gkoenig

All,

Already a known problem, but I had to put 2 heater cores in my truck, I am sure it is because of my aftermarket stereo, amp etc, but I used hose clamps and wire to add grounds to the heater core, radiator etc. My radiator fluid is no longer orange with rust. I also put my multi-meter in the water and discovered a small voltage on it when sitting idle.

paker

Is electrolysis a myth or truth?
If DMM measures a voltage, is it a sign of electrolysis?

gkoenig

Its real, my fluid is no longer orange, the Radiator is plastic and the heater core is electrically isolated, might be because of my alarm or stereo work over the years

Jbrew

Extra grounds aren't needed if you take care of the vehicle...that's would 100% true myth. Sure, if you never clean the grounds or replace broken ones on the truck, yes you can have electrolysis problems. Also, if you don't flush with distilled water and use hard water instead, that will promote electrolysis...so much so, you'll be going through rads, cores, gaskets and eventually the engine before it's time. Adding grounds isn't the way. Fixing what you have and getting your coolant right is. You start at absolute ground...where the alternator mounts to the engine block, then go through the rest.

gkoenig

Thanks, good points, it was a trues headscratcher. I did use distilled water this go-round, perhaps i didnt the first time many moons ago
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paker

I sketched heater core (aluminum) and engine block (iron). There is a rubber hose connecting the two. There are 3 different scenarios.

1. There is no direct connection between the two. Heater core and engine block are on their own. Heater core will go bad as its own rate; so will the engine block. One does not affect the other.

2. Heater core and engine block are wired together. Aluminum is more corrosion resistant than iron. If the two are directly connected with copper wire, iron will be sacrificially corrode and aluminum will be protected by iron.

3. Engine block is grounded at multiple locations. But heater core is connected only at one point (if anyone installs a grounding strap to the heater core). Sheer probability predicts heater core is likely to have poor grounding, making it slightly more positive than the engine block. In this case, the positive voltage makes heater core corrode faster, protecting the engine block.

I suppose F150's come out of the factory like Case 1. Most of us keep this configuration. Engine coolant is designed to protect both aluminum, iron, steel and copper.

If anyone elects Case 2, IN PRINCIPLE, he is protecting heater core at the cost of engine block. But IN REALITY, this effect is negligible because the coolant in the rubber hose is a high resistance path. Accelerated corrosion of engine block is unlikely to impact the longevity of his F150.

If his grounding strap to the heater core is less than ideal, he is putting his F150 in the 3rd configuration. Since heater core is much smaller in surface area than engine block, this is worse than Case 2. But again, in reality, this effect is not significant and his F150 will last as long as his neighbor's. Again, this is because of the high resistance path of coolant in the hose.

My choice is Case 1. I would just leave it alone, assuming that's the factory configuration. By all means, I will avoid Case 3. If I overlooked anything, please advise.

gkoenig

I went through 2 heater cores, coolant was bright orange and resivoir had muddy looking paste on the bottom. I am quite sure that I should have flushed it out a lot sooner than i did.
Since attaching a wire to the heater core and another on the Radiator, my coolant is staying green

Jbrew

Grounding the heater core provides a direct conduit for electrolysis or galvanization. By grounding it your directing stray voltages into the core. So by doing so, you've created another problem that WILL catch up. There's no way around it. You would need to incorporate a voltage sponge around core in combination.

paker

Jbrew,
Thanks for bringing up stray current. I missed it completely. I think it can play a bigger role than a slight voltage difference between engine block and heater core.

I know about stray current in large scale installations as it affects underground corrosion, but have little understanding in automobiles. I need to do study this.

white89gt

Did you remove a restrictor on your system? Part of the process of electrolysis is the flow of the coolant. By restricting the flow, you greatly reduce the chances of electrolysis. I believe there are TSB's on this... As I recall, Ford deemed .4 volts as the max acceptable volts measurement.