Is my radiator 'fixable'?

[Razorhoof]

When you mean 'patch' do you mean a small peice of copper (like from a radiator?

I have some spare you see from a recent central heating install.............

WHat tool do I need to drain the tap at the bottom?

[BUSHWHACKER]

Can all this be done with a regular soldering iron?

[BUSHWHACKER]

When you mean 'patch' do you mean a small peice of copper (like from a radiator?

I have some spare you see from a recent central heating install.............

WHat tool do I need to drain the tap at the bottom?

Yes.


Forefinger and thumb.

[Razorhoof]

:O).

We have a plumber coming over to ours tomorrow. I will drain the rad tonight (it is currently sat on some soila dn wasteground at the front of our house so no harm done there.

Two questions - and I know I am a biff but.....

1. Once the tank is empty and I have flushed it out with a hose pipe and it has been fully flushed out - what do I put in by way of coolant? Is it a bottle of the red coolant and then top up with water? What specific coolant do I use?

2. Is the drain tap easy to reach?

[BUSHWHACKER]

http://www.showmesome.info/hilux/workshop/coolant.htm

[Razorhoof]

Wow, nice one mate.

The last time I looked in my coolant reservoir it had a layer of REALLY thick black sludge in it. Would this have been caused by the previous head crack or has someone (the previous owner) been a div and put oil in the radiator by mistake.

[BUSHWHACKER]

Wow, nice one mate.

The last time I looked in my coolant reservoir it had a layer of REALLY thick black sludge in it. Would this have been caused by the previous head crack or has someone (the previous owner) been a div and put oil in the radiator by mistake.

It's probably Rad-weld. Most likely used to stop the leaks in the past.

[Razorhoof]

AH, I see. But am I right in thinking that that reservoir should actually have coolant in it? The red stuff?

If he had put that in the radiator, why would it be in the coolant reservoir?

[BUSHWHACKER]

AH, I see. But am I right in thinking that that reservoir should actually have coolant in it? The red stuff?

If he had put that in the radiator, why would it be in the coolant reservoir?

The reservoir is an expansion tank, the cooling system is a sealed system.
When the coolant gets hot, it expands into the tank and is then sucked back into the radiator when the engine cools down. Any holes or splits in the radiator, or loose hoses will allow coolant to escape when it's under pressure (expanded) and draw air in when the engine cools. Eventually the coolant level will drop and overheating will occur.