stillp Posted July 20, 2015 Report Share Posted July 20, 2015 I need to change some rad hoses. What's the current thinking on flushing out the cooling system? Pete Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Steves_TR6 Posted July 20, 2015 Report Share Posted July 20, 2015 I went with the Holts 2 part flush 'kit' Spent some time to flush the heater back and forth, same with the the rad. Heater working quite well now, which is success! Steve Quote Link to post Share on other sites
ianc Posted July 20, 2015 Report Share Posted July 20, 2015 Make sure you get a nice, clean deluge out of the cock on the rear end of the cylinder block. If not, remove the cock and start shifting any debris inside! Then flush and flush again until all clear. Back flush the heater - an old-fashioned manual pump is ideal as it will not exert too much pressure. Ian Cornish Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Fireman049 Posted July 20, 2015 Report Share Posted July 20, 2015 Hi Pete ~ If you PM me your eMail address I'll send you some pictures showing how bad water corrosion can be inside the block. Tom. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
stillp Posted July 20, 2015 Author Report Share Posted July 20, 2015 No thanks Tom, I've been there, done that! Pete Quote Link to post Share on other sites
stillp Posted July 20, 2015 Author Report Share Posted July 20, 2015 Suggestions from other fora include central heating cleanser, and washing-up liquid! Any thoughts anyone? Pete Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Alec Pringle Posted July 20, 2015 Report Share Posted July 20, 2015 Find a local garage that stocks Forte products and get a bottle of coolant flush . . . . . not cheap, a garage trade only range, but it does a better job than any off-the-shelf retail product that I've come across - at least in my experience. Same goes for their engine oil and fuel system cleaners - excellent. Usual disclaimers ! Cheers Alec Quote Link to post Share on other sites
stillp Posted July 22, 2015 Author Report Share Posted July 22, 2015 I could only find one local factor that stocks Forte products, and they refused to sell me anything as I didn't have an account! Anyone have any more ideas? Pete Quote Link to post Share on other sites
iain Posted July 22, 2015 Report Share Posted July 22, 2015 (edited) Call Revingtons, they have some serious jollop, Worked very well for my block, again its far more powerful than your average kettle cleaner . Edited July 22, 2015 by iain Quote Link to post Share on other sites
stillp Posted July 22, 2015 Author Report Share Posted July 22, 2015 Thanks, I'll call them tomorrow. I shouldn't need anything particularly strong, the car doesn't overheat and the heater works well. It's always had 50% antifreeze since the rebuild. Pete Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Alec Pringle Posted July 22, 2015 Report Share Posted July 22, 2015 Hi Pete, you can buy it on ebay . . . . . http://www.ebay.co.uk/sch/i.html?_odkw=forte+coolant&_osacat=0&_from=R40&_trksid=p2045573.m570.l1313.TR0.TRC0.H0.Xforte+coolant+flush.TRS0&_nkw=forte+coolant+flush&_sacat=0 Cheers Alec Quote Link to post Share on other sites
stillp Posted July 22, 2015 Author Report Share Posted July 22, 2015 Thanks Alec. Ordered. Pete Quote Link to post Share on other sites
SteveB21 Posted July 22, 2015 Report Share Posted July 22, 2015 Hi Pete I have just done my 6 and found the instructions say you need to use 20% by volume - that's 3 x 400ml bottles. I skimped and only used 2...You will need to flush through with plenty of water afterwards to get all traces out. Cheers Steve Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Guest ntc Posted July 22, 2015 Report Share Posted July 22, 2015 I went with the Holts 2 part flush 'kit' Spent some time to flush the heater back and forth, same with the the rad. Heater working quite well now, which is success! Steve Works well but make sure your heater is up to it. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Dave Smith Posted July 24, 2015 Report Share Posted July 24, 2015 You could always bypass the heater for the flush. I also now use cheap bottled water, in the hope its softer then our very hard tap water. £1.20 per 5l. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
peejay4A Posted July 24, 2015 Report Share Posted July 24, 2015 I buy bulk deionised water. It's v cheap. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Alec Pringle Posted July 24, 2015 Report Share Posted July 24, 2015 Water from the dehumidifier in the cellar is my useful bit of recycling . . . . . Cheers Alec Quote Link to post Share on other sites
