Does anyone have a reliable method of removing lumps of limescale from the inside of an old type copper cored radiator? The radiator is in good shape with no leaks, but if I remove the filler cap, I can see lumps of limescale blocking the water passages. Ideally I need a technique which doesn't require removal of the radiator, as it has a transmission oil cooler built into it, and an engine oil cooler attached to the front with non-reusable plastic clips, all of which would make it a bit tedious to remove.
Richard Hall
bangernomics.tripod.com
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As a metter of interest, what's the car concerned?
David M
You know Citroens make sense in an up-and-down world......
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How about Viakal or something used to remove limescalebuildup from kettles etc?
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I used holts radclean last time-excellent-could see the bare metal on the inside of the header tank-tho' on one of my previous cars it did highlight a crack in the water pump I did not know I had.
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David
It's the '67 Mustang I mentioned in one of my other posts. The cooling system is just about adequate at a steady speed, but every time I accelerate, the temperature needle starts to move towards the red, and is slow to come back down again. I once had a Herald with the same problem - a replacement radiator cured it.
Richard Hall
bangernomics.tripod.com
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Thanks for the reply Richard - I was curious as it didn't sound like a standard bangernomics-mobile, which proves to be the case.
David M
You know Citroens make sense in an up-and-down world......
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Richard,
Try this company, they make cleaning and descaling products for all sorts of things, mainly medical, but they may be able to help.
www.medicell.co.uk/
Or there is also Kamco, URL below who make inhibited acid cleaners that may do the job as well.
www.kamco.co.uk
Bill
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Holts do two products. One called 'Speedflush' is fairly mild and should be used with each flush if the system is in fairly good order. The other is called 'Radflush' and is a three part treatment in powder form. Radflush is the one for you, but it does sound like your system is fairly well gone - I would suggest double dosing, but if that doesn't work a new rad could well be in order. I'm certain both these Holts products can be bought from Halfords. I've used Radflush many years ago and remember it being very good.
Other products like Viakal are very good when used on kitchen appliances, but you cannot be sure how they will affect the mixed metals or gasket materials in a car cooling system. I would suggest you stick to something specifically designed for automotive use.
Watch out though - the scale might be hiding some cracks and fresh antifreeze has a seeking quality and will find any small cracks that you didn't know were there. You might still end up needing a new rad.
May the Force be with you.
This should form a cautionary tale to all those who don't think it's necessary to renew the antifreeze every two years or who just bung in straight tap water (esp in hard water areas). Of course this doesn't apply to back-roomers so I guess I'm wasting my typing with this paragraph.
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Richard
Limescale may not be the only problem. If the car is a '67 then it's highly likely that there will be a fair bit of rubber dust trapped in the core as well. Hoses from that era will have shed a lot of debris, even though they will have been replaced with later manufacture.
Your overheating symptoms are exactly the same as I experienced on a '65 Pug 404 and the only cure was to have the header removed from the rad so that it could be rodded through. You should have seen what came out of it!
Ian Cook
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