Hi all....got a D47U...got a new radiator & asking if I should put inhibitor in it & if so how much does the Radiator & block hold water wise...What would be the ratio of inhibator to water....Just a bit worried too much of a shock to the system if I put it in....TIA
It would be better if you put fresh anti-freeze in it. It will have all the inhibitors needed and has a higher boiling point than plain ole water. But, if you want to use water, buy the inhibitor of your choice and the directions to use it should come with it.
You can get SCA for straight water if you live where it never freezes. Otherwise you'll want either the modern ELC type antifreeze, like CAT ELC, Peak Final Charge or a fleetguard equivalent. A conventional SCA antifreeze would also work, that would require annual testing, or guessing an amount to add annually. Peak Fleet Charge would be one SCA pre charged antifreeze, fleetguard has at least one also. Either ElC or SCA will be fine with any cooling system that has been flushed with water. You won't shock the system by changing coolant type, the protection stays on the metal surface until it loses effectiveness and is replaced by whatever is in the coolant currently, that's the best I understand it.
whoops
There is a "modern" version of inhibitor too. Cat call it Extended Life Inhibitor ( ELI ), designed for areas where freezing is not an issue. I would suggest that something of that ilk would be far better than straight water.
Try not to use water with a lot of mineral in it. I prefer to use distilled water if available to help prevent excessive scale buildup although in a pinch any water is better than no water
Continuing on from my thoughts above IMHO anything pre-mixed with water of known quality will be better than using any old dodgy water mixed with good-quality inhibitor.
Goughy, your D4 7U cooling system holds 42 litres of coolant, if the system has been fully drained. Firstly, how rusty was the coolant originally? If it was really rusty, a fill with water with a cooling system cleaner added is the go, before you add any new coolant with inhibitor. Run for the recommended period with the cooling system cleaner in it (a few hours at engine operating temperature), then completely drain the system again (remembering there's a block drain as well as a radiator drain) - flush with clean water - drain the clean water - then buy some good quality, "brand name" coolant, that contains glycol with corrosion inhibitors. The coolant comes in "ready-to-use" formulations, or in bottles that need to be mixed with clean water, usually 50/50 mix. ALWAYS use rainwater or distilled water - don't use straight tap water, because no matter how good your tap water is, it contains minerals and salts to varying degrees, that facilitate corrosion in cooling systems. Your local auto parts store will have a range of coolants available in 5L and 20L containers. My recommendation is to buy the long-life coolant "concentrate", and mix with distilled water. Modern engines use Organic Acid coolants ("OAT"). Older engines used Inorganic Acid coolant ("IAT"). The OAT coolants are better for the modern engines where a lot of aluminium/magnesium alloys are used in conjunction with cast iron. But the IAT coolants are better for the older engines where very little aluminium/magnesium alloy was used in the cooling systems. As the D4 7U is a largely cast iron cooling system, with no alloys, an IAT coolant is your best choice. You won't need any coolant with anti-freeze added to it for your location - unless you're in a particularly low spot that sees regular temperatures below freezing in Winter. Here's some useful coolant advice from GMB, the Japanese aftermarket manufacturer of water pumps. Inorganic vs Organic Coolant - What's The Difference? | GMB Blog What's The Difference Between Inorganic And Organic Coolants? Find Out Here. gmb.net
Are you aware of a small tap on top of the pony motor that needs to be opened to bleed air out of the pony motor water jacket ? It may need a small wire poked down into the tap to remove any stuck material blocking it .
No...thanks for the heads up
Mate ...thanks for the info...where is the block drain located & should I fill thru the thermosat housing so it lets air out or just thru th radiator as normal We have rain water so will use that with inhibator etc...thanks for the advice.....Gotta say this group is worth its weight in gold for advice & knowledge...Thanks to all...very much appreciated
Do you have an Operation & Maintenance Instructions book for the 7U? If not, you should get one. Cooling system drain and clean instructions and photos are on pages 64 and 65. If you don't have a book, I can scan the pages and upload them - but I can't do it tonight, I'm out of time. The block drain plug is at the left rear of the block, just in line with the front housing of the starting clutch control lever. You shouldn't need to fill through the thermostat housing, filling the radiator through the filler cap and then running the tractor should be adequate to get out any remnant air. But the vent cock on the top of the starting engine should be loosened whilst filling, to remove all initially-trapped air.
I second that, third it even.........
Thanks Oz...I have a Service Manual but has nothing much on radiator etc...got it online from USA...It has been converted to elect. start so no pony ...thats why I was thinking of filiig with thermostat out to let air out....what u think
O.K., if the pony engine is gone, then no need to do anything special, the cooling system will bleed itself, no problem. The pony has the vent cock on top of it because the pony cooling passageways are higher than the block passageways. Once the pony is removed and the coolant passageway to the pony is blocked off, there's only the block passageways left, and they will bleed O.K. just filling the radiator normally.
Thanks OZ....have put 25lt of water in radiator...full....let sit 4 few days...no need to top up...ran motor till hot...no need to top up radiator....tested thermostat in boiling water ...worked fine....whats your thoughts on running without thermostat......I in QLD
I know what mine are and it doesn't matter in what ambient temperature you are operating. DON'T remove the temperature regulator.
Nige is correct, no advantage whatsoever in removing the thermostat (Cat call it a temperature regulator). Removing the thermostat can cause the engine to overheat as the coolant circulates faster, thus it spends less time in contact with the radiator tubes and fins, and therefore doesn't lose its heat load to the air, as designed. The thermostat has a designed level of restriction to the coolant flow, so the coolant circulates at the designed flow rate. In addition, removing the thermostat means the engine takes a lot longer to reach operating temperature, thus increasing engine wear. If the engine is still running hot, then you need to look at radiator air flow. Is there a fan shroud in place, and is it in good condition? Also, heavy scale buildup in the cylinder head and block must be removed to ensure proper heat dissipation. Cat state that 1.5mm thickness of heavy scale in water passageways, will cause heat transfer to reduce by up to 60%.
Most diesel thermostats will be a bypass style, that closes off a bypass to recirculate to the engine at the same time it opens to the radiator. If you remove that, then coolant will bypass the radiator all the time, and not cool as well. I don't know about this one, but even if it's not, use the thermostat. Is this overheating? or working fine now?
Thanks mate...left thermo in ...engine runs cool...only put 25l water in ...was worried I got a air lock...gunna put 1 litre of soluble oil in radiator as inhibator
Thanks OZ.left thermo in ...engine runs cool...only put 25l water in ...was worried I got a air lock...gunna put 1 litre of soluble oil in radiator as inhibator
Will do...was worried I had a airlock as only put 25l of water in
Goughy, soluble oil is "old technology", used before better coolant additives were manufactured and put on the market. Buy some current-manufacture, good quality coolant with anti-rust additives, and it will perform far better than the old soluble oil. Look on the cost of todays additive coolant as an investment, insurance against expensive cooling system corrosion repairs.
Better still look on it as insurance against expensive engine repairs.
Nige named the product you want to use up in post #5. It's not just traditional rust, diesel engine liners need inhibitors to prevent cavitation erosion, that soluble oil does nothing for as far as I know.
Thanks OZ...will do...what you reckon about final drives...fill to top of bung at the elbow out the back ?
Thanks Nige...will do
Yes, fill to the top of the filler bung with 85W-140 gear oil. Drain and wash out the final drive compartments with diesel every 900 hrs, then refill with fresh oil.
Thanks oz...appreciate the great advice