How do you top up radiator coolant in your truck?
Knowing how to top up radiator coolant in your truck can save your engine
A truck isn’t just any ordinary automobile. For many people, it is an integral tool for performing jobs. It’s important to keep your truck in peak operating condition, and that means keeping the radiator coolant topped up to the right level. If you fail to do that, the results could be disastrous.
Read on to find out more about how to find out whether your coolant is running low, how to refill radiator coolant for your truck, and learn how to watch out for hazards as you go about the task.
Nip into Natrad for all your car and truck heating and cooling needs. We sell many different coolants and fluids designed to protect your engine in rugged Australian conditions.
What happens if you don’t top up your truck’s radiator coolant?
If it’s running low, it’s important that you top up your truck radiator coolant as soon as possible. If you don’t get on it quickly, you might face the following consequences:
- Overheating engine: You’ll start to notice spiking temperatures in your engine.
- Leaking head gasket: This can result in coolant going into the engine system, including the combustion chamber, reducing your truck’s power.
Other negative effects include, but are not limited to:
- Reduced engine performance
- Destruction of the engine
- Blown head gasket
- Engine block
- Corrosive damage to the truck
How do you check your truck’s radiator coolant levels?
If your tuck’s radiator coolant is already at a healthy level, there’s no sense in overfilling it. The excess will be pushed out of your vehicle, and you will have wasted both time and money. However, if the radiator coolant levels are low, it’s time to look at topping up the radiator coolant. Find out the right course of action by checking your truck’s radiator coolant levels.
Although the locations will differ from vehicle to vehicle, the method for testing coolant is often the same. You don’t have to open the cap on your radiator to check the coolant level. With the vehicle on a level surface, look at the coolant reservoir, and you’ll be able to see whether or not the liquid comes up to the indicator line.
What safety considerations should you keep in mind when refilling a truck’s radiator coolant?
The main safety consideration to keep in mind when topping up radiator coolant is that the truck has cooled down before you attempt to remove the radiator cap. Turn off the truck and let it sit until you’re at no risk of burning yourself. Carefully touching your hand on the top tank of the radiator should give you a pretty good idea of the temperature inside.
Here are some other safety tips to keep in mind:
- Ensure that the hood of the truck is stable when raised. In older vehicles, the hood might have a habit of falling down unannounced.
- Make sure you’ve correctly located the radiator cap. Different models of truck have components located in different places, so use the vehicle’s manual to ensure you have located the correct cap.
How do you refill your truck’s radiator coolant?
Many people don’t know how to refill radiator coolant in their truck or heavy duty vehicle. It’s actually much simpler than you might think.
- Prepare the coolant (compatible with that already in the system) according to the provided instructions
- Unscrew the radiator cap
- Pour in the liquid until the radiator coolant marker reaches ‘full’.
How to check the hose clamps, and look for leaks, in your truck
Is there liquid on the ground after your car has been parked overnight? Are there white deposits and stains the colour of rust around your radiator? Are the hoses under your vehicle’s hood looking odd (soft, brittle, cracking, or bulging)? You might have a problem with leaks.
There are many points at which a radiator might leak, and checking them all properly is a difficult task best taken care of by a trained pro. If you’ve noticed you have to top up the radiator fluid more than normal, you might have a leak on your hands.
Get in touch with the qualified team at Natrad, whether it’s a truck, a car, or a heavy haulage vehicle, we can get the radiator working and we can get your truck’s radiator working properly again.
At Natrad, we’re the industry leaders for all things radiator related. Have a look at some of our coolants and fluids and see how we can help supply you with the right stuff to protect your vehicle.
