Electrolysis in aluminum radiator - Help

Mark Ugrich · 09-18-2018, 09:03 PM

Are you thinking it is the electrolysis that is causing the hoses to bulge? Not saying it isn’t possible , but I’ve never heard of that occuring. Is there a voltage reading with the anode removed?

09-18-2018, 11:26 PM

http://www.ve-labs.net/products/rad-cap
David Reher talked about grounding alum heads to block. We saw issues early on in police car builds. Electrolysis killed heater cores and radiators yearly. We tried everything you spoke of. Ended up replacing rad caps every three months.

cad · 09-19-2018, 01:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mark Ugrich

Are you thinking it is the electrolysis that is causing the hoses to bulge? Not saying it isn’t possible , but I’ve never heard of that occuring. Is there a voltage reading with the anode removed?

I believe the hoses were hard from gasing. Same voltage with and without the anode.

I grounded 1 head to the steering box bolt, and the other to the upper control arm stud, and no noticeable change in voltage...still .5'ish

cad · 09-19-2018, 01:41 PM

Here is 1 article penned by David Reher...
http://garage.grumpysperformance.com...n-cooling.149/

I will have to have my old man come back over and re-check the grounds.
He put heavy star washers under all of them, but I wonder if my paint job on the frame isnt scuffed enough under those grounds.

09-19-2018, 02:16 PM

Forgot to say; Test the alternator for a leaking diode if you have not done so. Seen lots of those and yes it reduced cooland voltage.

6130 · 09-19-2018, 03:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by cad

I believe the hoses were hard from gasing. Same voltage with and without the anode.

Yup.

Have you ever media-blasted an aluminum component after an electrolysis problem- it's horrifying. It can look like the part in your hand is all aluminum and intact before you start, but when you start blasting, the cancer is cleaned away, and you're left holding something that looks more like a piece of Swiss cheese.

Kenney Kelley · 09-19-2018, 10:01 PM

Mark you said you've raced the S-10 all season and within the last two weeks this problem has come up. In the last 3-4 weeks have you changed anything on the car?

Kenney Kelley

House of Darts · 09-20-2018, 10:26 AM

Could there be an iron bolt passing through the aluminum head into a water jacket? What are the chances of aluminum shavings stuck in the iron block or iron shavings in the head? If you are developing distinct issues of electrolysis in such a short period of time, you have a chemical reaction taking place. Water wetter is very corrosive on the base side of the PH scale. Flush everything internally with distilled water. We are talking 25-40 gallons. Drain the water including everything in the block and add Evapo Rust. Let it sit for 3 hours. Drain and use a filter for the water. If the water has turned black, black/green you have a fair amount of rust in your system. Strain the Evapo and let it sit again, probably 1-2 hours and check the color. If you to keep doing this, you will need to use fresh Evapo Rust until the system is clean. Not sure about the mineral content of your local water and that's even if its municipal water. Upon resolving this issue just use distilled water with a very small amount of anti freeze.The bracket that supports to alternators is probably attached to the aluminum head and the iron block. That's grounding. The alternator can also be leaking and that can travel trough the same route. I think there is a test kit to trace if combustion is leaking into the cooling system. Depending what you use for fuel, even a fuel additive, those compounds, raw or burned, can be leaking into the cooling system and be adding to or be the problem. While the car sits in your shop, ground both heads, block, chassis and body to a in the ground ground. Eliminate every possible action and work from there.

cad · 09-20-2018, 01:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kenney Kelley

Mark you said you've raced the S-10 all season and within the last two weeks this problem has come up. In the last 3-4 weeks have you changed anything on the car?

Kenney Kelley

Nothing changed....we spent the last 3 weeks putting the camaro back together for my son to race at ET Finals...

cad · 09-20-2018, 01:53 PM

We are going to get back on it tonight. I will post back on findings and the solution.
Very possible that the mini powermaster alternator, which was new this year, is bad.
I will also swap in a spare Red Top battery.... yes, it has voltage while the battery is completely removed from the truck.
I am definitely going to be flushing the system...I have to pull the radiator to get all of the water out, as the drain and lower hose are not in the very bottom (Griffin radiator). Ive got petcocks in the block, so that is the easy part.

