Heater core cleaning/removal?

[cruiser88]

IS the cardboard trick safe to do? Also is it a temp fix to get more heat, or is it something to consider when it drops low? I know that the school bus has a rad cover.


Zack

some 60's had the blind in front of the rad

 

[cruiser88]

Just flushed mine using Mark's instructions above. Worked very well. my 62 took almost 1 gallon to fill the front and rear heaters, fyi.

dam:whoops:

 

[Rigger]

This may be a bit hare-brained, but has anyone tried cutting the fire wall to get the heater core out from the engine side? It's be a PITA, I'm sure, but maybe easier than disassembling the entire dash?

 

[commostud]

Were do you get the acid. What are the dilution rates. Thanks

 

[cando john]

ok this is how we,here @ candograge flushed my 60's heatercore in the car ...... material...... 5 gallon bucket... some heater hose a bottle of " CLR" ...wate and a small " mighty pump "....... disconnect the heater lines from core ... replace with new hose......run one hose thru the pump and into the bucket the other hose just drop it in the bucket ....fill bucket 1/2 full with hot water,,, add "clr" ...turn pump on let the clr run thru core and back to bucket ... keep it going for about a 1/2 hour .....dump bucket replace water run it again look to see how clean the is water comes back to bucket if you think you need to treat with clr again do it ........ when clear replace stock hoses ... top of rad. and " burp..... should be good to go .....worked wonders for mine ................ good luck......... john

 

[euclid]

This may be a bit hare-brained, but has anyone tried cutting the fire wall to get the heater core out from the engine side? It's be a PITA, I'm sure, but maybe easier than disassembling the entire dash?

No offense, but that sounds like a really dumb idea to me.

Were do you get the acid. What are the dilution rates. Thanks

Ace hardware. I didn't dilute.

 

[Zack1978]

ok this is how we,here @ candograge flushed my 60's heatercore in the car ...... material...... 5 gallon bucket... some heater hose a bottle of " CLR" ...wate and a small " mighty pump "....... disconnect the heater lines from core ... replace with new hose......run one hose thru the pump and into the bucket the other hose just drop it in the bucket ....fill bucket 1/2 full with hot water,,, add "clr" ...turn pump on let the clr run thru core and back to bucket ... keep it going for about a 1/2 hour .....dump bucket replace water run it again look to see how clean the is water comes back to bucket if you think you need to treat with clr again do it ........ when clear replace stock hoses ... top of rad. and " burp..... should be good to go .....worked wonders for mine ................ good luck......... john

What came out? Was it very dirty?

Zack

 

[Zack1978]

ok this is how we,here @ candograge flushed my 60's heatercore in the car ...... material...... 5 gallon bucket... some heater hose a bottle of " CLR" ...wate and a small " mighty pump "....... disconnect the heater lines from core ... replace with new hose......run one hose thru the pump and into the bucket the other hose just drop it in the bucket ....fill bucket 1/2 full with hot water,,, add "clr" ...turn pump on let the clr run thru core and back to bucket ... keep it going for about a 1/2 hour .....dump bucket replace water run it again look to see how clean the is water comes back to bucket if you think you need to treat with clr again do it ........ when clear replace stock hoses ... top of rad. and " burp..... should be good to go .....worked wonders for mine ................ good luck......... john

Oh and one more thing. I am very confused with your post. Perhaps pics will help?

Zack

 

[Rigger]

Thanks, euclid. I appreciate the thumbs up and the vote of confidence!

It seems to me that if you could cut a piece of firewall out right where the hoses pass through, you could pull the core right out. Once it was cleaned, the re-install could take place with a piece of sheet metal slightly larger than what was cut out. It would make cleaning the core easier next time, too!

Alright, I'll stop. Maybe it IS a dumb idea!

 

[euclid]

Thanks, euclid. I appreciate the thumbs up and the vote of confidence!

It seems to me that if you could cut a piece of firewall out right where the hoses pass through, you could pull the core right out. Once it was cleaned, the re-install could take place with a piece of sheet metal slightly larger than what was cut out. It would make cleaning the core easier next time, too!

Alright, I'll stop. Maybe it IS a dumb idea!

The heater core is pretty big. The firewall is pretty integral, for a few reasons. It's a big job, but it's not THAT big.

Again, not to be a jerk but WOW!

 

[landbruiser60]

I will be flushing the radiator and heater core on my 60 this weekend. I'm new to this forum and I am very impressed with all the info you guys have posted here. Thanks a lot fellas, ih8mud is rockin!!

