shoot me

[js_og]

Well... in my complete lunatic newbness I poured some copper jell-o in my radiator. It was an attemp to seal my cracked block. I thought nothing too bad could append... before I clogged my heater core.

It happened a month ago. Since then, my friend tried unclogging it by shooting air / water in the firewall inlet pipe, to no success.

rest assured that I got my lesson from that. Does anyone know if there's a way to fix this other than replacing the heater core?

[Festy46]

This is a "kill or cure" option and it is entirely your call if you want to do it. It's possible you could rupture the heater core and have a water mess on the floor of your car. I have successfully done it to a heater core in a truck, but never to a Festiva core.

Go to the hardware store and purchase a female garden hose repair end for the correct size to fit the Festiva heater hose. Figure out which hose is the outlet hose from the heater core and install the garden hose fitting in it with a clamp. Make sure the inlet side hose is not connected to anything. Connect a water supply to the fitting on the heater hose and then barely open the valve at your water supply. The object is to backwash the heater core. Once you have a trickle of water coming out, you can slowly increase the volume by opening the valve from your water supply. Don't get in a hurry. Give the water a chance to clean the stop leak material out of the core. Good luck.

[htchbck]

^X2 I've had this work in the past, never had to do it on a festiva but I have on several other vehicles. It is also the treatment I do on "new-to-me" replacement cores I've pulled from junkyards before I install them. Only failed once, on an old GMC K1500, the whole pipe ended up severing from the core, but it was the old style plastic tank core so it was bound to go out anyway. Just be reeeeeealllllyyy slow with increasing the water flow like festy46 said and there's a good chance it will work

[js_og]

Okey sound like a good option. The last time we tried this, I was holding the garden hose by hand to the heater inlet. I believe fitting a female connector to it might provide the necessary pressure.

Too bad you're a little far to come clean up the mess if the core blows up in my dash

[Bowls]

Solvents, ford would probably say alcohol. possibly make it easier to flush

[econoaddict]

If you used the type that requires leaving the system open with no coolant for 12-24 hours after warming/running the engine through a couple of cycles, forget ever getting it out. This stuff cures and become solid and "bonded"
As a mechanic I love this stuff, creates lots of work for me.

[kartracer46]

If you used the type that requires leaving the system open with no coolant for 12-24 hours after warming/running the engine through a couple of cycles, forget ever getting it out. This stuff cures and become solid and "bonded"
As a mechanic I love this stuff, creates lots of work for me.

Is it called Steel Seal? If so I love that stuff too! It is awsome for creating un-necessary repairs.:p

[econoaddict]

Is it called Steel Seal? If so I love that stuff too! It is awsome for creating un-necessary repairs.:p

That's one of them.

[js_og]

If you used the type that requires leaving the system open with no coolant for 12-24 hours after warming/running the engine through a couple of cycles, forget ever getting it out. This stuff cures and become solid and "bonded"
As a mechanic I love this stuff, creates lots of work for me.

thankfully it's not that stuff. how could you send alcohol under pressure? I usually just poor the bottle down and gravity do the work, but for that application, im not sure.