I like the radiator spray idea, would of never of thought of that. Then again it doesnt get that hot here.

What electric fans are you using?

 

I would think that sand would stick to a wet rad...and render it useless.

 

Hayden makes the spray kits for 60 dollars with a 2 gallon tank. They work quite well in the sand. The dust from standard dirt on the other hand is it's nemesis.

inscribed via iPhone4 on xjForum using the swaybars that aren't on my Jeep

 

No, it will not render the radiator. I go to the desert almost every weekend and sand dosn't reach the radiator. How should it? And the radiator is wet for few seconds only.

 

have you tried a coolant restrictor ?

basically it works because it slows coolant flow... in doing so the coolant spends more time absorbing heat from the engine, and more time having heat stripped away in the radiator

 

How would that help an overheating engine? by keeping the coolant in the engine longer and restricting the flow?

 

well if you think about how a coolant system works it makes sense... but I know it does not fit with conventional thinking...

if the coolant is moving to fast it does not have enough time to absorb heat out of the engine... and it does not have enough time to strip heat away

when it is done it is kinda trial and error until you find the perfect setup...

it might not help in some cases... it might in others...


But think about how it works... coolant flows from the engine to the radiator and back to the engine

step 1.) coolant in the engine, absorbs heat

step 2.) coolant (which has absorbed engine heat) moves to the radiator. As air passes through the radiator's cooling fins it transfers the engines heat out of the coolant... This is not an instant process

step 3.) coolant which has been stripped of some of the engine heat is returned to the engine and the process starts all over again...

here is the tricky part, coolant can only absorb/release heat so fast, and can only absorb a certain amount of heat... the same can be said for releasing/stripping heat...

does that help a bit? I know it's a weird concept...

basically restricting coolant flow only helps if the coolant is moving too fast to absorb/release heat quickly enough... the trick is to find the right flow rate to absorb as much heat as possible from the engine, while stripping as much heat away while in the radiator...


is where I first saw it mentioned

http://jeep-xj.info/HowtoRadiatorRestrictor.htm

here is another guy that used it

http://www.trifive.com/forums/showthread.php?t=60355

 

Yea I've seen that link before. I dont buy it and sounds like a bad idea.

 

it makes sense... I first learned about this when I was working with Water cooling computers like 10 years ago, got lower temps by slowing the flow rate down

it may not help a stock setup... but I like the idea of the inline valve... that way you can dial it in

but even if you don't buy into it, it does not change the results... it's just really basic thermodynamics

that being said, I do not plan to do it... no reason to for me

 

I get the whole thermo part of it but has anyone looked into the optimum time for coolant to spend in a 4.0l? I assume those that designed the engine thought about this and put an adequate water pump to maximize the coolants heat capacity within in the engine, plus theres the thermostat which is kinda like a valve. I think what happen out of the factory was they got cheap and used a single row radiator which results in cooling issues. I noticed a huge change from just a 2 row radiator and an electric fan install. I can go wheeling all day in 80-90 deg weather and not have an issue.

 

that's the thing, too many variables, water pump, radiator, type and % of coolant, radiator air flow, outside temp, ect