I tried accel, bosch, champion, NGK and Autolites. The autolite 3923s were by far the best. they also lasted longer.

 

yes

 

Um..... The first part of that video, where it highlights the drain on the radiator.... Isn't that a wire loom clip?????

 

can you use deionized water instead of distilled? are you just trying to keep stuff from growing?

 

anyone know off hand the amount of coolant i would need to get to put in after flushing the old stuff out? And is it really worth it to use specially formulated stuff to flush it out as opposed to distilled?

 

I would definitly buy the prestone back flush kit. Its cheap and works excellent. I have one on all my vehicles. A valve will install right in the heater core hose on the passengers side of the engine. When u flush it make sure the heater is turned to hi. It is 100 times better than sprayin in radiator. It will also make getting all the air out of the system a snap. You simply leave the cap off of the valve and fill the radiator till the water running out the valve turns green. Its simple and works great...

 

the reason for using distilled water is avoid the minerals (calcium, iron, etc) found in some water supplies, and/or the salt from water softeners. Indiana and Kentucky have a lot of calcium, and when it gets hot it will crystalize out and stop up your radiator. I once cleaned out a hot water heater in Indiana and pulled out about a 4 inch deep layer of calcium pellets that had formed around the heating elements, and then dropped off.

just use distilled water from the grocery store, about 50-75 cents per gallon. don't use mineral water or spring water, get distilled. no threat of anything growing at 195 degrees.

 

So just to get this right:

1. Unplug the drain plug under neath the truck and let it drain out. (and radiator cap right? when do you put it back on/take off again?)
2. Plug it up, put in tap water, run till normal operating temp w/ heat on high blast.
3. Unplug, let drain.
4. Repeat til water comes out clean.
5. Put the plug back in.
6. Fill up with antifreeze/coolant+distilled water to fill mark.
7. Run for a little bit, add as needed.

When you need to add more later should you always use distilled?

And when doing this with the t-stat installation, won't some leak out at some point? Thats what I was thinking when you originally drain it, then put in the new t-stat, or should you wait til you're completely done so its not gunked up?

 

The "specially formulated stuff" is like a cleaner/crap dissolver that will dissolve the deposits in the cooling system. I would suggest using it if you are doing a thorough job.
In case you didn't know - NEVER take the radiator cap off if the engine is warm or hot. You'll get a hot shower the likes of which you will never want again.....
You will want to remove the t-stat before you do the final fill with 50/50. Remove it, get a funnel and pour as much coolant as you can into the hole where the t-stat came out to fill the block. Install new t-stat, I used a NAPA Premium 180. Fill Radiator to top and the bottle to where it says "full". I also took the top rad hose loose at the rad and filled it as much as I could to help eliminate bubbles. Run it to temp with the heater on - the level will probably drop as the bubbles are eliminated by coolant circulation. After it cools remove the cap and add what is necessary. After the first good drive you may have to add some to the recovery bottle to the "full" line....
I have no heat problems with mine. I almost never even turn the dial up all the way to full hot. I did get a code the first time it got cold - I put a piece of cardboard in front of 1/2 the rad and have not had a problem since.....

 

once your done with the flush, then when you've drained it for the last time, swap the t-stat. I recommend drilling a small air bleed hole in the t-stat to allow air to escape during the refill process. Whenever you need to add to the cooling system, use distilled water with the antifreeze. it will save you alot of headaches down the road.

you can leave the cap off if you like while flushing. you can also remove the lower rad hose to speed the process up, just be careful as it's hot.