What is the best cleanser and method to use to clean out a Townie radiator?


I was once told by a mechanic to use caustic soda to clean out a heavily scaled radiator. I did so, and the soda ate away the radiator at every point where it met plastic. I had to buy a new radiator.



Steve..

- (#11081) Steve Lewis, 24 May 04 16:08

I had the same advice a few years back...ended up with a collander!
Lots of proprietry brands about....have read about using cheap supermarket coke overnight...some people swear by it.
Myself, just a hosepipe..

- (#11081) chris turner, 24 May 04 17:34

A note about caustic soda, it reacts (quite violently) with aluminium and gives of hydrogen gas, take a small piece of kitchen foil and stick it in some to see how long it lasts! Many (Most?) modern cars have aluminium or it's alloys somewhere in the cooling system so caustic soda is a no no. Use any of the "Rad flush" etc. brands they're all pretty much the same, double check the bottle says it's ok for ali systems. I did the full two part flush whilst trying to track down my overheating problems it takes a while to do properly but follow the instructions to the letter to avoid future problems.

Martin.
- (#11081) Martin King, 25 May 04 11:43