MTFCA Forum

My '12 radiator needs a good core cleaning... It's too hot too quick
What recommendations do y'all have?
Thank you!

I had pretty good luck with CLR.
I would avoid getting it on the brass.

If the fins are not tightly bonded to the tubes, cleaning will not help you much. This happens with antique radiators. If cleaning doesn't improve the situation, you will have to either re-core it or buy a new radiator. I think that old radiators are the biggest reason why people can't drive their Ts more than a few miles without overheating.

Plain vinegar works well and doesn’t cause any damage

Other causes of overheating worth mentioning:

- not enough oil in crankcase
- fuel mixture too lean
- retarded ignition timing
- poor driving technique

I've used Cascade dishwasher soap to degrease, Flush with water then an overbite soak with CLR . Rinsed with baking soda to neutralize.s it would also work if very careful not to spill on exterior Rinse again and fill with coolant of your choice. I haven't done this on an all brass radiator. Guess it would also work if careful not to spill on exterior.

Also check what Erik said

CLR labels now say not recommended for radiators. Must be a reason.

I tried all sorts of things on my 26, vinegar, Dawn dish soap, Purple Power, Simple Green, Macs radiator cleaner, after multiple times each, none of them did the trick. Then I bought a bottle of Thermocure. It is a radiator cleaner that is made by Evaporust. It did a very good job. I have since used it on another radiator and again, it did a very good job. I did have to due it a few times. I reused it a couple of times, then used a fresh bottle. The radiators came out very clean and they cool fine. I picked it up at Walmart for about $20 a bottle.

Put a box of Arm and Hammer which is dissolved in water in. Run it that way for about 50 miles and grand and flush. This a old trick my dad used on his trucks.

Phil

my guess is that he used Arm and Hammer Washing Soda...most on this forum would guess Baking Soda which is a good acid neutralizer, but not so good on radiators

Thanks for all the suggestions y'all. I had it off while I put a new cam and reset the valves. There was a bit of 'gunk' sitting in the bottom of the lower spout. I suspect the cores are quite dirty.