Brass radiators - what would you pay to repair vs replace and what can be repaired

[AuroraGirl]

What kind of damage can shops fix in old brass radiators? Do most radiator shops offer cleaning, as brass radiators can get full of junk?
Any coolants that have no compatibility with brass?
Iirc, orange silicate coolant might have issues? I rememeber reading about it in my 1990 olds 88 owners manual, which came with a brass radiator odly enough.

What is the price point where you say screw it and get an aluminum? How to tell a radiator vs a heavy duty vs a diesel?

 

[nabeshin]

I had a local shop try to clean and fix mine. They got all the crud out but some of the tubes had holes. They plugged up 5 or 6 rows before they called it quits because of potential diminished cooling capacity. A new USA made core was ordered and my tanks were soldered onto the ends. It cost $500, but is way better than the brass units out of India or China. The shop recommended against aluminum radiators with plastic ends cause they don't last.

As far as solid aluminum, the $500 is also about the price you'd pay for an aluminum radiator that isn't a piece of ****. But I wanted to keep the truck as original as I could.

 

[SirRobyn0]

I could really go on with this subject.... A good old fashion radiator shop should be able to a lot, to bring back a radiator but like in nabeshin's case theres a point where a new core is needed. I wouldn't even consider an aluminum / plastic tank unit. And the all aluminum, I've seen to many weld failures to really be a fan. Try to find a radiator shop that still fixes radiators, take it in and see what they can do. It'll be worth every penny in the long run.

As for coolant, I'd just run a good quality green, and leave it with that. You could also run a global type, but stay away from the orange dex-cool type coolants. Dex-cool would be a good recipe to clog up the system. Hopefully this helps.

 

[AuroraGirl]

I ask this for both a square and a 77 Electra. I don't know where on the Electra it leaks.. but it seems to come out of the top. It had freeze damage. Does that seem in anyway repairable or is that a bring to a shop kind of question?

 

[1987 GMC Jimmy]

Maintenance, or at least not letting it go to hell, on the front end is key. Hard municipal/rural waters, coolant corrosion inhibitor breakdown with age/use, and improper coolant to water ratio are the reasons good Harrison style units go to radiator heaven, not from a lack of quality.

You can definitely argue that aluminum has better heat dissipation capacity than copper, but I wouldn’t take the aluminum with the trash plastic tanks. That’s purely a cost-saving measure at the expense of longevity. I had my Jimmy’s OEM unit cored out, cleaned, painted for $75. There was one tube to tank leak that cropped up, but the thing was still in overall good shape, and it looked beautiful inside and out when done. I would definitely pay more than that, though. I wish I had the OEM unit in my Caprice. I bought an Olds factory radiator to try to fix up and use, but I think it’s slightly too big for me. It’s still in the box under my bed, and I’d straight swap it for a solid Caprice version.

Your Electra’s cooling system needs to be pressurized with a tester, and you can inspect for the leak(s) yourself with the fan shroud off. If you’re still having trouble seeing it, add a UV dye to it and solicit a blacklight. If it’s not packed with crud and not leaking profusely, I’m confident it could be fixed, and I would go that route. Couldn’t agree with ole Robyn more on that one.

 

[AuroraGirl]

Maintenance, or at least not letting it go to hell, on the front end is key. Hard municipal/rural waters, coolant corrosion inhibitor breakdown with age/use, and improper coolant to water ratio are the reasons good Harrison style units go to radiator heaven, not from a lack of quality.

You can definitely argue that aluminum has better heat dissipation capacity than copper, but I wouldn’t take the aluminum with the trash plastic tanks. That’s purely a cost-saving measure at the expense of longevity. I had my Jimmy’s OEM unit cored out, cleaned, painted for $75. There was one tube to tank leak that cropped up, but the thing was still in overall good shape, and it looked beautiful inside and out when done. I would definitely pay more than that, though. I wish I had the OEM unit in my Caprice. I bought an Olds factory radiator to try to fix up and use, but I think it’s slightly too big for me. It’s still in the box under my bed, and I’d straight swap it for a solid Caprice version.

Your Electra’s cooling system needs to be pressurized with a tester, and you can inspect for the leak(s) yourself with the fan shroud off. If you’re still having trouble seeing it, add a UV dye to it and solicit a blacklight. If it’s not packed with crud and not leaking profusely, I’m confident it could be fixed, and I would go that route. Couldn’t agree with ole Robyn more on that one.

When running, it sprays at a metal support that i cant see under and kinda mists up into engine bay. ON driver side, im guessing its on or near top. there is some trim i can remove, but my guess is the washer fluid/water separated from the coolant and it was on top of the radiator and it got a little too expanded in that spot. the car is a low priority atm but when it comes to square, i have numerous brass radiators out of squares for spares but i would have the next one cleaned up and fixed if any issues were present.

