Review H2o flow-serpentine conversion

[SunSoaked]

Just converted my 85 to serpentine belt system. I swear I'm getting water flow thru the radiator before the thermostat is open (180 deg). My question is, does the reverse rotation water pump push the water thru the radiator from the bottom up?

[SunSoaked]

Damn autocorrect! Meant "Reverse."

[andyh1956]

Are you seeing the return from the heater right under the cap opening?

[KrazyRay]

I believe the reverse flow compensates for the serpentine system that turns the water pump in the opposite direction as a standard V belt.

[SunSoaked]

Originally Posted by andyh1956

Are you seeing the return from the heater right under the cap opening?

Yes.

[SunSoaked]

KrazyRay,
I was going to run my existing fan clutch & fan (85) on the serpentine until I broke in the new cam but I discovered you have to have a reverse rotation fan clutch and fan (not just a pump) or you end up blowing air out the front of the vehicle. Lol. So I just installed the electric fans and moved on. It's just odd to me that there is significant h2o movement in the radiator before the stat opens. On previous engines, the water never moved until the stat began to open.

[Palf70Step]

Is your thermostat maybe stuck open? Most today fail in an open state.

Just guessing here.

[kwmech]

Normal to get some flow. It will be going through the 3/8'' by-pass hole in the water pump. The only place it can come out is through the heater core. All small block have this feature. The big blocks have a separate hose to the intake manifold below the t-stat to do the same thing

[SunSoaked]

kwmech, that makes sense. Thinking back, I don't think I had the heater core hooked up because I never used heat. I'm in S. Arizona, our winters seldom get below about 50! And yes, when it reaches operating temp (180) the flow increases substantially. I was about to ask about a bypass. Thanks