 

[candograge]

yes it was dirty.....and alittle restricted...after a while we noticed it running smoother...the little pump even sounded better "clr" cuts the deposits like lime/calcium just like the commercial states...think of it like what " liquid plummer " does to your sinks & pipes .........john

 

[ColoradoLC]

Good idea about the CLR. I might try that next time. Here's my writeup for dummies like me:

https://forum.ih8mud.com/60-series-wagons/209078-heater-core-flush-dummies.html

 

[ntsqd]

Muriatic Acid is concentrated Hydrochloric Acid (HCL). The stuff is dangerous and nasty to work with. It's vapors will corrode any steel that they land on, and even with the near constant prevailing ocean breeze thru my yard they land on a lot! I used to use it for removing cad & zinc plating from hardware that I needed to weld on. A friend told of using white vinegar to clean off the corrosion in the fuse block to his Datsun 510. I decided to give it a try on the plating and it works wonderfully well so long as you have a little time. An overnight soaking is usually needed.

Back to my plugged heater cores, I decided to try white vinegar in them too. Prior to soaking in vinegar the main heater core would only trickle out with a garden hose hooked to it wide open. I plugged the lower hose with the closed brass garden hose nozzle and clamped an ATF funnel into the upper hose. I filled until the funnel was ~1/2 full and then opened the nozzle until the trickle coming out smelled like vinegar. I closed the nozzle and then I let it sit for 2 days.
Last night I again hooked the garden hose up, opened the nozzle wide open, and blasted backwards through the core.
It flowed full blast!! Success!!
The rear heater core is currently soaking, but I will only let it go one day since there are plated steel tubes involved.

Other than the smell, vinegar is a lot more benign than HCL. I do not feel guilty about having it go down the gutter like I would if it were HCL.

 

[Rigger]

Little bit of an old thread resurrection . . .

My FJ62 heater is not heating well. Lasy fall, I tried using the vinegar trick. I put it into the front heater core, let it sit overnight, flushed it all out, re-assembled everything, and re-filled with coolant. No Joy! It did not solve my poor heating issue.

This means that either:

1) the core is still plugged and I need a stronger acid

or

2) my no heat problem is caused by something other than a clogged core.

I am going to wait a month or so until the weather starts getting cooler, then change out my T-stat, check that O-ring, and flush out the core with muriatic acid.

I'll post up results.

 

[ntsqd]

Have you tried hooking up the garden hose to one side of the core and testing what it will flow?

 

[brett76]

Little bit of an old thread resurrection . . .

My FJ62 heater is not heating well. Lasy fall, I tried using the vinegar trick. I put it into the front heater core, let it sit overnight, flushed it all out, re-assembled everything, and re-filled with coolant. No Joy! It did not solve my poor heating issue.

This means that either:

1) the core is still plugged and I need a stronger acid

or

2) my no heat problem is caused by something other than a clogged core.

I am going to wait a month or so until the weather starts getting cooler, then change out my T-stat, check that O-ring, and flush out the core with muriatic acid.

I'll post up results.

if you "flushed" it than its cant be plugged right? unless you were getting waaaay less flow coming out

 

[sl33py]

Good thread revival! I'm thinking of pulling at least my rear heater to get it professionally flushed, and possibly the front heater core (i'm neck deep in there anyway - may as well go all out).

Sure would appreciate any pics or tips for the full removal of the heater core. Lots of guys have done it, and this thread shows folks did take pics... Maybe they can finally post them up to help us out!

As for what to flush it with. I wouldn't waste time with vinegar or CLR when you are already taking the time to do it. Do it once, with the right stuff, and call it done. I'm going to see if it's super spendy to get both (hopefully) done, or at least the rear done at a radiator shop. If it's crazy spendy I do have some muriatic I can use.

rob

 

[Rigger]

My truck symptoms are poor heat from the front heater when the weather is down to the teens or below. My rear heater delivers more heat than the front, but I feel as though it could be improved, too. I just think that air should be nice and hot. It isn't. It is kinda tepid.

If I let the truck run for an hour, like when I am eating lunch, the heat will improve. As soon as I drive away, the temperature of the air coming from the front heater drops back down again.

I feel like there is enough air blowing out of the ducts, it is just that the temperature of the so-called "heated" air is too cool.

If the outdoor air temperature is below zero, I may as well leave the Cruiser home, 'cause I'll get hypothermia waiting for it to warm up. Maybe I should just bring warm chicken broth?

I know something is very wrong, because other Cruiserheads report that their '62's make heat and lots of it.

I have a new radiator, new water pump, new T-stat, new coolant, new belts, new hoses, and I ran water through the front heater core with a garden hose. It seems to flow okay, but I did not have a brand new core to compare it to, so who knows?

I removed the heater valve and checked its operation. A-OK.

Maybe the core is plugged, maybe I have a bad fan clutch (the fan clutch is one part that I have not replaced), or maybe I ruined that O-ring that sits on the T-stat.

Next up for me is to change the T-stat again, and then go after the heater core with muriatic acid.

Suggestions? Comments? Things I've overlooked?

 

[brett76]

if it heats sitting still and cools while running i would look at the gasket that sits on top of the thermostat. does your temp gauge drop considerably?