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Car Forum / Driving, Maintenance, Tuning / Maintenance and Repair / October 2007Radiator cap pressure.
My cooling system has a small leak in heater core. (1987 Lincoln Town Car.) Bars Stop leak has reduced it but not completely. If i keep the radiator fluid level about an inch from full, (when cold) it greatly reduces the heater core steam. Which means the cooling overflow tank stays empty. Engine does not run hotter because when it gets hot the fluid fills the radiator. There is no antifreeze smell or steam when air conditioning is running. I assume that since the radiator has a small air space in it, that it reduces the pressure, therefore the leak stops. If the car has a 16 lb radiator cap, would using a 13 lb cap instead have the same effect? Reduced pressure means less or no leak in heater core. my advice would be to get a new heater core installed. you could run the car with the rad cap on losely until you get it replaced to reduce the amount of steam in the car. boxing@sasktel.net wrote in news:1192602146.095695.183540 @q5g2000prf.googlegroups.com: > my advice would be to get a new heater core installed. you could run > the car with the rad cap on losely until you get it replaced to reduce > the amount of steam in the car. No he can`t, side flow rad. will leak if the cap is loose. I use a 3 to 7 lb cap on many of my units to stop the chance of blowing a hose when overheating is not a issue. KB  SignatureThunder Snake #9 "Protect" your rights or "lose" them. > My cooling system has a small leak in heater core. (1987 Lincoln Town > Car.) Bars Stop leak has reduced it but not completely. The only "fix" to to actually FIX it. The big issue is with safety. When that slow leak finally decided to blow out, it will fill the front seat with scalding steam. It can do this at a moments notice. That said I have made it home with a loose cap before, but I sure wouldn't trust a cap's pressure to prevent a blow out. Mike 86/00 CJ7 Laredo, 33x9.5 BFG Muds, 'glass nose to tail in '00 88 Cherokee 235 BFG AT's - Gone to the rust pile... > My cooling system has a small leak in heater core. (1987 Lincoln Town > Car.) Bars Stop leak has reduced it but not completely. If i keep the [quoted text clipped - 11 lines] > have the same effect? Reduced pressure means less or no leak in heater > core. > The big issue is with safety. When that slow leak finally decided > to blow out, it will fill the front seat with scalding steam. It > can do this at a moments notice. Or at the very least it'll fill your windshield with steam condensation, for example (as it happened with my '88 Grand Marquis) while you're driving down the Interstate highway in the middle of the night. Not fun, no sir. SignatureMark Shroyer http://markshroyer.com/ You can use a 13 lb cap. You can probably use a 7 lb cap depending on the thermostat opening temperature and antifreeze concentration. > My cooling system has a small leak in heater core. (1987 Lincoln Town > Car.) Bars Stop leak has reduced it but not completely. If i keep the [quoted text clipped - 11 lines] > have the same effect? Reduced pressure means less or no leak in heater > core. >You can use a 13 lb cap. You can probably use a 7 lb cap depending on the thermostat opening temperature and antifreeze concentration. However, doing so will only postpone the inevitable dramatic failure. --scott Signature"C'est un Nagra. C'est suisse, et tres, tres precis." >>You can use a 13 lb cap. You can probably use a 7 lb cap depending on the thermostat opening temperature and antifreeze concentration. > > However, doing so will only postpone the inevitable dramatic failure. At the worst possible time. Don't ask me how I know. SignatureOne meter, to within 0.0125% accuracy (off by just under .005 inches): Three feet Three inches Three eights of an inch >I assume that since the radiator has a small air space in it, that it >reduces the pressure, therefore the leak stops. > >If the car has a 16 lb radiator cap, would using a 13 lb cap instead >have the same effect? Reduced pressure means less or no leak in heater >core. It's worth a try though you do have a risk of engine damage by doing so. You can get coolant boiling in the heads if the pressure is low. Steve B. |
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