I knew when I bought my
Cherokee I wanted a Three core Radiator. I got mine at
Radiator.com for
$120.00 including shipping.
I had cooling problems when
I first got the thing which helped with the decision to replace the
Radiator right away. The thing always was over 215 degrees on the gauge.
When I drained the coolant and put the flush fluid in¸ the engine ran below
210 degrees. This remained for as long as I had just water in the old
radiator. which brings me to the point of writing this page.
There is a good write up on
Cherokee America
about changing out your radiator¸ but I disagree with a couple of the
points the author made. Both are in the same sentince¸ he suggests using
Dexcool because it leaves fewer deposits in your radiator.
First¸ I don't like Dexcool.
Not because it doesn't work. But when you are out in the boonies you better
have your own supply. Not everyone stocks Dexcool. And if you mix it with
Etheline Glycol (the green stuff we are all used to) it makes sludge in your
radiator.
Second¸ sludge does not come
from coolant. The coolant does two things. First it lowers
you freeze point and raises the boiling point of the water in your radiator.
If you live where it NEVER freezes you could run straight water and have
better cooling. (This is because water has a higher
specific temperature than antifreeze. That is pound for pound¸ it takes
more heat to raise it's temperature one degree than
it does to raise the temp of antifreeze.) You would however need to add
something like water wetter to preven corrosion and lube your
water pump. The Radiator cap also raises the boiling point of water so
this part of it I think is a wash. With water only you
would run cooler and not need to be as concerned about boil over. If your
system is marginal however¸ or you don't keep an eye on
your temp. gauge¸ you could still get boilover.
That being said¸ antifreezes second job is to PREVENT CORROSION. Do you
think that they could continue to sell the green stuff
If it CAUSED what it was meant to prevent? SO where do the deposits come
from?? Why the water of course! Does anybody you know have
a water softener? Water carries with it Minerals¸ iron¸ calcium¸ zinc¸
phosphorus and the like. When you heat the water they want to fall out
of suspension. Thus you get the gook in you radiator. Have you seen the
picture some shops have of clogged radiators? Most of the deposits are
white¸ that's mostly calcium from the water mixed with some of the other
minerals in the water we drink (don't worry WE actuall need these minerals)
Now¸ how do you prevent this
you ask? Good question! And a simple one to answer. Use Distilled water
only in your radiator.
Some places only have ¨purified¨ water now a days¸ this is OK as well.
They just used a different and simpler operation
(Reverse Osmossis) to remove the minerals from the water.
Now when I say only used distilled water in your radiator I mean when you
flush it as well. When you drain the thing there is always
some water left¸ and if you got that water out of the hose you got the
minerals with that. Yes they would be less that if you didn't fill with
the hose¸ but we don't want any of those solids in our radiator at all.
When I Flushed my radiator¸ I drained and filled it six times to get
the fluid running clear. I used about 14 gallons of distilled water to
do this. It only cost me 58 cents a gallon¸ so the added money to the
new radiator is very small compared to the fact that I now do not have
to worry about it clogging on me.