Coolant flush snag
 

I decided to flush out my coolant instead of paying 100 bucks to get it it done. Anyway, i used the prestone flush kit. Using the instructions and info from here,i flushed it out. However there was one part that confused me.

"With cap off TEE, pour the full amount of Antifreeze/Coolant into radiator, expansion tank, or thermostat housing opening. Water and slight amount of diluted Antifreeze/Coolant will be displaced from flushing TEE."

I thought it was telling me to pour full strength coolant in the radiator(It was :mad:) but that didnt make sense at the time. So after i mixed up my bottle to about 60/40, i filled up the system. I ran the engine bleeding air out and such. I started to think it was strange that it took only about a gallon. Then i realized that the system still had water in it :mad:.

What should i do? The water is now probably mixed with the coolant i added but it is probably very diluted. Should i drain the rad and fill it up again with 60/40(makes sense but i just want to make sure)

There was another post about doing the same thing but the topic kind of trailed off
Thanks for input :D

Yes, you will need to drain some and add full strength, then test the mix until you have the protection you need, I suggest you take out at least 3/4 a gallon. Make sure to run it (complete warm up and cool down) a few times before testing, so what is in the block and hoses mixes with what you put in the radiator.

Just a side question, did your car have dexcool, if no - never mind, if yes - did your put dexcool back in? Deathcool does not mix well with other coolants, even if it say mixes with all colors on the label of the new stuff don't believe it. Was there or is there now (after driving a few times) any sludge in the overflow or around the cap on the radiator?

One more question, when you say 60/40 is that 60 water - 40 antifreeze? Too much antifreeze will make a car run hot, anything more that 50% is too much.

so many questions haha

well i drove car around last night and to work and back today. its actually running cooler than it was before. Possibly buildup inside cooling system that got flushed out??

The car had dexcool in it and i put dexcool back in. After reading a bunch of posts, im thinking i should have switched to green:mad:

Havent seen any sludge so im hoping the previous owner had it flushed when they were supposed too.

and finally i did the 60/40 (antifreeze/water) only because of the water still in the block.I usually do 50/50 though.

I recently flushed the coolant system in my 2004 Dale Jr car and kind of did the same thing. I didn't use the prestone flush kit but I used the 50/50 premix of coolant not thinking that I would have a lot of water left in the block from flushing. I ended up draining the radiator and adding full strength antifreeze back in.

The previous owner had had the coolant changed about a year before I bought it and they put in the green stuff but there was still dexcool in it also. The overflow tank was nasty as well as under the radiator cap.

I bought a new radiator cap and thermostat and flushed and ran the car about four times before it was running clear out of the radiator drain plug. I installed the green 5year/150,000 mile compatable with everything coolant. I took the car on vacation and put around 1,200 miles on it and the coolant stayed green and new looking so I'm pretty confident I got most of the Dexcool residue out. Hopefully I'm not going to have coolant issues. The car has never run hot so I should be good.

Wayne

Oh, sounds like you are all good, I ask of lot of questions just to try and make sure I don't give bad advice. If you stay on top of the dexcool and change it every two years you will probably be alright, others have, I think Mike still runs and says he has no problems just changes it every two, I think when you try to extend the interval is when problems can happen. If you aren't willing to do a lot of flushing to get it all out switching is not the best idea. Sounds like you are good, just use one of the measuring thingys, hygrometer or whatever, they are only about $10 at any car parts store, at make sure you have the protection for the winter in your area, freezing would be bad.

Thanks for all the info.
I picked up one of the meters at Meijer for 3 bucks and have just been emptying the radiator and filling it with a stronger mix. The first test i did had protection down to +10 degrees :D. after 2 swaps its in the normal range.