Temperature indicator

[Ron & Dee]

I just had my radiator flushed, new thermostat, and coolant, and now my engine seems to be running warmer that where I used to see the indicator. It is one mark above where it used to be.

Would a new thermostat cause this increase in temperature to go above where I have normally been seeing it for the past 4 years?

Thanks,

Ron

[Ron & Dee]

I just had my radiator flushed, new thermostat, and coolant, and now my engine seems to be running warmer that where I used to see the indicator. It is one mark above where it used to be.

Would a new thermostat cause this increase in temperature to go above where I have normally been seeing it for the past 4 years?

Thanks,

Ron

[oemtech]

According to the Workhorse documentation I have the center line indicator is 188-224 degrees.

You may have some air in the system or a bad coolant sensor. With the engine cool take the radiator cap off... you should get a bit of coolant running out.

Worst case is the wrong thermostat or it was installed backwards. Don't laugh I have replaced more than one in cars that was installed backwards. Me, I always test my replacement thermostats. I heat water to 180/190 and check the stat as it opens. I increase the temp until it is fully open. Now I know what the min-max temps are.

[Ron & Dee]

Thanks Dale,

This thing is going to drive me nuts

I called the people back to see what thermostat they installed and they said they replaced it with a 195 degree, which is what was in there originally. I'm sure the thermostat was fully open by the time I got home but now the indicator is one mark above where I have been watching it for the last 4 years.

What sort of indication should I look for if they installed it backwards? Would it take longer to open

Ron

[oemtech]

The backwards problem will result in a high temp right off the bat. Most of ones I have replaced were an off brand and installed by a DIY'er that wasn't very handy or didn't pay attention. I doubt this is your problem.

My guess is air or a sensor.

[DAN L]

get an infrared thermometer gauge and you can see exactly what the radiator temp is when hot. you can also use the the gauge to check your tires when you make rest stops. my info is that normal operating temp near the bead is up to 60 degrees above ambient temp. 200 degrees indicates a problem. maybe a leak. sure beats thumping the tires and listening to the tone at every stop. my gauge is from sears pn 3482327. cost about $25 10 years ago. still works well. i haven't even had to replace the batteries yet. HARBOR FREIGHT TOOLS has them also.

[knebrdr]

Ron,
Check the coolant concentration. If it is above 50% it will cause the engine to run warmer than normal. Antifreeze does a good job of dissipating heat and a poorer job of absorbing it and as the concentration percentage climbs this phenomenon progresses at a geometric rate. The radiator then runs cooler and affects the thermostat opening point and the fan clutch engagement point.
Randy

[Ron & Dee]

Thanks for all the replies.

I'm hopping it may be air. The mechanic that did the work let the engine run quite a while trying to get all the bubbles out of the system. He left me the remains of 3 gallons of antifreeze, which was maybe a pint or less, to add in case the level of coolant went down.

How do I check the percentage of antifreeze?

Ron

[DAN L]

ron and dee: an anti freeze tester is a type of hydrometer. they are available at auto parts stores. the kind with balls in it that float at different concentrations imo are not accurate.

[Ron & Dee]

Dan L,

In your suggestion of the use of infrared gauge, where do you shoot the temp of the radiator and what kind of temperature should I look for?

Thanks,

Ron

[DriVer]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Ron & Dee:
In your suggestion of the use of infrared gauge, where do you shoot the temp of the radiator and what kind of temperature should I look for? </div></BLOCKQUOTE>Ron, The data you receive will give you little if any real world meaning other than to give you an idea of the surface temperature of the front of the radiator. If you were to meter the engine side of the radiator from inside the MH through the doghouse opening you would get a second set of readings which would not correspond to the metering that you took in the front.

A differential on the other hand can be observed if you meter the left side v.s. the right side of the radiator metered close to the tanks. You can then meter the opposite ends of the tanks to observe if a differential exits.

The best technology to employ if you are concerned about engine temperatures would be a device like a ScanGauge II. This gauge will give you internal temperatures to the single digit and would be a better resource to observe than an IR meter. (If you don't have one)

I do use and have used my handheld IR device often to meter things like brake rotors, tires the outside surface temperature of the coach and other items of curiosity that need general observation.

[Ron & Dee]

Thanks Mike,

If I could be assured that the engine temp is the same as it used to be, only now showing a different needle position, I could learn to live with that but not knowing if the actual engine temp is running higher is going to drive me nuts.

I got used to seeing my needle at a certain position and felt good about knowing that the engine was operating in it's normal temperature range. When the needle would start to move up a couple of needle widths during stop and go driving, or the needle would move up one or two complete marks if I had the dash a/c running or idling for an extended period of time, the big fan would come on and knock the temperature down to normal or slightly below. Under a real heavy load, such as going up mountains the needle would move up maybe 3 to 4 marks above normal but the big fan was always able to take care of the increase in temperature and bring it back down to normal.

I have become accustomed to this method of observing my engines operating temperature and have always felt confident since I have not had any over heating problems to worry about.

I'm going to let things go for several local trips and see if this problem corrects itself or I need to take it back to find out what is going on with the new temperature indicator reading.

Ron

[DAN L]

RON & DEE, point the ir temp gauge at the thermostat housing. it will read very close to what the coolant temp inside the stat housing is.
dan