Over temp, puking water, elec fan etc - The 1947 - Present Chevrolet & GMC Truck Message Board Network

walker · 06-18-2004, 11:52 PM

Well the heat is here in Phoenix once again. Tonight after driving from town to the store near my house I parked the truck and went in the store for about ten minutes. When I came back the temp guage was way up, and the truck had puked coolant. I know why it does it but would like to know how to prevent it, as it runs poorly and doesn't like to start easily in this condition. I am a little confused too because this does not happen every time, just every once in a while, and I cannot figure out why it does it sometimes and not others.
I have also been considering electric fans with a thermal switch. Would this help my problem? Should I use push or pull fan/fans? Any brand recommendations would be appreciated them.

mrein3 · 06-19-2004, 11:26 AM

It sounds like your thermostat might be sticking shut sometimes.

Start with that. Thermostats are cheap and easy to install.

**Classic Heartbeat** · 06-19-2004, 11:52 AM

Do you have a fan shroud now? If not you should get one and see if that helps your problem. Are you letting the engine run while you are in the store? If so then electric fans will help you. If you do not have a fluid recovery tank, the water expands when it gets hot and when the pressure gets too high, it pushes the water out the overflow. The hotter the water gets the more it pushes out. I let my radiators run a couple of inches low to keep that from happening. A recovery tank would work also. It is also important to keep your water/antifreeze mix at 50/50. Anything less or more than that degrades the coolants abillity to cool. I think that the off and on nature of the problem is coinsidental, because there are too many other variables like air temp, and length of time the truck was running and length of time spent in the store. mrein3 is correct in thinking it could be a sticking thermostat. If that is the problem though, you would experience the same thing while driving down the road. WES www.ClassicHeartbeat.com

franko72 · 06-19-2004, 02:12 PM

do a coolant pressure test on the cooling system . also when you start the engine cold remove the radiator cap. let the engine reach normal operating temp.watch for coolant circulating when the thermostat opens . watch it cycle a few times. If the coolant surges or pukes out of the rad. neck opening like a fountain , then you possibly have a bad water pump or an internal leak.bad thermostat, blocked cores in rad. you probably need a 3 or 4 row Radiator.Try flushing the Radiator.Good luck

**Stocker** · 06-19-2004, 03:18 PM

If you don't already have an overflow tank, I'd strongly recommend one, with a cap for a sealed system. Pukes into the tank instead of on the ground, then sucks it back into the radiator as it cools. Also allows running a full radiator (more coolant=better cooling). And ditto above advice for thermostat and shroud.

RON WOODGEARD · 06-19-2004, 08:26 PM

I have a 70, What difference does a 70 make? A radiator shop in Vegas said it's the long crossway Grill bar....
I have had me truck for 20 years, and in those 20 years lived in Vegas. ( actually just outside) My truck would overheat all the time in the summer sweltering heat, I did the usual, Installed a fan shroud, new clutch fan, New custom made 4 core radiator, High output Brass works off road water pump, Robertshaw high flow thermostat, Both 160 Degrees and 195 Degrees, and no Thermostat at all. I even did the race car aluminum plates that go where the Thermostat goes. I Tested my Autometer water temp gauge with an in radiator, shop one.( they look like a candy thermometer) Put on a 15 Lb. cap. Installed twin Flex-Fan electric fans, With and without the water pump driven fan. installed a 7 blade off road flex fan, ( a couple of different types and brands) Of course checked and rechecked my timing, even retarding it a touch in the summer.I also Always ran Anti-freeze in a 50/50 mixture, and I ran Red line "water wetter" It helps water move easier. I did "Everything" some one with knowledge would tell me to do, even things everyday guys would mention, You know,,, the Hey, My in law had that problem and he did ??? My truck started out so bad it would overheat driving down the road.. Oh Yea, I had a small block 400 in it when this all started, the motor came out of my 72 C-20, It didn't overheat in it.... But thinking the Siamesed cylinders were maybe the problem, I bought a new Chevy Crate 350... No difference..

Now you see what I spent and went through trying to alleviate this problem and everything helped but nothing settled it... Then a guy at A Las Vegas Radiator shop, Same place I bought my 4 core from, over on Oquindo said he bet it was the cross piece causing an airflow turbulance behind it????? I wanted to go to a Billet Grille insert anyway, so this was just the excuse/reason to do it.. It actual did the trick, and, I was able to just use the electric twin fans, and get rid of the waterpump driven fan. I made NO OTHER changes except removing the grille....

