Filling cooling system, you need this.

[Waterloo]

Well, got the old 2008 ProStar all filled up with coolant. Instead of doing it the old fashioned way, which was giving me fits with an air pocket way up high in the heater core, I bought one of these.

https://amzn.to/2ZRWyvB

The needed adapters are in the kit, there was one in there that fit my bottle opening perfectly.

You will need a few things and do some shopping unless you have the below stuff laying around the garage. First, an air compressor, I used a Home Depot 20 gallon 90 psi air compressor, which easily handled the system, she stalled out at 26 hg when pulling the vacuum, but it was enough to fill the entire system in one shot.

I had to go to Home Depot and get an 8' piece of clear 3/8" I.D. hose to replace the to short supplied pick up tube. 8' was just the right length. You will also need a male air fitting for your particular compressor/air line. You will also need a 5 gallon bucket, or if you have one of those big shop pans, even better, and coolant.

I used a 5 gallon Home Depot bucket, put 3 gallons of coolant in her, than submerged the pickup hose entirely and used my block tester kit bulb to suck coolant into the entirety of the pickup hose. I did not want to introduce any air into the system. Been there, and done that already.

I then opened and had at the ready 10 more gallons of coolant, turned on the compressor, got her down to 26hg, hooked up the clear pick up hose with the screen on the end and commenced to filling the system! I think it took around 5 minutes and she was full. I was flying to keep up, pouring gallon after gallon into the bucket. She made it to just below the full line on the reservoir bottle and I shut off the valves. Done! Oh, if you have a helper, the job will be much easier.

I started the motor, let her get up to temp, radiator cap off... She got up to 185, I cracked the valve on the top crossover coolant line from the thermostat, it opened, and we had fluid! Closed her up, let her run a bit, and shut her down...

Now, the fun part, will the Tri-Pac have issues with an air pocket? Been there, and done that too...

I fired her up and ran her until she got to temp, no issues! Running and squealing like a pig! I already ordered a new Tri-Pac, as she is beyond long in the tooth... Getting it installed in December. She was already peeing fresh coolant on the ground when I went to close her up... Can't wait to replace her! And yes, I found and fixed the leak... Hose clamp.

Honestly, if you have a truck, and do your own coolant, buy one of these units. This one works, it is all brass and the adapters are all made of a good quality rubber. The unit is made in the USA too, which makes it even sweeter. There is a HD unit, but quite honestly, this one did the job in spades for my ProStar with the CM-871. I am keeping this tool. ;-)

[Rawze]

i use this kit. it does both vacuum + filling + prerssure testing...


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I have always used vacuum to fill coolant systems here when helping others. I think it is the only proper way to ensure there is no air in the system and that all the coolant will go back in that you took out.