And on that, id still like to know how to tell a diesel rad from a gas from a heavy duty gas. Theres a solid chance i have a radiator, my grandpa did a 1 ton diesel dually over years ago for a guy, might have his old rad. i have one thats distinctly thicker than the others, but it looks like its much bigger rather than just bigger, so the others might not be for a square or that one is for something else.

 

[Salty Crusty]

There are plenty of aluminum radiators out there for less than $500. No need for a Be-Cool on a driver. A 2-row with 1" tubes will cool a very healthy big block.

I absolutely HATE the plastic tanked ones. Hot water directly out of the engine is dumped directly into the plastic fitting on the top of the tank. Every single one I have had leak did so when they cracked at this point due to heat cycles.

 

[AuroraGirl]

There are plenty of aluminum radiators out there for less than $500. No need for a Be-Cool on a driver. A 2-row with 1" tubes will cool a very healthy big block.

I absolutely HATE the plastic tanked ones. Hot water directly out of the engine is dumped directly into the plastic fitting on the top of the tank. Every single one I have had leak did so when they cracked at this point due to heat cycles.

Im not looking to get a bigger radiator im asking how to identify incase i have one. since a rad shop is near me, within 30 min, and I have extra brass radiators I think ill stick with them for a while

 

[SirRobyn0]

Im not looking to get a bigger radiator im asking how to identify incase i have one. since a rad shop is near me, within 30 min, and I have extra brass radiators I think ill stick with them for a while

Honestly I don't know the answer specific to the squares but I can give you some general information. Assuming all radiators in question are brass / copper type it would be number of cores, size of cores, and size of tanks that makes the difference. Larger tanks, more rows or cores would be more heavy duty. A 2 core small tube would be light duty and a 4 core or in some cases a 2 core with super big oval cores would be more heavy duty. Hopefully someone will post with better specifics to the square body, but if not this should give you some idea what your looking at.

 

[SquareRoot]

I say **** can the brass when it's time for a new one. My all aluminum 2 row radiator is built tough! Been running it for 15 years and never a problem. Bought it thru Summit for less than $300 clams and it keeps my engine cool even here in Yuma, Az when it's 120 out. Just be sure to install an anode from the start and life will be good. Go get'em tiger.

You must be registered for see images attach

 

[SirRobyn0]

I say **** can the brass when it's time for a new one. My all aluminum 2 row radiator is built tough! Been running it for 15 years and never a problem. Bought it thru Summit for less than $300 clams and it keeps my engine cool even here in Yuma, Az when it's 120 out. Just be sure to install an anode from the start and life will be good. Go get'em tiger.

You must be registered for see images attach

There's a lot of opinions on electric fans, I hope you don't mind if I quiz you on it. Looking at your picture it looks like you have gone to a serp belt, I assume your running an upgraded alternator, for those of us that are still running factory do you know what the duel fans draw? Did you get an improvement in A/C at low speeds and idle?

 

[Bextreme04]

My OEM radiator is leaking from around the solder joint of the upper hose fitting in the tank. My local shop quoted me $60 to do an inspection and anything from that point on is extra. They charge an hourly fee plus parts. I'm betting it will be about $150 to acid strip/clean the entire radiator, re-solder the tanks and re-paint the whole thing. Mine is a factory 4-row large radiator, so it is well worth it for me to get it refurbished when I do my engine swap.

Also, you should NEVER put tap water into your cooling system. Distilled water is cheap and will ensure you don't get any mineral deposits collecting in your radiator. Buy coolant concentrate from the cheapest spot you can find it(that's walmart for me) and mix 50/50 with distilled water from the same location for $0.99/gal.

 

[AuroraGirl]

My OEM radiator is leaking from around the solder joint of the upper hose fitting in the tank. My local shop quoted me $60 to do an inspection and anything from that point on is extra. They charge an hourly fee plus parts. I'm betting it will be about $150 to acid strip/clean the entire radiator, re-solder the tanks and re-paint the whole thing. Mine is a factory 4-row large radiator, so it is well worth it for me to get it refurbished when I do my engine swap.

Also, you should NEVER put tap water into your cooling system. Distilled water is cheap and will ensure you don't get any mineral deposits collecting in your radiator. Buy coolant concentrate from the cheapest spot you can find it(that's walmart for me) and mix 50/50 with distilled water from the same location for $0.99/gal.

I know about distilled, I've flushed a many coolant systsns. I need to flush my park avenue here soon. Gets a little warm in the heat

 

[Camar068]

As for coolant, I'd just run a good quality green, and leave it with that. You could also run a global type, but stay away from the orange dex-cool type coolants. Dex-cool would be a good recipe to clog up the system. Hopefully this helps.

Agree provided it didn't come from the factory with dex-cool. Hate it.....read too much crap about it. Don't mix green with orange.

 

[nabeshin]

I used water from my dehumidifier I collected in rinsed iced tea jugs. Better than well water, and cheaper than dirt cheap since it was basically free. Then mixed with Country Tough American Green concentrate. I plan on doing complete coolant changes every 2 years going forward.