A couple of years ago, I posted here and over at Wes's Board, the overheating problem, Come to find out, there are a lot of 69-70's that overheat here in the desert.

Is the grille the culprit? Heck if I know, But I do know how many changes and How much Money I have spent through the years to get it to cool, and this was the thing that stopped the actual Overheating. I have not driven it in Downtown Las Vegas Traffic since I did this, and probably won't, I moved North.. Still warm, but no where near as hot as Vegas.

I'm not going to get into an argument on how these trucks ran the desert when new, so why should there be a problem now ?? because I also asked a couple of radiator shops the same question<<<<<< And didn't get any good replies...

Shane65 · 06-19-2004, 10:42 PM

I got this link from stevesnovasite.com. It's got some good info for cooling engines.

http://www.oldcarsonly.com/page/page/776256.htm

walker · 06-20-2004, 12:39 AM

That was an interesting web site Shane. I do have a shroud, and the truck never runs hot, it is just the temp spike when parked that causes it to puke water. I don't leave it running at the store, although it does not overheat when left at idle. Overall the truck runs good, starts good and has no mechanical issues. It starts readily, except for this situation. I was thinking electric fans so that the fans will cool after shut off and keep the temperature spike under a little better control. I think I will add an overflow bottle, at least to recover my expended coolant. Perhaps I will also play around with some different coolants and water wetters too.

Budweis · 06-20-2004, 02:08 AM

reason its happening when you stop is because its just right on the verge of overheating and when you shut in engine off it goes up in temp for a bit as the coolant stops flowing. try a 160 thermostat if not already running and a coolant overflow tank like mentioned above.

inline6Bill · 06-22-2004, 04:39 PM

Here is a little tip I have used on ALL of my small blocks cooling systems for years, and it has prevented the dreaded "puking" situation ALL the time:

Before installing a 180 degree thermostat, drill 4 1/4" holes in a cross pattern near the edge of the thermostat for block pressure relief. Believe me, it works.

I read about this in an older publication aabout small block chevy engine building, and tried it myself on my '69 at the time, no more temperature gauge climbing at thermostat opening.

I would definitely add a coolant recovery system, a fan shroud if you currently do not have one, and convert to either a flex fan or electric fans instead of a clutch fan for cooling purposes. You also might want to do a full inspection of the total cooling system, including all hoses.

I would also let the truck either idle when in the store, or drive the truck until the thermostat is fully opened and coolant temperature has stabilized before shutting the engine down, especially in a high heat climate.

Just my $.02

**Stocker** · 06-22-2004, 08:06 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by inline6Bill

convert to either a flex fan or electric fans instead of a clutch fan for cooling purposes.

I respectfully disagree as to flex fans, based solely on my one bad experience. When my clutch fan failed, I installed a flex fan (correct size, with shroud), and the truck overheated too readily. I repaired & re-installed the clutch fan and no more overheating. This in hot NorCal summer, mountain driving, and mild 350 with OEM 2-core radiator. my .02

Shane65 · 06-22-2004, 11:04 PM

The only good flex fan is what was on the 70's era Caddies, 500 cubic inch engines. It's 7 blades which are very thin and light. No fan clutch to worry about and when used with a shourd(every fan should be) you won't have to bother watching a temperature gauge. At idle they pull a pile of air and flex as the rpms rise to move less air but not impede air flow that is being forced into the rad.

06-18-2004, 11:52 PM	#1
walker Registered User Join Date: Jul 2003 Location: north of Phx AZ about 30 miles Posts: 698	Over temp, puking water, elec fan etc Well the heat is here in Phoenix once again. Tonight after driving from town to the store near my house I parked the truck and went in the store for about ten minutes. When I came back the temp guage was way up, and the truck had puked coolant. I know why it does it but would like to know how to prevent it, as it runs poorly and doesn't like to start easily in this condition. I am a little confused too because this does not happen every time, just every once in a while, and I cannot figure out why it does it sometimes and not others. I have also been considering electric fans with a thermal switch. Would this help my problem? Should I use push or pull fan/fans? Any brand recommendations would be appreciated them. __________________ Andy,Phx AZ '67 C-10 (Ahhh, done at last. Well there is that disk front end I want to put in and...) "23 C-Cab-sold '48 Ford 8N tractor(still working) '67 Scout(Now on the road) '70 MG B.-sold

