cooling system flush

[Pistons23]

so yesterday i was checking the coolant level. when i pulled the rad cap i noticed a orangish-yellow buildup around the radiator fill neck. i also noticed the fluid in the reservior was a bit orange. when i flushed the sytem a few years ago i used prestone 50/50. the green stuff. this truck sits quite a bit. im guessing its rust. anyone think otherwise?

today i went and bought prestone super radiator cleaner($5.99 at autozone), prestone 50/50 antifreeze($8 at walmart), prestone concentrate antifreeze($10 at walmart) and the prestone flush/fill kit($3.99 at autozone). heres what i plan to do. drain the radiator. then fill it up with water. let it run for a bit with the heater on. drain it again. then pour in the radiator cleaner. top off the rad with water. drive it for the recomended 3-6 hours. drain that bad boy out and back flush the system. then ill dump the prestone concentrate in there. then fill the empty jug with water and hten dump that in the rad. so i get the 50/50 mix. then ill top it off with the prestone 50/50. will that work fine? any suggestions?

will regular water from the hose be fine or do i have to buy distilled water? or how about the filtered water from my fridge?

 

[Pistons23]

oh and how the heck do i backflush? i think i need to use one of the hose clamps and one of the fitting from the kit. but i dont know which line from the heater i need to hook it up to. one goes to the top of the radiator and the other goes down by the lower rad hose.

 

[Wicked_Sludge]

that sounds like a good plan. i would suggest removing the t-stat during your flushes, then reinstalling a brand new one after your all done (they are too cheap not to replace).

you can use regular tap water IF you flush your cooling system every few years like your supposed to. if the system is neglected, tap water will cause accelerated rust/corrosion problems.

the heater hose that comes out of the lower intake, near the thermostat housing is the "supply" for the heater core. you want to stick the garden hose in the other hose to backflush.

 

[triumphrider-1]

you can use regular tap water IF you flush your cooling system every few years like your supposed to. if the system is neglected, tap water will cause accelerated rust/corrosion problems.

I would just go buy some distilled water; you can buy it by the gallon dirt cheap. A cheap insurance, so to speak.

 

[irishblessing]

are you talking about cleaning the whole system or just the overflow tank they have kits you can do it your self at your local carparts store but what you can also do is just drain the fluid from the radiator from the little peacock on the bottom then run hose water through it to clean it out then refill as far as the overflow disconnect that hose that runs on the top of the radiator from where it meets the cap and drop it to the ground then pour some water in the overflow tank until its cleaned out the yeallowish color your getting is from what i believe is two different types of radiator coolant mixing and going into the overflow tank its not a big deal i would first start with just cleaning out the overflow tank as previously stated then if it happens again just do the flush