Radiator Cleaning Question

AcIdBuRn02ZTS

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Simple green or cascade dishwasher powder... cap it.. fill it up and let it soak. May have to do it several times but it'll get it all out.

Then flush it with lots of water... then I'd do a few distilled water flushes before putting it to use.
 

Hydro-idi

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I would say use dishwasher powder soap, as it does not foam all that much. It will get rid of the oily mess in the cooling system.
 

snicklas

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I would say use dishwasher powder soap, as it does not foam all that much. It will get rid of the oily mess in the cooling system.

At this point, there's not oil in the cooling system. The radiator I want to clean is actually lying on the rear cargo floor in my Excursion. The possibility oily radiator is out of a truck that is being parted. I don't want to introduce the oil into my truck that has a freshly flushed system just a radiator with a blown tank.....

How well would they dishwasher detergent work without being moved around by the water pump? That's one reason I thought dawn or simple green would be a better out of the truck solution. I'll use whatever will work best. My main goal is to not end up having to flush the truck again and contaminate $100 worth of coolant.......
 

AcIdBuRn02ZTS

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Simple green works just as well. Pick your poison basically. The chemicals in the dishwasher powder will still break down oil. Cap the radiator and slosh it around ever so often while it's soaking... With what ever you choose to use.
 

riotwarrior

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2 things....drain filter and save current coolant...

Use A box of automatic dish detergent poured and dissolved into boiling water....fill rad soak it and rinse well..do a couple times...then install w autodishdetergent again dissolved in water and fulsh system...why not clean out block.

Auto dish detergent does not foam up like dawn and cascade cuts grease too and is designed to run in a machine...this should flush block and rad nicely...do a few water flushes...and voila u should be pristine to reinstall that coolant previously saved

JM7.3CW Eh!
 

Thatoneguy

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If you decide to go the simple green route... Since its only a couple bucks per gallon I would do like 2 gallons and maybe a little water in there too. Basically you don't want the radiator more than like 1/2-3/4 full so that when you pick it up, spin it, slosh it, etc.... It has room to splash around in there. Or do a gallon and water once, pour it out and do the same thing again. Totally up to you. This is one of those things that can be done effectively dozens of different ways. I just always use simple green again for the fact that I just pop the petcock and let it drain down the driveway into the gutter and not have to worry about it. Then I have a clean driveway too! :D
 

liddledoggie

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they didn't used to recommend putting aluminum pot and pans in a dishwasher. I have done that and they don't come out pretty. know way I would use dishwasher detergent in my aluminum radiator. joe
 

jrollf

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A quick wash with Regular Simple Green might be OK, you DON'T want to soak it, if you want to soak it you probably want to use Simple Green for Aircraft, it is supposedly designed to not hurt aluminum.

From the Simple Green Website:
"Aluminum - Is it safe to use Simple Green® on aluminum?
When used with caution and according to the instructions, Simple Green All-Purpose Cleaner has been safely and successfully used to clean aluminum. Simple Green All-Purpose Cleaner, Crystal Simple Green® Cleaner/Degreaser, Simple Green Pressure Washer Concentrates, and Pro Series™ Simple Green® Automotive Cleaner have been used on aircraft, automotive, industrial and consumer aluminum items for over 20 years. However, caution and common sense must be used: aluminum is a soft metal that easily corrodes with unprotected exposure to water. The aqueous-base and alkalinity of Simple Green All-Purpose Cleaner can accelerate the corrosion process. Therefore, contact times for unprotected or unpainted aluminum surfaces should be kept as brief as the job will allow - never for more than 10 minutes. Large cleaning jobs should be conducted in smaller-area stages to achieve lower contact time. Rinsing after cleaning should always be extremely thorough - paying special attention to flush out cracks and crevices to remove all Simple Green® product residues. Unfinished, uncoated or unpainted aluminum cleaned with Simple Green products should receive some sort of protectant after cleaning to prevent oxidation.

Simple Green has also developed break-through water based cleaners that are safe for use on metals, plastics, rubber and high tech alloys. Extreme Simple Green® Aircraft & Precision Cleaner and Simple Green® Pro HD are available on both the industrial and retail markets, respectively. These products were initially developed for the aircraft industry and extensive testing shows that they are safe and effective on a variety of metals and other sensitive surfaces even in the most extreme circumstances."
 
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