From the Rolls-Royce experimental archive: a quarter of a million communications from Rolls-Royce, 1906 to 1960's. Documents from the Sir Henry Royce Memorial Foundation (SHRMF).
Guide on the care and servicing of car radiator systems.
| Identifier | ExFiles\Box 150\2\ scan0297 | |
| Date | 1st December 1939 | |
| COPY. John Marston Ltd. Wolverhampton. December 1939. THE CARE AND SERVICING OF CAR RADIATORS SYSTEMS. ---------- Clean, soft water should always be used in the radiator system if it is at all possible to procure it. The use of hard water will cause scale to form in the engine jackets and in the radiator and tend to clog up in the circulation. Dirt, of course, performs the same damage. Rain water is soft water and considered pure water, but contains large quantities of dissolved oxygen and carbon dioxide, gases which have been found to be highly corrosive. In industrial regions rain water in addition may pick up large quantities of various acid gases present in the atmosphere and accelerate corrosion due to oxidation and electrolytic action. Distilled water often has a fairly acid reaction and may cause corrosion. In fact it has been found that certain tap waters are less corrosive than distilled waters, possibly due to the fact that certain impurities in tap waters act as corrosion inhibitors, rather than accelerators. The radiator system and engine system should be drained and thoroughly flushed out every three months and re-filled with clean water as deposits of dirt and foreign matter will accumulate and obstruct the circulation and also the heat transfer properties of the radiator and cooling systems. If anti-freeze solutions have been in use, it is well to put on new hose connections upper and lower each year. Anti-freeze solutions have a tendency to cause disintegration of rubber hoses and if this progresses to an actual stage the rubber which crumbles away will pass into the system and fill up the water passage, etc., and will also tend to swell up and stop circulation through the water system. Examine hoses carefully at least twice a year and replace when necessary. Should the water system become clogged, particularly the radiator, one of the first things to do is to remove the connections upper and lower and plug the upper connections then put a hose on the bottom of the radiator and put on 20 or 30 pounds of water pressure. This reverses the flow and will tend to carry any dirt which has been lodged down in the tubes back upwards and out through the top of the radiator. While doing this, allow the radiator to overflow through the top. | ||