Couple noob questions

[HON-DUH]

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[car6289]

The tank (coolant reservoir) should have coolant to the full cold line (lower graduation) with a cold engine and a coolant level somewhere between full cold and full hot (upper graduation) with a hot engine. The reservoir should never be full.

The valve is the cooling system bleed bolt. As its name suggests it is for bleeding the cooling system.

[HON-DUH]

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[RAZR]

So does the cooling system bleed bolt need to be slightly open like it is right now or should it be shut?


does it leak coolent?

[HON-DUH]

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[Christofur]

If your bleeding the coolant system you want it open.. but it doesn't sound like you are so you might want to make sure it is secure so no coolant leaks out and possible overheat you engine.

[HON-DUH]

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[dacantu]

Yes it is a BLEED valve for when you are BLEEDING your cooling system? It should NOT be open if you're are not BLEEDING your cooling system.

*Sigh, women...

[Oldblueaccord]

Do you think it was a bad idea leaving it slightly open for 4 months?

So I should probably close it shut correct?

When you open the system,drain coolant or do any work on the coolant system it can get air trapped in it. The bleeder bleeds off trapped air in the system is all. Just like a brake bleeder does. You want it CLOSED normally unless you are bleeding air out of the system.

It pretty unusual to find on a car. Honda is the only one I can think of on a stock motor. its common for racers to add one.

wp

[car6289]

Do you think it was a bad idea leaving it slightly open for 4 months?

So I should probably close it shut correct?

Yes to both questions. Leaving the bleed bolt slightly open did leave evidence that there is rust in your cooling system. Possibly time for a drain, flush and refill with new coolant. You will get to use and see in action the bleed bolt during the coolant refill process.
Some light reading on a few cooling system components (link below). The write up is not for a 3G but the principles involved are the same. FYI, what Honda calls a coolant reservoir can also be called a coolant recovery tank.
http://homepages.donobi.net/sufuelpumps/Other_Subjects/Cooling_and_radiator/EXPANSION_TANKS_COOLANT_RECOVERY_SYSTEMS_AND.pdf

[Dr_Snooz]

With that amount of rust in your cooling system, plan on some repairs in the future.

[HON-DUH]

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[TotaledTL]

Did the engine ever overheat? Was it driven while hot? Low coolant level could affect idle.

To replace coolant:

Drain the system (capture the coolant & dispose of properly). Leave drain open. Start eng. & let it run with a hose supplying water to the rad. until clean water is exiting. Stop eng., let drain. Close drain. Add approved coolant/water 50/50 mix to neck of rad. & betw. lines on coolant overflow tank. Start eng. & bleed air out. Recheck coolant levels in rad. & overflow tank after letting engine cool. Do not open rad. when engine is hot. Put rag over rad. cap & use gloves when opening; wear safety glasses.

Rechk. coolant levels next 2 or 3 drives, refill as necessary; maintain a close check on the eng. temp. gauge. May have to bleed air again. These are general instructions; refer to the manual for specifics. Good luck.

[car6289]

Damn this sucks, now I need to flush and add new coolant...

So what do you guys think got damaged during these 4-5 months with the valve open?

Could this explain my idling problems? After a while of driving, my car wont drop lower than 2k revs

You don't need to drain, flush and refill your cooling system, I highly recommend that you do so.

Hopefully nothing was damaged.

Yes there is a distinct possibility that your idle issues are being caused by a low coolant level in the cooling system. There are a couple of thermovalves and thermoswitches that require immersion in coolant to function properly. With a carbed 3G there are several dozen other possibilities for your idle issues. One step at a time though. Service your cooling system and see if your idling issues improve.

[1ajs]

are u using proper coolant or strait water?

[w261w261]

A couple of things here:

First, you should learn how a cooling system works. There's many posts on here, but essentially, the system needs to be pressurized or there's a chance the coolant will boil. This will be bad.

