Radiator Overflow Tank

[Titleist16]

I've had a radiator overflow tank sitting in my trunk but haven't hooked it up yet. I quickly looked at it once and I'm not sure how to hook it up. I know the overflow tube on the top of the radiator goes to the port on the top of the overflow tank. But there is another port on the bottom of the tank, does this one go to the bottom of the radiator? How do you hook this thing up?

 

[addo]

The bottom one is usually just for draining the collector tank.

You need a "recovery" type radiator cap (your present one may be such already) and the former overflow hose gets shunted to the top of the overflow tank. The internal hose fitted to this tank needs to be within about ¼" of the bottom.

Regards, Adam.

 

[Anonymous]

It works real well...total cost 79 cents.

 

[Titleist16]

Is a recovery radiator cap like the one in the picture? With the homemade tank, is there just a tube going to the top of the bottle and that's it? How does the coolant drain back into the radiator. Mine has the fitting on the top and on the bottom and I don't know where to hook the bottom one to.

 

[Asa]

it doesn't drain

remember your earliest science class?
heat expands things, cold contracts it
when it heats up it bubbles out of there, once the radiator cools down it creates a vacuum and sucks it back in

at least, that's how i remember, might be wrong

 

[Anonymous]

Yah steve-o right on i was thinking along the same lines lol. yours is same as mine pretty much mines a 20 oz sprite bottle with a hole drilled in the top with a zip tie holding it to my radiator surround thing lol. Yours is a bit neater and prettier lol .

 

[Anonymous]

Wait a minute, if a simple overflow tank can work like this...

Why do you see overflow tanks being sold with fittings on the bottom, sides, etc?

 

[Johnny Ray]

I used a Diet Pepsi can.

I will get a pic and post it later.

8)

 

[Titleist16]

So then I guess I'll just plug off the bottom fitting and just have the tubing come from the top of the radiator to the top fitting on the tank. Thanks a lot for your input.

 

[Anonymous]

Doesn't the hose have to go all the way to the bottom of the overflow tank? When the fluid cools down and starts to create a vaccum, it will suck up the fluid instead of air, right?

 

[XFlow_Fairlane]

I hae one of those blingin SS tube style tanks. has two fittings on the bottom....one is just tube that will allow all fluid to drain...this goes to the radaitor. the other is a long tube that comes up almost to the top of the tank. this is the overflow.

 

[DaGr8Tim]

As long as you run the tube all the way to the bottom, you *should* suck liquid.

I worked at a place where we had a bottle (with no lid) as an overflow bottle on a fork lift. The thing ran like crap for about a week & maintance couldn't figure it out. I noticed the bottle was empty and filled it. At that point they discovered the top radiator hose had several pin holes in it.

Go the professional maintance people. :roll:

 

[addo]

The reason I see for the hose not quite reaching the bottom, is to avoid said hose "suctioning" itself to the container like a lusty latex leech.

If you fit a drain cock to the lower outlet, it is an easy and un-messy way to empty the reservoir without actually removing it.

Most radiator caps say on the top if they are recovery type. It doesn't mean they're fancy in appearance; many are plain gold zinc in finish.

 

[Anonymous]

Doesn't the hose have to go all the way to the bottom of the overflow tank? When the fluid cools down and starts to create a vaccum, it will suck up the fluid instead of air, right?

The black hose hose goes almost all the way to the bottom of the bottle. Stops about 1/4" short. Bottle never goes dry.

 

[mjpchief]

My set up is about the same as steve-o's except I used a piece of 2" pvc pipe capped off on each end with a hole in the top cap for the hose. Painted the whole thing black. Can't hardly tell it's there. works just fine. Drilled several small holes around the top cap for vent.

 

[Anonymous]

The black hose hose goes almost all the way to the bottom of the bottle. Stops about 1/4" short. Bottle never goes dry.

Ah, that's how I thought it was setup, just couldn't see the end of the hose.

 

[Titleist16]

Well I looked at my overflow tank it doesn't even have a cap for it so I'm am thinking of going the homemade route. I was thinking of using a glass coke bottle, puncture a hole through the top of the metal cap, and running a tube to almost the bottom. I think it will be sort of an old school look. Is it safe to use a glass bottle?

 

[Asa]

if you experience cold weather, i would say no, but since you're in california, all you have to worry about is something getting thrown into the bottle, or letting a wrench slip when you're tinkering

if you're careful it should be fine, but i think it'd be safer overall to use something less prone to breakage

 

[WhitePony]

I wouldn't use glass. The entire front of a car is prone to so many types of vibration that I doubt if it would last. Most jars are made from fairly thin glass. If a vibration of the vehicle (engine, suspension) hits the sympathetic frequency of whatever shape of jar that you use, the glass will shatter. If you have seen glass fuel bowels, you will have noted how thick they are.

Kris

 

[Asa]

old coke bottles are pretty thick though...