My daughter just called and informed me that she added a quart of oil to the coolant tank by mistake about a week ago on my old Dodge Caravan. She was adding another quart today when she noticed her mistake. How bad is it that she's driven a week with oil in the coolant? Can I just drain the radiator and overflow tank and add new coolant and call it done? Do you think she has done permanent damage? This van is an oil burner and I've showed her how to check and add oil several times. Can't believe she did this?!!!
Help! Daughter poured oil in coolant tank
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If she poured it into a non-pressurized overflow tank, you might be lucky and none of the oil was sucked into the radiator. Oil floats on top of water (not sure about coolant) and if the suction hose is at the bottom of the overflow tank (with coolant in it), the radiator may not have ingested any oil. Remove the overflow tank and hose, then give them a good flushing. If oil got into the engine cooling system, I think you are in for a very thorough, multiple flush job with something that breaks down oil.
Wishing you the best!
Wishing you the best!
So a whole quart? And it ran for a week? I'd say there'll be a little residue even if you drain it a couple times...maybe add a cleaner/flush, run it and drain it.
I don't think it's going to permanently damage anything as long as you get most of it out as soon as possible.
I don't think it's going to permanently damage anything as long as you get most of it out as soon as possible.
I would drain everything . See what it looks like .
Then I would fill with water from the $ .25 a gallon water dispenser . Add a little liquid dish soap and let it idle until it is hot .
Start it and let it run until it is hot . Do not forget to turn on the heater so the soapy water can circulate in the heater core /
Drain again & look at the water >
Repeat until you are satisfied with it . Then flush out with more water until there is no evidence of soap . Drain & fill wirh 100% coolant . It will mix with the water remaining in the system . But check it to see if it is " strong " enough for your climate .
Butp the air out of the system , as necessary .
And , you have successfully flushed and refilled the cooling system .
Best of luck to you .
Then I would fill with water from the $ .25 a gallon water dispenser . Add a little liquid dish soap and let it idle until it is hot .
Start it and let it run until it is hot . Do not forget to turn on the heater so the soapy water can circulate in the heater core /
Drain again & look at the water >
Repeat until you are satisfied with it . Then flush out with more water until there is no evidence of soap . Drain & fill wirh 100% coolant . It will mix with the water remaining in the system . But check it to see if it is " strong " enough for your climate .
Butp the air out of the system , as necessary .
And , you have successfully flushed and refilled the cooling system .
Best of luck to you .
I don't know a lot about oil in the radiator however I would start with a few drain and refill procedures. Drain all the coolant out of the radiator and refill it again then drive it for a 100 miles or so and drain it again. You will have to watch so you don't overheat it because even on a drain and refill there will be some air in there. It will take quite a while in a cold climate to get it all circulated because the thermostat is not going to open up right away. Good thing it was only 1 quart of oil since the radiator and engine block and hoses and heater core hold a lot of fluid. I don't really know what else you could do other than to flush everything out with water which will take a long time and a lot of work. I am thinking several drain and refills would be your best course of action.
You're definitely going to need a drain and flush. Instead of liquid soap, I would use baking soda and water. I would mix the baking soda and water in a 5 gallon bucket and I would add enough baking soda until the water gets slippery. It shouldn't take more than 5 ounces to get the water slippery. Run it through the engine and get it up to operating temperature. Drain and repeat.
gathermewool
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How many miles has she driven since this mistake? Was the engine brought up to operating temperature?
Sad the kids of this generation are clueless about maintenance - although your daughter attempted it and that is real good.
Like what folks have said complete flush, add distilled water and a soap detergent a few oz, run it for a few hours and then refill with coolant.
Hey these things happen, not the end of the wolds
Like what folks have said complete flush, add distilled water and a soap detergent a few oz, run it for a few hours and then refill with coolant.
Hey these things happen, not the end of the wolds
I dont know what the proper procedure is but use liquid laundry detergent instead of dish soap - laundry won't foam/bubble.
There ARE flushes designed for this. Irontite Thoroflush comes to mind. On the cheap, automatic dishwashing detergent (such as plain old powdered Cascade) will break down the oil and help get it out (might take several flushes to do the job). Done this a few times on engines that popped a head gasket. 2 cups of Cascade dissolved in a gallon of hot water, fill cooling system to capacity, drive 15~20 miles, drain and repeat. Flush once or twice with straight water and fill with your fave coolant.
Might add that this may not be the best method with aluminum radiators and/or aluminum engines (though I have done it without harm). For that you may consider sticking with pre-packaged formulations that profess to be safe with aluminum.
Might add that this may not be the best method with aluminum radiators and/or aluminum engines (though I have done it without harm). For that you may consider sticking with pre-packaged formulations that profess to be safe with aluminum.
I would empty the recovery tank and wash it out, then do a Citric Acid flush of the cooling system and a couple of distilled water flushes. If weather permits drive it a day with distilled water only and check for oil floating on top of the water to be sure. I think it will be fine after that to fill with the proper coolant distilled water mix.
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Drain, flush with water, and repeat. Always repeat.
Originally Posted by EchoWars
There ARE flushes designed for this. Irontite Thoroflush comes to mind. On the cheap, automatic dishwashing detergent (such as plain old powdered Cascade) will break down the oil and help get it out (might take several flushes to do the job). Done this a few times on engines that popped a head gasket. 2 cups of Cascade dissolved in a gallon of hot water, fill cooling system to capacity, drive 15~20 miles, drain and repeat. Flush once or twice with straight water and fill with your fave coolant.
Might add that this may not be the best method with aluminum radiators and/or aluminum engines (though I have done it without harm). For that you may consider sticking with pre-packaged formulations that profess to be safe with aluminum.
Welcome to the forum! Nice post, I had never heard of that product before.
There ARE flushes designed for this. Irontite Thoroflush comes to mind. On the cheap, automatic dishwashing detergent (such as plain old powdered Cascade) will break down the oil and help get it out (might take several flushes to do the job). Done this a few times on engines that popped a head gasket. 2 cups of Cascade dissolved in a gallon of hot water, fill cooling system to capacity, drive 15~20 miles, drain and repeat. Flush once or twice with straight water and fill with your fave coolant.
Might add that this may not be the best method with aluminum radiators and/or aluminum engines (though I have done it without harm). For that you may consider sticking with pre-packaged formulations that profess to be safe with aluminum.
Welcome to the forum! Nice post, I had never heard of that product before.
I'm thinking this actually may have increased the life of the engine. Add another quart for good measure.
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