Which heater core?

[saburai]

Hi All!
The old mule's heater core if leaking. I bypassed it to be certain. Rock Auto offers four choices, with the Motorcraft the $$$, being 3x the price of the other most expensive option. Which is the "best" choice? Also, is it worth it to look into getting the OEM repaired? I didn't do a search, but is it a time consuming job?
RockAuto choices:

https://www.rockauto.com/en/catalog...4378,heat+&+air+conditioning,heater+core,6864

Many thanks...

 

[nostrokes]

Personally I'd go with the motorcraft. Do you have a NAPA store anywhere near you? Their parts are decently priced/good quality and you usually don't have to pay shipping. I know Rock Auto's shipping is pretty high they wanted $20 to ship a tranny cooler line..

 

[Clb]

When I did my obs...
No matter who you buy from , it will be china alumin. Crap (you need to run an elect. Ground to it to stop electrollysis..)
UNLESS you go to brassworks and get an all brass unit.

Sit down before asking the price.

 

[saburai]

Thanks guys! $250 for the Brassworks is hard to swallow. How difficult of a job is the replacement? Love me some NAPA as well!

 

[DaveBen]

It is easy, just drop the glove box door and the heater box is directly behind. A few screws and out it will come, after you remove the hoses in the engine compartment.

 

[saburai]

It is easy, just drop the glove box door and the heater box is directly behind. A few screws and out it will come, after you remove the hoses in the engine compartment.

Thanks! I was looking at it earlier and it seemed pretty easy. If it were a pull the column and dash affair like my XJ, I'd be tempted to get the Brassworks core. But since it's a easy job, if I've got to do it again in a year or three, well I'm okay with that!

 

[icanfixall]

Go to you tube. Ask how to replace heater core... Its plenty helpful to "watch others" do the job before you try it. But its simple. Remove the glove box.See the black square box behind it with 4 screw heads 5/16 size. a nut driver and its opened exposing the core. Have the hoses off the other engine side and just pull it back into the cab.

 

[Fixnstuff]

Hi All!
The old mule's heater core if leaking. I bypassed it to be certain. Rock Auto offers four choices, with the Motorcraft the $$$, being 3x the price of the other most expensive option. Which is the "best" choice? Also, is it worth it to look into getting the OEM repaired? I didn't do a search, but is it a time consuming job?
RockAuto choices:

https://www.rockauto.com/en/catalog...4378,heat+&+air+conditioning,heater+core,6864

Many thanks...

I did research this quite extensively and very recently (my old heater core is out right now and bypassed. Not always as easy as everyone says IF you want to do it exactly right. (like I do) with the foam seal in the correct location, blend door or outside air door operating properly and not getting obstructed, etc. (I have a problem with one of those).

I honestly spent 2-3 days LOTS of hours each day searching for a brass/copper heater core, researching the different manufactures and as some already mentioned, they are ALL aluminum, even those that show an image that appears to be brass/copper <--- those are aluminum -the images are misleading.

I chose the APDI/PRO 9010205 because that company provided the most (amount) of technical information on their manufacturing details.
They have a special coating that prevents electrolytic corrosion. I think that most, if not all of the aluminum cores have such a coating but some sellers don't even mention it (probably don't know about it)

THAT (corrosion) WILL be a problem if you have a Brass/copper radiator and any stray current to ground in the truck, (which I think that most of these old trucks will have), will cause a small current to flow from aluminum heater core to the brass radiator and carry some aluminum ions with it until the heater core develops pinhole leaks or worse. It is this galvanic corrosion though electrolysis which causes these aluminum heater cores to fail prematurely.

NOW, if I have the direction of current flow correct, it might be interesting to note that a NEW Aluminum Radiator could be subject to the same electrolysis issue and corrosion IF you have an original brass/copper heater core. Metal ions would be removed from the Aluminum and carried toward the brass heater core.

All manufacturers certainly must be aware of this by now and coat their aluminum heat exchange components (radiators and heater cores) HOWEVER:

IS THE COATING USED TO PROTECT THESE ALUMINUM COMPONENTS ADEQUATE TO PROTECT THEM?

MAYBE but I personally am NOT going to trust the coating. The amount of stray current in the truck could be a factor that determines how long the parts will resist corrosion.

EDIT: The primary solution or preventive measure is to check the ground connections in the vehicle to make sure they are all good grounds with no loose connections or corrosion, no broken ground wires. The factory manuals describe the location of every ground in the vehicle. I would start with Negative battery cables and engine ground straps in the vehicle. Ground wires from the factory are always BLACK and connect to the metal frame or body.

Someone posted about GROUNDING THE HEATER CORE to remedy this potential problem. I have read about that before, it makes sense....

EDIT: DO NOT GROUND THE HEATER CORE. This Warning was issued by Ford in a second Technical Service Bulletin related to the Heater Core Corrosion Issues. See post #35 in this topic thread.