stillp Posted July 24, 2015 Author Report Share Posted July 24, 2015 I think I'll filter the condensate from the tumble dryer and use that. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
MikeF Posted July 26, 2015 Report Share Posted July 26, 2015 Small comment If you live in the North and West of the Island - and some parts of the English Midlands - which receive water from Wales then ordinary tap water is very soft and can be comparable to D.I. In the South East and East where tap water is hard there is possibly some benefit from using D.I. water [or saved condensed water etc.] but it will be small as long as you don't keep boiling dry or topping up leaks. The hardness can only come out once. So you are unlikely to fur up the insides of your rad/block/heater if they are in good leak free condition. The greater part of any sludge does not come from the water but from corrosion due to the non use of inhibitors as found in antifreeze and other coolant mixes. Counter intuitively the use of very pure water on its own can be deleterious and is not recommended, Mike Quote Link to post Share on other sites
stillp Posted July 26, 2015 Author Report Share Posted July 26, 2015 All good points Mike. As an expat Welshman I can agree. Unfortunately my bit of the Midlands has rather hard water. Pete Quote Link to post Share on other sites
tim hunt Posted July 29, 2015 Report Share Posted July 29, 2015 Being a tight blighter and having lived in hard water areas I've always used rainwater (distilled by mother nature) with 50% anti-freeze in my cooling system. Tim Quote Link to post Share on other sites
stillp Posted August 1, 2015 Author Report Share Posted August 1, 2015 Well, I used the Forte flushing agent, and I'm not impressed bearing in mind the cost (~£50) for 3 bottles. Took a lot of flushing to get rid of the frothiness, yet when I took the bottom hose off there was still some loose sludge in there. Not much, but the engine was pretty clean anyway, so not much came out with the Forte. Next time I'll try the central heating cleanser. Pete Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Alec Pringle Posted August 1, 2015 Report Share Posted August 1, 2015 Hi Pete, sorry to hear you're disappointed. I normally use 1 or 2 bottles of coolant flush, depending on which car and how clogged, and (touch wood) I've been favourably impressed over the past 10 or more years with the result. Same goes for the engine and fuel system cleaners, which seem to me to do a satisfactory job. Cheers Alec Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Alec Pringle Posted August 2, 2015 Report Share Posted August 2, 2015 I've just drained the Super Snipe cooling system, all 26 pints of it . . . . . . Previously I'd flushed it with one of the retail packs, Speedflush, which didn't seem to do a huge amount - as in heater flow was still restricted, and neither radiator nor block drain taps did anything useful, as in well bunged. And it was running uncomfortably warm. This time I dropped in one bottle of the Forte flushant, let the engine idle, and left it in for a week. Then added a second bottle, and drove it down to Fairway and back, 50 miles, with some engine tuning running in between, and today (3 days later) gave the car another 10 miles hoofing it before letting it cool and draining. Then hose flush and backflush. Heater now flows properly, the drain taps do actually function, and the radiator temperature on steady idle must be a good 10C, probably15C, cooler. That's measuring by hand, the temperature gauge has yet to be sorted. So I'm not displeased with the apparent.result. As for the engine flush . . . . the oil had been in for 10 years, but had done only a very few miles since the engine was flushed and drained back in 2005. It didn't look bad on the stick . . . . at least not before I added a bottle of Forte oil flush and drove 25 gentle miles before draining. Hard to credit what came out, no question it had shifted one heck of a lot more than whatever flushant I'd used a decade ago. Well pleased, definite improvement, and noticeably quieter on tickover. Usual disclaimers, I just use the stuff ! Cheers Alec Quote Link to post Share on other sites
stillp Posted August 5, 2015 Author Report Share Posted August 5, 2015 Sounds good Alec. I was only flushing the system because the hoses were getting old, there were no problems evident, heater worked fine, drain taps ditto. Maybe I was just expecting too much. Pete Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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