Engine Running Hot

[Hammerhead]

You inspired me Mitch, so I decided to clean mine really good. I found some streaking indicating small leaks in the rad, so out she come and off to the rad shop for pressure testing and beefing up...

I clean my cooling system every spring. I have used Simple Green, Spray 9, and Zep Purple degreaser. I do it cold, I have a thin sheet of plastic I slide between the condenser and CAC, soak it down with one of the above (I found the Zep best) and use a garden hose with one of those brass spray nozzles set on high pressure so I don't damage any of the fins. I usually do each component twice, but will do a third run through if it's still coming out dirty on 2. After the condenser is done, I unbolt it and move it out of the way on the flexible hoses so I don't have to drain and recharge the system as I don't have that equipment. Then I slide the plastic sheet between the CAC and the rad and repeat the process. When the CAC is clean, I pull and do a leak test on it and then repeat the cleaning process with my rad. I use the sheet so that I don't push the crap from one piece to the next, then when I do the initial soak of each component with cleaning agent, it gets the full concentration. After four years I pull the rad and have it pressure tested and gone through by the rad shop. I know this sounds extreme, but running 150-200,000 loaded, I need all the cooling I can get. I'm going to roof mount the condenser "Old Skool" on the next truck to remove some CAC/rad restriction.