Thanks,
Clark

09-18-2018, 09:03 PM	#1
Mark Ugrich Member Join Date: May 2011 Location: Auburndale,Florida Posts: 220 Likes: 29 Liked 71 Times in 38 Posts	Re: Electrolysis in aluminum radiator - Help Are you thinking it is the electrolysis that is causing the hoses to bulge? Not saying it isn’t possible , but I’ve never heard of that occuring. Is there a voltage reading with the anode removed?

09-18-2018, 11:26 PM	#2
Barry Polley Guest Posts: n/a	Re: Electrolysis in aluminum radiator - Help http://www.ve-labs.net/products/rad-cap David Reher talked about grounding alum heads to block. We saw issues early on in police car builds. Electrolysis killed heater cores and radiators yearly. We tried everything you spoke of. Ended up replacing rad caps every three months. Last edited by Barry Polley; 09-19-2018 at 12:51 PM.

09-19-2018, 01:41 PM	#4
cad Senior Member Join Date: Apr 2009 Location: Omaha, NE Posts: 703 Likes: 204 Liked 93 Times in 52 Posts	Re: Electrolysis in aluminum radiator - Help Here is 1 article penned by David Reher... http://garage.grumpysperformance.com...n-cooling.149/ I will have to have my old man come back over and re-check the grounds. He put heavy star washers under all of them, but I wonder if my paint job on the frame isnt scuffed enough under those grounds.

09-19-2018, 02:16 PM	#5
Barry Polley Guest Posts: n/a	Re: Electrolysis in aluminum radiator - Help Forgot to say; Test the alternator for a leaking diode if you have not done so. Seen lots of those and yes it reduced cooland voltage.

09-19-2018, 10:01 PM	#7
Kenney Kelley Member Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: Cocoa Florida Posts: 205 Likes: 181 Liked 72 Times in 36 Posts	Re: Electrolysis in aluminum radiator - Help Mark you said you've raced the S-10 all season and within the last two weeks this problem has come up. In the last 3-4 weeks have you changed anything on the car? Kenney Kelley

09-20-2018, 10:26 AM	#8
House of Darts Member Join Date: Mar 2007 Posts: 346 Likes: 19 Liked 20 Times in 15 Posts	Re: Electrolysis in aluminum radiator - Help Could there be an iron bolt passing through the aluminum head into a water jacket? What are the chances of aluminum shavings stuck in the iron block or iron shavings in the head? If you are developing distinct issues of electrolysis in such a short period of time, you have a chemical reaction taking place. Water wetter is very corrosive on the base side of the PH scale. Flush everything internally with distilled water. We are talking 25-40 gallons. Drain the water including everything in the block and add Evapo Rust. Let it sit for 3 hours. Drain and use a filter for the water. If the water has turned black, black/green you have a fair amount of rust in your system. Strain the Evapo and let it sit again, probably 1-2 hours and check the color. If you to keep doing this, you will need to use fresh Evapo Rust until the system is clean. Not sure about the mineral content of your local water and that's even if its municipal water. Upon resolving this issue just use distilled water with a very small amount of anti freeze.The bracket that supports to alternators is probably attached to the aluminum head and the iron block. That's grounding. The alternator can also be leaking and that can travel trough the same route. I think there is a test kit to trace if combustion is leaking into the cooling system. Depending what you use for fuel, even a fuel additive, those compounds, raw or burned, can be leaking into the cooling system and be adding to or be the problem. While the car sits in your shop, ground both heads, block, chassis and body to a in the ground ground. Eliminate every possible action and work from there.

09-20-2018, 01:53 PM	#10
cad Senior Member Join Date: Apr 2009 Location: Omaha, NE Posts: 703 Likes: 204 Liked 93 Times in 52 Posts	Re: Electrolysis in aluminum radiator - Help We are going to get back on it tonight. I will post back on findings and the solution. Very possible that the mini powermaster alternator, which was new this year, is bad. I will also swap in a spare Red Top battery.... yes, it has voltage while the battery is completely removed from the truck. I am definitely going to be flushing the system...I have to pull the radiator to get all of the water out, as the drain and lower hose are not in the very bottom (Griffin radiator). Ive got petcocks in the block, so that is the easy part. Thanks, Clark