If the bleed bolt is left open the system will still pressurize, but will leak and continue to leak as long as the system has any pressure in it. Eventually you will have a problem.

The point of the coolant reservoir is to accommodate when the car is shut off, and the coolant next to the block gets very hot and does boil. This causes an overpressure in the system, which opens the radiator cap and allows the expanding fluid to collect in the reservoir bottle. After the system cools it is siphoned back in through the radiator cap and replaced in the system. Ergo, you need to keep fluid in the reservoir, otherwise air will be introduced. Air in the system is not good.

Here's a technique to flush the system:

Draining the radiator still leaves a considerable amount of fluid in the block. Therefore, adding a 50-50 mixture to just the radiator after draining it will leave you with a lot less than 50-50 once the car heats up and the mixture circulates. This means the freezing point of the coolant is above the -35 degree level of a 50-50 mix, and if you are someplace where it gets real cold it could be a problem. Also, you should use distilled water when you mix the coolant. If you flush with a garden hose the remaining water in the block will be not distilled, and might contain minerals that will promote rust more quickly. That will also be a problem with less than a 50-50 mix, apart from the higher freezing point.

First, drain the radiator. Then refill with distilled water and run until the thermostat opens so the liquid is circulated around. Then, stop the car and drain the radiator again. Repeat that cycle 3 or 4 times, by then the entire system (radiator and block) will have mostly distilled water in it.

Then I refilled the radiator with uncut coolant, ran it until the thermostat opened (you leave the cap off and wait until the coolant has a current in it). Let it run for a couple of minutes and the block and radiator will be mixed. Then I tested it with a coolant tester, which showed I wasn't at the 50-50 mix ratio yet. So I dumped the radiator again and again refilled with 100% uncut Peak (I like Peak because it's bright green, which allows me to see the level in the tank better). I think then it was the right ratio. Eventually, I arrived at the proper 50-50 mix.

This process can dump a lot of coolant onto the ground. Wash it off very carefully and completely with a hose. Ethylene Glycol is big poison to dogs, who go for it because it's sweet.

Once you have new coolant in the system, here's how to bleed it:

I guess I should mention also that the coolant has to be brought up to temperature enough to open the thermostat.

1. With a cool or almost engine, open the radiator cap CAREFULLY and add enough coolant to bring it up to the top. In the overflow bottle, add enough coolant to bring it about halfway between the low mark and the high mark.
2. Open the heater valve by moving the heat lever to the hot position.

3. Leaving the radiator cap off, start the engine and let it run until the thermostat opens. You can tell that this has happened by looking down at the fluid in the radiator and see it flowing.

4. Open the bleed valve slowly, but not too far, just enough to get the fluid to start coming out. It will probably start spitting intermittently. Let it do this for awhile, because the air bubbles have to travel from the far points of the system. Add coolant to the radiator as or if it drops.

5. When after a few minutes the stream is constant from the bleed valve, close the valve (don't put a gorilla move on it, it isn't that big a thread).

6. If you haven't bought a new radiator cap in a couple of years, now's the time to do it. A cap is actually a pressure relief valve, and as such has a moving part inside. It's vital to the correct functioning of the system.

[TotaledTL]

All very good points- that sounds like a better & more thorough method. I should have noted to chk. for a block drain in addition to the rad. drain. Def. check the freeze protection too.

Also, do not allow coolant to just dump on the ground. It should be captured & disposed of properly.

[w261w261]

All very good points- that sounds like a better & more thorough method. I should have noted to chk. for a block drain in addition to the rad. drain. Def. check the freeze protection too.

Also, do not allow coolant to just dump on the ground. It should be captured & disposed of properly.

I couldn't find a block drain on our cars. I guess it might be there, but if it is it's definitely obscure.

Yes, always better to capture the draining antifreeze.

[Dr_Snooz]

I haven't been able to find a block drain either, but legend tells that it's behind the exhaust manifold and rather difficult to access.