Well, the coolant flush and replace that was supposed to take me 1 day took 3 days in 100+ heat! A lot of the issues were my own inexperience. A few things I would advise to newbies...
1. Try to find a level spot to work on. The street in front of your house on a hill is not the best spot.
2. Try and do it on a weekday. No, Autozone and O'Reilly's do not carry all the appropriate hose sizes you will most likely need. I was lucky in that I was able to piece meal some hoses together and able to cut a formed 4' hose and just use the right angle section to replace mine. It would have been much better had Fleetpride been open!
3. When replacing your thermostats (mine had two) make sure they are fixed in the small recessed hole. Mine was very difficult to see since the fan, radiator, belts, etc are all in the way. I ended up taking apart and putting back together the thermostat/water housing 3 times before I got it right. The first time was because I didn't realize there was a recess to fit the thermostats into and the thermostat edges cut the gasket and prevented the housing from seating completely. The second time was because one of the thermostats fell out of the recess as I was putting the housing back on (see #1). Third time was a charm as the CAT mechanic I spoke to when picking up my 3rd gasket suggested I use a very small amount of vaseline to suction the thermostat in place due to the incline. Worked like a charm!
4. DO NOT leave your flashlight resting between two belt pulleys, forget it, then start your engine. I was lucky because the AC condenser is not belted right now or I might have been paying for some huge repairs! Instead, only one pulley was spinning so the only damage done was to my flashlight (see attached pic).
After this experience, I'm wondering if I should leave the belts to the experts given the limited space to work between the belts and rear fan/radiator.
Regarding "leaving it to the experts" comment.
I find that there are fewer and fewer "experts" out there and the time and effort one puts in to researching, preparing, and performing ones own mechanical work will pay BIG dividends if you are disabled in an area with marginal services.
Additionally, the money saved is considerable, and the knowledge acquired will serve you well in the future.
Having to pay for mechanic's training via their hourly rate really irks me.
It seems to be getting worse.
Regards,
Benjie, Another good reason to invest in quality flashlights, those maglites are tough. I have tried several tricks to destroy one but losing one is the only way I have succeeded. I have one that I found rolling down a busy highway, it looks like H... but it still works. :)
Gary B
Gary, I agree! My best attempt at destroying the Maglite before this incident was leaving the batteries in it so long that they corroded so badly that I couldn't get them out. Had to spray some penetrating lube into the battery compartment and then pound the living daylights out of the tube on concrete for about 5 minutes until they finally let loose. Put a dent in my concrete driveway, but the flashlight is still going as evidence by my most recent attempt! ;-)
You said it all! I have made lots of mistakes but the cost has been nothing compared to bringing an "expert" in to fix the problem. Ask Kent about the diesel expert that came to work on his rig. I will owe Kent a dinner if ever in OK for finding the guy on Craigslist.
Every wonder what the sign "factory trained mechanic" means?
Every wonder what the sign "factory trained mechanic" means?
Yes, I have always wondered!!
Does it say which factory, trained in what, by whom.
Owners Creed. never let the truth stand in the way of a charge !!
I don't do belts or thermostats and antifreeze, nor transmission fluid. Oil changes and filters I do. Some electrical work I do. And I no longer change tires. Quit doing that when I joined the International Brotherhood of Teamsters! I should have quit doing the other stuff too, but they don't give me a large enough pension! The company always liked me cause I could almost always get home unless something on the tractor burned up! Oh, I've also fixed a lot of thing that the engineers goofed up. The Kenworth truck engineers knew nothing about welding and fishtails. All their welds cracked, but we fixed it.
Well Benjie, now you know how to do it, just in case you have to do it again. Look how much more you know about you coach's cooling system. Motor Home repairs are like home improvements, make sure you have a full tank of gas in your vehicle, plenty of room on your credit card before you start, and it's going to take about twice as long as you think. Trial and error education is good education.
Adding to the previous: Peruse the archives (thanks Barry) for how this problems was dealt with by other members!!
Andy1