100 % vinegar in place of 50/50 ?

[Cody_1948]

Guys, had a old timer tell me to use 100% vinegar, in place of 50/50 for the first few weeks i drive my truck, Then pull the water pump hoses, drain all of it out, And by running vinegar in my 226, it will clean it out and eat away all the crap and drain out, Anyone ever try this ? Good or bad ideal ? Also what else could i do in place of vinegar ???

[ford38v8]

Cody, that's good advice. I'd also use a nylon stocking in each upper hose to catch the debris before it plugs your radiator. Then when you drain it all out, rinse it well with plain water, then use a corrosion inhibitor instead of antifreeze unless you park outside at night. Also, when you drain out the vinegar, be prepared with plenty of lettuce and tomatoes.

[Old Henry]

Originally Posted by Cody_1948

. . . what else could i do in place of vinegar ???

Evapo-rust. Vinegar is neutralized fairly quickly by the rust it dissolves and likely before it all dissolves. Chelation is a superior chemical process to acid for rust removal. Here is my scientifically controlled test that I conducted that shows it: http://www.fordbarn.com/forum/showthread.php?t=123032

[scooder]

Doesn't most antifreeze also have corrosion inhibitor in it? I thunk it did, and has to because of the fact that most modern engines have aluminium and iron parts. And as we know this mix of metals really like to eat each other.
Martin.

[JM 35 Sedan]

I used the 100% vinegar cooling system cleaning method last spring. The mix of crud that came out looked like chocolate milk. After draining and flushing the system with water and baking soda, I went back to a 50/50 mix of antifreeze and water.

[36Bill]

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It worked for me. I back flushed the radiator only then added the engine at the top to back flush that too. I used lots of water until it was clean.

Bill

[alan]

I have used the vineger trick on lots of cars and even the ones I thought were clean, the brown sludge that came out proved me wrong. One brand Y car I did required three tries before it would clean up

[fourtydlx]

Good advice

[1952henry]

GM (the car company, not Fordbarn member) used to sell a flush kit that was effective. You can make it with 9 dry oz of oxalic acid (DAP wood bleach) sold at hardware stores and for the neutralizer, 2 oz of sodium carbonate (Arm n Hammer washing soda, or PH Plus swimming pool conditioner available at Walmart).



Mix the acid with warm water and pour into cold engine. Run for awhile and drain. Then mix up the neutralizer and run/drain.

[Hank the 36]

I also used 100% vinegar in my flathead for two weeks and drove it a few hundred miles. I could not beleive the large chunks of crap and thick chocolate soup that came out.
H36

[joe plumber]

Pure lemon juice will also work in place of vinegar.I use it to clean out water cooled compressors also .It works great JMO

[Drbrown]

As to the most effective solution, I recommend that before doing anything, read about the testing "Old Henry" did. I found it convincing.

[Old Henry]

Originally Posted by alan

I have used the vineger trick on lots of cars and even the ones I thought were clean, the brown sludge that came out proved me wrong.

Originally Posted by JM 35 Sedan

I used the 100% vinegar cooling system cleaning method last spring. The mix of crud that came out looked like chocolate milk.

Originally Posted by Hank the 36

I also used 100% vinegar in my flathead for two weeks and drove it a few hundred miles. I could not believe the large chunks of crap and thick chocolate soup that came out.
H36

I'm afraid that the brown sludgy chocolate milky look of the coolant after using vinegar is not the good sign that black detergent oil is. It is not a sign of effective rust removal. See the comparison of the vinegar solution and the Evapo-rust solution after the rust removal process in my testing. Post # 46 here: http://www.fordbarn.com/forum/showthread.php?t=123032