Ram 5.7Hemi Coolant Flush DIY

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Jwithing

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Lol that sucks. Is it sweet like the older green coolant?
Kinda has a mix between sweet and tangy. Tastes exactly like it smells... I also have about a gallon of hoat and some windshield washer fluid in there....so... Not sure how much that affects the flavor lol
 

Jwithing

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Can I just flush this **** down the toilet?
 
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Hemi395

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Can I just flush this **** down the toilet?
If you have a septic system I wouldn't. If you have sewer I'd find out if your municipality can handle coolant in the sewer. I took it to the transfer station and they disposed of it...
 

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If you have a septic system I wouldn't. If you have sewer I'd find out if your municipality can handle coolant in the sewer. I took it to the transfer station and they disposed of it...
Same. Local disposable waste place. The cool thing is, I didn't realize these guys recycle packing material (popcorn, boxes, wrap, etc) and that is it free to take. That **** is expensive to buy so that was a good karma moment I think.
 

Jwithing

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So I pulled my grille and dumped the reservoir... Some greenish/yellow sludge came out.. I filled the radiator with about a gallon of water and filled the reservoir to the top. Started the engine and the reservoir wouldn't go down at all. Even at 130 degrees with the cap on.... Does that mean I likely have blockage in my reservoir line or do you need the system air free to pull from the reservoir? Also then filled the radiator to the top and reved it while refilling. Temp got to 160 before I shut it off... Not sure if I should be concerned since you said yours didn't hit past 130
 
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Hemi395

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So I pulled my grille and dumped the reservoir... Some greenish/yellow sludge came out.. I filled the radiator with about a gallon of water and filled the reservoir to the top. Started the engine and the reservoir wouldn't go down at all. Even at 130 degrees with the cap on.... Does that mean I likely have blockage in my reservoir line or do you need the system air free to pull from the reservoir? Also then filled the radiator to the top and reved it while refilling. Temp got to 160 before I shut it off... Not sure if I should be concerned since you said yours didn't hit past 130
Did you remove the tstat? I ran mine without the tstat and it wouldn't go above 130. If you have the tstat still installed it will get to normal operating temp with the cap on or off.

The reservoir I never did anything with. It drained when I drained the radiator...
 

Jwithing

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Did you remove the tstat? I ran mine without the tstat and it wouldn't go above 130. If you have the tstat still installed it will get to normal operating temp with the cap on or off.

The reservoir I never did anything with. It drained when I drained the radiator...
Yes, I removed my tstat. My reservoir didn't budge when I drained the radiator... Guess I've got blockage.... Maybe the windshield wiper fluid never made it into the system lol
 

Jwithing

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Well, definitely had major blockage in the rervoir and lines. I took the hose off at the radiator and completely removed it. Blew into the hose and the rervoir was bubbling just fine... I thought wtf could the issue be... Turned my head back and the hose was spewing gunk all over lol. Ran a gallon through it and it's coming out clear now.... Good to know that the wiper fluid most likely never made it into the system.
 
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Hemi395

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Well, definitely had major blockage in the rervoir and lines. I took the hose off at the radiator and completely removed it. Blew into the hose and the rervoir was bubbling just fine... I thought wtf could the issue be... Turned my head back and the hose was spewing gunk all over lol. Ran a gallon through it and it's coming out clear now.... Good to know that the wiper fluid most likely never made it into the system.
Awesome, glad you found that. Could've been bad if it couldn't overflow into the reservoir...
 

Jwithing

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Finally finished my flush 24 gallons later... Had dinner reservations yesterday and had to finish up today. All I did was remove the thermostat and keep flushing. Didn't mess with the block plugs since I couldn't find the driver side one and didn't feel like burning myself on my LT headers. Bit of advice, don't park on a slope with the front at the high end and the driver side slightly higher. After 18 gallons through, I parked in the garage and was able to get over a gallon and a half through vs. 1.25 or less parked on a slope. Just added the new 100% oat and went for a short drive. I noticed it's cooling much better. I still need to check for 50/50 and adjust accordingly.
 
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Hemi395

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Not sure why I can't edit the first post but if you need info on how to identify what coolant is in your truck check this thread out
 

VB712

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I’m only at 59k on my 2014 but if I ever decide to go with a 180 thermostat then I will flush mine. Seems pretty easy. Just time consuming.
 
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Hemi395

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Yeah it's definitely not hard, it's just time consuming and messy. Honestly if you know you have the OAT coolant I would just pull the tstat and do several drain and fills from the radiator. Much less mess and easier.
 

VB712

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Yeah it's definitely not hard, it's just time consuming and messy. Honestly if you know you have the OAT coolant I would just pull the tstat and do several drain and fills from the radiator. Much less mess and easier.
I have a 2014 so I’m not certain. I know the coolant looks orange from what I can see.
 

VB712

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You should have OAT. It turns a pinkish orange as it ages...
So just drain the radiator and pull thermostat, run once or twice with distilled water then drain and refill with coolant? I’m sure there will be leftover distilled in the system. Will that mess with getting the 50/50 mixture?
 
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Hemi395

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So just drain the radiator and pull thermostat, run once or twice with distilled water then drain and refill with coolant? I’m sure there will be leftover distilled in the system. Will that mess with getting the 50/50 mixture?
Yeah pull the tstat and drain the radiator. Since you have the OAT coolant I wouldn't even bother with distilled water. Just do a few drain and fills with new coolant and you should be good. Only reason I used distilled water was because I wasn't sure if I had HOAT or OAT. 2014s definitely got OAT.
 

VB712

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Yeah pull the tstat and drain the radiator. Since you have the OAT coolant I wouldn't even bother with distilled water. Just do a few drain and fills with new coolant and you should be good. Only reason I used distilled water was because I wasn't sure if I had HOAT or OAT. 2014s definitely got OAT.
Mopar coolant or any other OAT coolant?
 
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