches most of the dribbles. But the petcock is going to put it onto the radiator support, which will run all over the place, so I like to have a hose handy to wash things down. I've tried placing a small hose on the petcock, but it didn't help much. And sometimes debris in the coolant partially plugs the petcock, in which case a wire may help clear it. Then when you have the radiator drained as best you can remove the lower radiator hose. And be prepared for coolant to be hiding in there. If your coolant is new, meaning w/in the last year, you could reuse it. But given the debris you'll find in it, and the short two year life of the additives in coolant, replacement is the best bet. But the system won't take as much as you think it should on the first go. That's because it'll be full of air. And getting the air out takes time. I like to fill it up initially and start the engine with the radiator cap off. Some times you'll see the level go way down and you can add more coolant. But, as the engine gets warm the level will come up and then its time to put the cap on. Now you need to do several cycles of warming it up and letting it cool, all the while making sure that the coolant recovery bottle has plenty of coolant in it. As it warms up it'll push coolant into the bottle, but as it cools down it'll pull it back, so you want to make sure it has enough so that it never pulls air back. I have placed the catch pan under the bottom radiator hose and cut the hose [sacrifice] on the bottom and just walk away. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gsmblue Posted October 2, 2018 Author Share Posted October 2, 2018 I always make a mess changing a radiator. There's more coolant than you think, and it is tough getting all of it. It'll hide in the radiator hoses, especially the lower one. And the drain petcock will leak and/or dribble. So drain it the best you can. I like to use a 5 gallon bucket to drain it into because it has a wide mouth, which catches most of the dribbles. But the petcock is going to put it onto the radiator support, which will run all over the place, so I like to have a hose handy to wash things down. I've tried placing a small hose on the petcock, but it didn't help much. And sometimes debris in the coolant partially plugs the petcock, in which case a wire may help clear it. Then when you have the radiator drained as best you can remove the lower radiator hose. And be prepared for coolant to be hiding in there. If your coolant is new, meaning w/in the last year, you could reuse it. But given the debris you'll find in it, and the short two year life of the additives in coolant, replacement is the best bet. But the system won't take as much as you think it should on the first go. That's because it'll be full of air. And getting the air out takes time. I like to fill it up initially and start the engine with the radiator cap off. Some times you'll see the level go way down and you can add more coolant. But, as the engine gets warm the level will come up and then its time to put the cap on. Now you need to do several cycles of warming it up and letting it cool, all the while making sure that the coolant recovery bottle has plenty of coolant in it. As it warms up it'll push coolant into the bottle, but as it cools down it'll pull it back, so you want to make sure it has enough so that it never pulls air back. Thanks Gary. I have new coolant and a new radiator. The hoses have been ordered. All I need now is some distilled water and a beer! I think the existing coolant is junk. So I will replace with new coolant and distilled water. I am sure this will make a giant mess! Kinda looking forward to it :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary Lewis Posted October 2, 2018 Share Posted October 2, 2018 Thanks Gary. I have new coolant and a new radiator. The hoses have been ordered. All I need now is some distilled water and a beer! I think the existing coolant is junk. So I will replace with new coolant and distilled water. I am sure this will make a giant mess! Kinda looking forward to it :) Yes, I've also "slit the throat" of the lower hose. But some hoses are hard to cut, and then some of them come right back where they were and it drains so slowly. If you are replacing the coolant there's the question of what to do with what's in the engine after draining. I don't recommend that you try to remove a block plug. They don't come out easily and might break off or strip out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1986F150Six Posted October 2, 2018 Share Posted October 2, 2018 Thanks Gary. I have new coolant and a new radiator. The hoses have been ordered. All I need now is some distilled water and a beer! Does the beer lubricate the water pump? Â Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gsmblue Posted October 2, 2018 Author Share Posted October 2, 2018 Yes, I've also "slit the throat" of the lower hose. But some hoses are hard to cut, and then some of them come right back where they were and it drains so slowly. If you are replacing the coolant there's the question of what to do with what's in the engine after draining. I don't recommend that you try to remove a block plug. They don't come out easily and might break off or strip out. A friend suggested I put the old coolant back in and drive straight to Jiffy Lube where they can do a flush and get all the stuff out... Does not sound like a terrible idea. The local Jiffy here are a good group.. They get scared when I pull up in my Bullnose trucks! But they always like seeing the progress! And the beer is for me. Definitely for me. Maybe more than one! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary Lewis Posted October 2, 2018 Share Posted October 2, 2018 A friend suggested I put the old coolant back in and drive straight to Jiffy Lube where they can do a flush and get all the stuff out... Does not sound like a terrible idea. The local Jiffy here are a good group.. They get scared when I pull up in my Bullnose trucks! But they always like seeing the progress! And the beer is for me. Definitely for me. Maybe more than one! I wouldn't put the old stuff back in as you'll probably have a lot of gunk in it. Especially since some of it will run across the radiator support before finding its way into the bucket. So, if you are going to have it flushed just fill it up with water. That way it'll be partially flushed just from that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1986F150Six Posted October 2, 2018 Share Posted October 2, 2018 I wouldn't put the old stuff back in as you'll probably have a lot of gunk in it. Especially since some of it will run across the radiator support before finding its way into the bucket. So, if you are going to have it flushed just fill it up with water. That way it'll be partially flushed just from that. And carry the old coolant with you so it can be properly disposed of. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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