06-19-2004, 11:26 AM	#2
mrein3 Registered User Join Date: Feb 2000 Location: Center City, MN, USA Posts: 3,253	It sounds like your thermostat might be sticking shut sometimes. Start with that. Thermostats are cheap and easy to install. __________________ '70 cab, '71 chassis, 383, TH350, NP205. '71 Malibu convertible '72 Malibu hard top Center City, MN

06-19-2004, 11:52 AM	#3
Classic Heartbeat Project Junkie! Fishing Poor!! Join Date: Dec 1999 Location: Olympia,Wa. 98512 Posts: 10,770	Do you have a fan shroud now? If not you should get one and see if that helps your problem. Are you letting the engine run while you are in the store? If so then electric fans will help you. If you do not have a fluid recovery tank, the water expands when it gets hot and when the pressure gets too high, it pushes the water out the overflow. The hotter the water gets the more it pushes out. I let my radiators run a couple of inches low to keep that from happening. A recovery tank would work also. It is also important to keep your water/antifreeze mix at 50/50. Anything less or more than that degrades the coolants abillity to cool. I think that the off and on nature of the problem is coinsidental, because there are too many other variables like air temp, and length of time the truck was running and length of time spent in the store. mrein3 is correct in thinking it could be a sticking thermostat. If that is the problem though, you would experience the same thing while driving down the road. WES www.ClassicHeartbeat.com __________________ On-line catolog Classic Heartbeat Pickup Parts WEHEPP@comcast.net Call us Toll Free (888) 338-2502 Like Us on Facebook No appointment necessary. 72 BB Chevy Custom Deluxe / Custom Camper 67 I-6 (Soon to be 5.7 LS1) Panel 68 BB Chevy Short Bed 72 6.0 LQ9 Short Bed Chevy 4X4 Olympia's fastest growing truck parts supplier. Olympia's home for Wayward Chevys

06-19-2004, 02:12 PM	#4
franko72 Franko72 Join Date: May 2004 Location: Cincinnati,Ohio Posts: 471	do a coolant pressure test on the cooling system . also when you start the engine cold remove the radiator cap. let the engine reach normal operating temp.watch for coolant circulating when the thermostat opens . watch it cycle a few times. If the coolant surges or pukes out of the rad. neck opening like a fountain , then you possibly have a bad water pump or an internal leak.bad thermostat, blocked cores in rad. you probably need a 3 or 4 row Radiator.Try flushing the Radiator.Good luck __________________ 1972 C20 cheyenne Super 402 BB/400 turbo LWB A/C Tilt, Cruise Control, Saddle tanks, Tach My Home Page Better to burn out than it is to rust

06-19-2004, 03:18 PM	#5
Stocker 20' Daredevil (Ret) Join Date: May 2003 Location: Jefferson State Posts: 13,576	If you don't already have an overflow tank, I'd strongly recommend one, with a cap for a sealed system. Pukes into the tank instead of on the ground, then sucks it back into the radiator as it cools. Also allows running a full radiator (more coolant=better cooling). And ditto above advice for thermostat and shroud. __________________ - Mike - 1972 K20 LWB 350/350/205 RIP El Jay

06-19-2004, 08:26 PM	#6
RON WOODGEARD Resident Young Old Dude ! Join Date: Jul 2001 Location: Nevada Posts: 1,948	I have a 70, What difference does a 70 make? A radiator shop in Vegas said it's the long crossway Grill bar.... I have had me truck for 20 years, and in those 20 years lived in Vegas. ( actually just outside) My truck would overheat all the time in the summer sweltering heat, I did the usual, Installed a fan shroud, new clutch fan, New custom made 4 core radiator, High output Brass works off road water pump, Robertshaw high flow thermostat, Both 160 Degrees and 195 Degrees, and no Thermostat at all. I even did the race car aluminum plates that go where the Thermostat goes. I Tested my Autometer water temp gauge with an in radiator, shop one.( they look like a candy thermometer) Put on a 15 Lb. cap. Installed twin Flex-Fan electric fans, With and without the water pump driven fan. installed a 7 blade off road flex fan, ( a couple of different types and brands) Of course checked and rechecked my timing, even retarding it a touch in the summer.I also Always ran Anti-freeze in a 50/50 mixture, and I ran Red line "water wetter" It helps water move easier. I did "Everything" some one with knowledge would tell me to do, even things everyday guys would mention, You know,,, the Hey, My in law had that problem and he did ??? My truck started out so bad it would overheat driving down the road.. Oh Yea, I had a small block 400 in it when this all started, the motor came out of my 72 C-20, It didn't overheat in it.... But thinking the Siamesed cylinders were maybe the problem, I bought a new Chevy Crate 350... No difference.. Now you see what I spent and went through trying to alleviate this problem and everything helped but nothing settled it... Then a guy at A Las Vegas Radiator shop, Same place I bought my 4 core from, over on Oquindo said he bet it was the cross piece causing an airflow turbulance behind it????? I wanted to go to a Billet Grille insert anyway, so this was just the excuse/reason to do it.. It actual did the trick, and, I was able to just use the electric twin fans, and get rid of the waterpump driven fan. I made NO OTHER changes except removing the grille.... A couple of years ago, I posted here and over at Wes's Board, the overheating problem, Come to find out, there are a lot of 69-70's that overheat here in the desert. Is the grille the culprit? Heck if I know, But I do know how many changes and How much Money I have spent through the years to get it to cool, and this was the thing that stopped the actual Overheating. I have not driven it in Downtown Las Vegas Traffic since I did this, and probably won't, I moved North.. Still warm, but no where near as hot as Vegas. I'm not going to get into an argument on how these trucks ran the desert when new, so why should there be a problem now ?? because I also asked a couple of radiator shops the same question<<<<<< And didn't get any good replies...

