Radiator flush

I have used dishwasher soap, like Cascade. It is relatively good about dislodging oils and fats, is not too corrosive, and can be dumped afterward.

That is why they offer them for sale. Some probably work better than others.

============ Would guess your radiator flush is caustic to remove mineral scale deposits. A simple detergent like Simple Green or Dawn, thoroughly rinsed from the radiator and engine block should be the way to remove residual oil contaimination.

I second the motion. But do NOT use regular diswashing detergent like Dawn or Palmolive. You need the anti-foaming agents that automatic dishwahser ditergents (Cascade, etc.) have or you'll *never* get all the trapped bubbles out of the system again. And don't leave it in too long- it probably won't make the water pump seals very happy.

Another thing that might work well is a dose of Redline 'Water Wetter' which is basically just a surfactant package (detergent) plus anti-foaming and anti-corrosion agents. The advantage is that its made for radiators, the disadvantage is that it isn't as strong a detergent.

Or you could just flush the system with plain water a couple of times in a row, driving the car around the block a few times and letting it come up to full operating temp before draining each time.

Most of them are made to break down scale build-up, NOT cut oil and grease. Two different chemical processes, there.

I'm certainly no expert, but strong bases (caustics like lye) are great at cutting oil and grease. I'm pretty sure that what the really heavy-duty industrial de-greasers use. I remember reading about someone who had to clean out decades of grease and oil that had accumulated on the ceiling of an industrial warehouse/workroom. One of the solutions was to use a solution of hot water and lye.

I know I'm not too clear on the details, so you should research it yourself, but the point is that a radiator flush will most likely work well.

Cascade is a powdered alkaline cleaner. It is largely inorganic, does not foam. That is why I recommended it. Neither does it chew up your aluminum pots and pans. It should not have hypochlorite in it. Read the label.

But buy what you want.

I am a little leery of acidic radiator cleaners. Some of the ones I used to see were based on citric acid, or stronger, in order to dissolve and sequester the iron which is common in blocks. Acids do nothing for silicate scale. An acquaintance used one of these long ago, and either cracked his block, or OPENED UP the crack that was already there.

We used to formulate a cleaner for our Caterpillar division which was based on sodium phosphate, with some other additives. They used this in their water blast cabinet for cleaning engine and parts, turbos, etc. It worked very well.

Lye (sodium hydroxide) may be a bit strong to use, especially if aluminum is present. Highly alkaline solutions dissolve aluminum in short order.

Yup. It works well on oils and greases.

It works very well to remove calcium scale, though, and will invariably get a lot of gunk out. The problem is that sometimes it's the gunk that is holding the radiator or block together, and removing that scale is a bad idea.

The best thing, of course, is to keep that scale from forming in the first place, which means regular fluid changes and using distilled water.

I can believe that.

--scott

Many years ago I worked at a cotton oil plant.Twice each year we would shut down the plant to do maintnance.We used a product called Oakite which was mixed with water to clean out the gunk inside of the machinery.When the water was mixed with the Oakite,the stuff would really warm up and we pumped it through the machinery that needed to have the gunk cleaned out.The Oakite did a really good job at cleaning.I don't think I would reccomend it for auto radiators though.

How long should I leave the cascade in the cooling system?

Overnight? few hours?

Thanks for the info.

Oakite had a wide line of industrial cleaning compounds. Really good stuff there. They had a product for just about every need, including radiators.

A few hours is probably sufficient. Actually, I have put a cupful in the radiator IN the car, started the car and let it heat up and circulate,and then drained the whole system. Never saw a problem with it.

Any time you flush a system, and remove a mass of scale, as others have posted, you run the risk of opening a leaky spot.

Why did your oil cooler fail in the first place? Corrosion, accident, ?

I use the powder. Predissolve it, or put it in the water in the radiator and circulate until hot. Clumping could be an issue, but I have never had any problems with it.

Does the liquid Cascade foam?

No. It is intended for use in dishwashers. Anything used in a dishwasher will be nonfoaming. Anything intended for hand dish washing will be foaming and less alkaline than a dishwasher detergent.

--scott