Just fitted mason alarm need some advice

[BongoMTBer]

Bleed it properly as per the factsheets, the method above is liable to kill it if there is an airlock, I think Bongomtber got away with it more by luck than judgement.

Yup, agree with that. However, I needed to get home, and when it took a whole load more water in I was confident that it was ok. Loads of judgement there

[paul&tracey]

Yeah, my father in law is a qualified mechanic and he will be the first person I will ring (since he flushed out the coolant system) to sort out any air locks. I will monitor the level carefully over the next 2 weeks.
Thanks all for your time and advice it has been very useful

[scanner]

If it ever overheats I'd never pull over and switch off - pull over and stop yes - but leave the engine idling to keep the coolant circulating.

Switching off stops the water pump and leaves the very hot water in the head to get even hotter due to the heat soak that occurs if hot water remains in contact with even hotter metal.

Just idling puts very little more heat into the engine and should help avoid any localised boiling from heat soak.

[BongoMTBer]

If it ever overheats I'd never pull over and switch off - pull over and stop yes - but leave the engine idling to keep the coolant circulating.

Switching off stops the water pump and leaves the very hot water in the head to get even hotter due to the heat soak that occurs if hot water remains in contact with even hotter metal.

Just idling puts very little more heat into the engine and should help avoid any localised boiling from heat soak.

If there is no water in the head due to an air/vapour lock then the head will only get hotter if there is still fuel being combusted with the engine running.

As soon as you stop the engine, it immediatley starts to cool as there is no cumbustion taking place. Yes the water that is sitting in the block may get hotter and boil due to the lack of circulation, thus causing the needle to rise, but the head itself won't continue to heat. It simply cannot as there is no heat source.

[scanner]

The big word there is "IF"

"IF" there is no water then maybe I'd agree, but "IF" there is still water in the head there soon won't be if you just switch off and let it boil.
Leaving it idling means that what water is left will be circulated through the rad and block so that ALL the water will cool down steadily, not just the water in the rad quickly and the water in the block slowly.

[jaylee]

The temp dial needle position sounds about right to me, & an alarm setting of about 4.5 works for me too..
Though in heavy traffic my needle will drop.

I found when my top hose went last October i kept the engine idling fer a while when the alarm chirped 3/4 mile from home & i pulled over.
It wasn't till i had stopped i noticed the steam drifting out under the drivers side!!
The radiator can feel quite cool compared to the rest of the system when stopped after a run & soon heats up when restarted a couple of minutes later.
When the fans cut in this should help cool what's left in the pipes to an acceptable level at a decent rate..?

I would assume if you have an air lock, it would be no different to if you had a leak in respect of the poor coolant circulation..?

[paul&tracey]

Spent the day testing the new alarm I've set it at 4.5 and the temp reading sits about 1pm position and just past when going up hills etc. I've monitored the coolant level and all seems well. Fingers crossed
Thanks again for the advice given.

[BongoMTBer]

The big word there is "IF"

"IF" there is no water then maybe I'd agree, but "IF" there is still water in the head there soon won't be if you just switch off and let it boil.
Leaving it idling means that what water is left will be circulated through the rad and block so that ALL the water will cool down steadily, not just the water in the rad quickly and the water in the block slowly.

Totally agree with you scanner. I was refering to the situation which I had experienced as Paul had asked. The water was not circulating effectivley, hence it was overheating and the gauge was rising. Considering I was hardly using any power when it happened, I was convinced it would still keep climbing even at idle.

If I had been on a long hard climb and it had got hot and I did not suspect loss of coolant and fans were working, I would have pulled up and kept the engine running as you say.

If in any doubt, I am sure that the safest option is to shut down as this will remove the heat source. Bottom line is, it worked and all is well now.....

Oh and dare I say it, I think the alarm is great and everyone should have one! The systems I am used to operating, repairing and testing are loaded with monitoring equipment to ensure that faults can be spotted early enough to ensure appropriate action can be taken preventing catasrophic results. Bring on the bells, whistles and flashy lights

[scanner]

Oh and dare I say it, I think the alarm is great and everyone should have one! The systems I am used to operating, repairing and testing are loaded with monitoring equipment to ensure that faults can be spotted early enough to ensure appropriate action can be taken preventing catasrophic results. Bring on the bells, whistles and flashy lights

Nah - you should just make sure you built a perfect, infallible system in the first place............... (humourous):roll:

[BongoMTBer]

Now where is my big wooden spoon?

[scanner]

Captain of the Titanic:- "Me, need an Iceberg alarm? - No! - I have crewmen equipped with the latest binocular technology who are on constant look out.
However in the unlikely event we should hit an Iceberg, save your sympathy for the Iceberg - the ship is unsinkable".

[jaylee]

Captain of the Titanic:- "Me, need an Iceberg alarm? - No! - I have crewmen equipped with the latest binocular technology who are on constant look out.
However in the unlikely event we should hit an Iceberg, save your sympathy for the Iceberg - the ship is unsinkable".