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collapsed radiator hose and rusty radiator???


jodom15sc

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so idk if anybody remembers but i replaced by thermostat about a month or so ago, been having some problems with thermostat gauge and i read on here air might be the problem

ANYWAYS....point of the story, i go to walmart yesterday, as me and my buddy walk out we see antifreeze has dripped out from somewhere, we check thermostat housing and its fine then BAM i see that the radiator hose that leads to the housing looks as if all the air has been sucked out and looks all shriveled up and looks like a grape almost. hahaha, but still i notice the resovior is full of fluid. The truck is not all the way hot, so we just go ahead and pop the radiator cap off and theres absolutley no fuild in the radiator and we see that theres alot of rust in there. And ive never put just water in my radiator so im assuming the guy i bought it from used alot since he lived in the desert. So me and my buddy pour some antifreeze into the radiator till its full enough.

All i know to do is drain out all the antifreeze with water, and then pour in brand new fresh antifree and my buddy said to go get my radiator and cooling system pressured

any ideas and types to whats wrong or what to do?:icon_confused:
 


86freebie

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radiator cap, designed when it gets hot it blows into reservoir and as it cools it sucks it back through i little metal flap in the center. if that has rusted closed it will blow out but cant suck back in. if it is just rust colored you can try some radiator flush and then water, and repeat once or twice. unless you have the radiator taken out and cored that is all most shop do. then after a couple of those put in the coolant/water

if it is sludge, you need to have it cored and bring to a shop to have flushed. not the local oil changers who will "flush" the system by running a couple gallons of clean coolant through the system, for a healthy system that flush is great to keep it clean.

one last thing, and it is only because you were low on water. what does the oil look like?
 
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jodom15sc

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what color was the oil? or the antifreeze?

oil is still good, bout to change it

antifreeze was fine, wasnt sludge or anything, dripped out green but resevoir it was kinda brownish orange, i think, ima just flush it today soon as my classes are over
 

86freebie

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and change the radiator cap for sure
 

Shran

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I had a problem with rusty antifreeze for a while too. I ended up replacing the heater core, all the hoses, thermostat, radiator cap, and a junkyard radiator. It was bad to the point where the heater core was completely filled with rust and flushing didn't do a damn thing. Somehow it didn't overheat.

I just ran water from the garden hose through the thermostat hole with everything taken apart until it ran clean, which I would estimate was about 30 minutes worth of water using a garden sprayer. After that I ran another 20 minutes of water through the new radiator. Problem solved. :icon_thumby:
 

kunar

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if your hoses are that soft, they should be replaced as well.
 

adv5500

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I was under the impression that the inside of a radiator can't rust because it's copper
 

Shran

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I was under the impression that the inside of a radiator can't rust because it's copper
Copper or aluminum usually. And you're right, those won't rust, but everything else inside the motor will given the right conditions.
 

graff104

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Copper or aluminum usually. And you're right, those won't rust, but everything else inside the motor will given the right conditions.
Aren't the sometimes brass also?
 

snoopdoggie

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Heaters cores can be brass but have never seen a brass radiator.
 

Shran

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cocoasranger

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Some brands of radiator hose have stainless steel springs inside that prevent the collapse of the hose. Something you might consider if a new one still sucks together.
 

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