06-19-2004, 10:42 PM	#7
Shane65 Registered User Join Date: Oct 2003 Location: Ontario Posts: 108	I got this link from stevesnovasite.com. It's got some good info for cooling engines. http://www.oldcarsonly.com/page/page/776256.htm

06-20-2004, 12:39 AM	#8
walker Registered User Join Date: Jul 2003 Location: north of Phx AZ about 30 miles Posts: 698	That was an interesting web site Shane. I do have a shroud, and the truck never runs hot, it is just the temp spike when parked that causes it to puke water. I don't leave it running at the store, although it does not overheat when left at idle. Overall the truck runs good, starts good and has no mechanical issues. It starts readily, except for this situation. I was thinking electric fans so that the fans will cool after shut off and keep the temperature spike under a little better control. I think I will add an overflow bottle, at least to recover my expended coolant. Perhaps I will also play around with some different coolants and water wetters too. __________________ Andy,Phx AZ '67 C-10 (Ahhh, done at last. Well there is that disk front end I want to put in and...) "23 C-Cab-sold '48 Ford 8N tractor(still working) '67 Scout(Now on the road) '70 MG B.-sold

06-20-2004, 02:08 AM	#9
Budweis Geared for Collision Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: St. Louis, Mo. Posts: 683	reason its happening when you stop is because its just right on the verge of overheating and when you shut in engine off it goes up in temp for a bit as the coolant stops flowing. try a 160 thermostat if not already running and a coolant overflow tank like mentioned above. __________________ MEMBER OF THE 4 WHEEL DISK BRAKE CLUB 1970 C/K20 3/4 Ton 1996 Collectors Edition Corvette 1977 Corvette Coupe

06-22-2004, 04:39 PM	#10
inline6Bill A classic GM kinda guy Join Date: Mar 2004 Location: Phoenix, Arizona Posts: 296	Overtemp, puking water, elec fan, etc. Here is a little tip I have used on ALL of my small blocks cooling systems for years, and it has prevented the dreaded "puking" situation ALL the time: Before installing a 180 degree thermostat, drill 4 1/4" holes in a cross pattern near the edge of the thermostat for block pressure relief. Believe me, it works. I read about this in an older publication aabout small block chevy engine building, and tried it myself on my '69 at the time, no more temperature gauge climbing at thermostat opening. I would definitely add a coolant recovery system, a fan shroud if you currently do not have one, and convert to either a flex fan or electric fans instead of a clutch fan for cooling purposes. You also might want to do a full inspection of the total cooling system, including all hoses. I would also let the truck either idle when in the store, or drive the truck until the thermostat is fully opened and coolant temperature has stabilized before shutting the engine down, especially in a high heat climate. Just my $.02 __________________ Old school rap music: a dual exhausted GM 6 with no mufflers. "If you can find a better vehicle, buy it" Lee Iacocca, Chrysler commercials of the '80s. "I did. They are called Classic GM pickups !!!"

06-22-2004, 11:04 PM	#12
Shane65 Registered User Join Date: Oct 2003 Location: Ontario Posts: 108	The only good flex fan is what was on the 70's era Caddies, 500 cubic inch engines. It's 7 blades which are very thin and light. No fan clutch to worry about and when used with a shourd(every fan should be) you won't have to bother watching a temperature gauge. At idle they pull a pile of air and flex as the rpms rise to move less air but not impede air flow that is being forced into the rad.



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