 

[Fixnstuff]

I found the following two Youtube videos for replacing the heater core on 1989 generation 8 (87-91) F250's. Generation 9 is probably very similar.
There is a vertical door on the left side of the heater core toward the seat and the top of mine came loose and the door fell out while I was gently removing the core so I have to figure out how that is supposed to attach at the top. So tonight, my project is to research to find out how that attaches. (I have the Ford service manuals for 1987 but I may have to search beyond what is in the manuals.

Originally I was not sure exactly how and where to use the wide foam strip that came with the heater core. At this point I am willing to assume that these guys used it properly.

My heater core cover (held on by 7 hex head screws) was sealed to the box with black silicone and I'm going to use a small bead of Permatex Ultra-Black from a pressurized tube with a trigger and nozzle. The Reason I chose that pressurized tube (about $23.00 at NAPA) is so I can INJECT the RTV sealant into voids and gaps around the tubes on the firewall side in the engine compartment, where I removed a lot of old material. I preferred to spend the extra money for the pressurized tube so I don't have to try to push the sealant into those gaps with a tool or my fingers. Plus this might be very convenient for some other applications to inject the sealant deep enough into narrow gaps and tight areas.

I'll get back to this topic later with any helpful info I find from the service manuals.

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I dropped the cover down though the bottom and laid it on the floor, as shown in the first video. The heater core also came out though the bottom.

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[Fixnstuff]

A quick note on pH values of your anti-freeze mix:

pH factor of the coolant is extremely important in terms of the corrosion being discussed. Below 7 is ACIDIC and Above 7 is ALKALINE. We want a HIGH pH value for our coolant, very alkaline. The more acidic the coolant becomes with age and use, the better electrolyte it is and the easier current can flow through it and cause corrosion by galvanic corrosion or electrolysis. (two different things)

EDIT: There is certainly some common confusion between the terms 'galvanic corrosion' and 'electrolysis' I was confused and and changed the previous paragraph to use both terms. Somewhere along the way in this topic, the difference between the two will get sorted out. End of EDIT.

A 50% mix of Fleet Charge SCA Precharged coolant has a pH value of 10.4 when it's new. Very alkaline (non-acidic).

The test strips (which I have here but I have not used yet with this coolant change- maybe I'll try one tomorrow) should have a pH test bar on them to determine pH. I ASSUME that by properly maintaining the SCA level, the pH will remain high.

The following will help explain:

PARTIAL Quotes below from: http://www.divelys.com/cool.htm

DIVELY'S GARAGE
WHAT IS A COOLING SYSTEM SERVICE?

Whenever a fluid is in contact with metal, electrochemical degradation takes place which results in a higher than normal level of acid present in any given fluid. [A lower pH number]. This higher acid level, if left unchanged, can result in very costly repairs. As a result, it is recommended to flush your cooling system, and most importantly pH balance your antifreeze at least once every 2 years or 30,000 miles. This will help reduce the acid level and extend the life of your radiator, heater core, water pump, head gaskets, freeze plugs, radiator and heater hoses.

Related to flushing the cooling system:

For the best removal and metal protection 50% water and 50% antifreeze is desired. The proper mix is determined by checking the coolant level; -35 degrees equals 50/50 . The problem comes when the pH of water is 7.0 to 7.2 and antifreeze pH is 10.5 right out of the gallon. A 50/50 mix of water and antifreeze would have a pH factor of 8.75. This level is too acidic for today's cooling system. The recommended pH level should be between 9.8 and 10.5; this level greatly reduces the acid content, that together with electrochemical reaction of dissimilar materials causes electrochemical degradation.

 

[Fixnstuff]

Diesel engine coolant pH:

Most major engine manufacturers recommend coolant pH levels between 8.5 to 10.5. If pH levels fall below 8.0 rapid nitrite depletion will occur. Coolant pH levels above 11.5 will corrode aluminum and promote scaling.

So, pH of 8.5 to 10.5, median 9.5, is where we hope to keep it

That quote above was taken from:

Diesel Engine Coolant Analysis, New Application for Established Instrumentation - by Spectro Scientific

https://www.azom.com/article.aspx?ArticleID=3399

If you want to learn ALOT about diesel engine coolant analyses, check out that web page.

 

[Fixnstuff]

A final note or disclaimer from me: I didn't have the time or convenience to confirm everything that I wrote pertaining to the science involved in this electrolytic corrosion problem. It needed to be stated though so I wasn't overly concerned about any errors this time. If you see something that is not correct please feel free to correct it. I was going mostly by memory from a long time ago when I studied most of this stuff. (1970's-1980s) So it might not be precisely correct from memory, but, it goes something like that.

Thanks

 

[Clb]

The next guy is gunna cuss you for gluing the core in with rtv.
Duck **** or plumbers putty are removable.

 

[saburai]

Thanks for all the good information!

Next question: how hard is the blower motor?

 

[79jasper]

Can you use a ratchet/nutdriver and unplug electrical connections? Lol

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