



By N2H

Is your car heater blowing out cold air?

Before you can determine the problem, you must first know how your car heater works. Remember that the part that transfers heat into the passenger compartment is the heater core. This can be thought of as a mini radiator. The coolant flows through the heater core while the fan, also known as the blower, blows air through the heater core’s fins. When the air blows through these fins, it is heated and that heated air warms the passenger apartment.

Now we can check why your car heater is blowing cold air. You can start by checking the coolant. This coolant is the substance that warms the heater core. Therefore, if the coolant is low, it is possible that that may not be enough to warm the air that blows to the passenger compartment. If you’re wondering, why can’t your temperature gauge just warn you about the low coolant, it is simply because the temperature outside is cold so low coolant may not affect the operating temperature of your engine. Once the coolant is full, put the engine at normal operating temperature. Feel the heater hoses that go through the firewall; they both should be hot to the touch.

If only one is hot, this means that there is a blockage in the heater core or there is air trapped in the heater core. Use a coolant funnel to purge the air from the cooling system. If the coolant is really brown, it has been neglected. If “stop leak” has been used at some point, the heater core could be blocked up. This blockage can be removed by flushing the heater core through the heater hoses using a garden hose with a sprayer.

If neither of them is hot to the touch, there could be a malfunctioning heat control valve. Check for the heat control valve by following the heater hoses back to the engine. There might be a broken vacuum line so the valve cannot operate. And maybe you by-passed the heater core because of a leak, so you looped the heater hoses.

If you are sure that the coolant is in good shape, but cool air is still blowing out your car heater, you can check for proper airflow. Adjust the heat control to the highest and lowest; listen for the movement of the doors within the heater case. These doors can be controlled by vacuum motors, cables or electric actuators. If it is controlled by electric motors, tapping it can sometimes make it work. If it is controlled by cables, find the door that controls the airflow across the heater core. If it is controlled by vacuum motors, the diaphragm needs replacing.

Tags: Car Maintenance, Car Parts

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How to Maintain Your Car Heater

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How to Maintain Your Car Heater

Are you going to perform some maintenance on your car heater? Are you trying to repair your car heater?

First of all you need to check if your car heater is still working…

Winter is a busy time for car owners. There are a lot of things to change and check before you can ride out again. You’d probably put it in your to-do list, but you always tend to end up doing other s chores first. You haven’t checked your car heater for a long time, so you should really get yourself to do it. Here are some basic instructions for doing that.

One sign you might notice if your car heater is no longer working is the frost or ice building inside your car after you start it and about time your heater kicked in. don’t worry here are some few things you can check and correct without the help of mechanics. It is especially important every time winter comes knocking about.

First, you need to transfer your car to a heated garage. Take the car for a drive until the engine and the heater warm up. To check its heat output, it is advised to set the heat on high and set the blower at medium or higher. You can monitor the heat output by inserting thermometers in the driver and passenger side vents.. Somewhere between 115 degrees and 120 degrees is usually an acceptable temperature, but it is also possible to have a higher reading. If your results are as mentioned you have successfully checked your car heater, but if not, please keep reading.

You owner’s manual and the manufacturer’s website are great resources to help you quickly and precisely determine the problem and optimize heat. If the answer is not there, you have to pop the hood.

Just staring at your heater will probably be in vain, so we start at the coolant vents. Make sure that the coolant level in the reservoir matches the manufacturer’s specifications. Even though this is not the problem, proper coolant level will help your heater run warmer. Also make sure that your coolant is clean. You should replace it regularly so it will always be in good shape. Always check your coolant temperature whenever you can.

If the temperature is still too cool, check the temperature do or motor to make sure it is working. It is usually located under the dashboard when you remove the panel. If it does not seem to work, it is better to replace this.

If all these fails, call a mechanic to make sure.

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How To Repair Your Car Heater

Car heaters are really important, especially during those cold winters. If you have encountered some problems with your car’s temperature, it is advised that you check your car heater and radiator. Your car heater works almost like your car radiator. The coolant originating from your engine goes through the heater core, and then the air will be blown through the core and into the car’s passenger compartment.

You may encounter some problems if the heater core becomes plugged. If this is the case, it will require replacement or flushing every now and then. When your engine gets hot, there are two hoses from this to your heater core. These hoses could have leaks at high pressure. You can be able to buy flush kits from some auto shops, but if you’re not up for the cost, you can just use a garden hose to flush your car heater and the car radiator.

The most common in car heater and car radiator problems is low engine coolant level. Because of this, you should always check them before you leave for a long trip. If you have an older car, you may have faulty engine thermostat. If you do, it is better if you could have it changed at a car repair shop.

Make it a habit to check the temperature gauge whenever you enter your car. Make sure it is in the normal range to avoid other problems. You can also check the temperature yourself. Just use the metal case thermometer placed into the filler of the radiator, but only when the engine is cold.

If you still encounter problems with the heater despite the temperature and fluid level, it may come from poor circulation through the heater core. You can test that by keeping the engine running at normal temperature and feeling the heater hoses. The two hoses should have the same temperature. If you felt that their temperature are not the same, you should try replacing them or flushing them.

If you are working on your car heater yourself, always use caution. It could be very hot, so never ever try to work around it while the engine is hot.. It is also practical to use gloves in order to protect your hands from being burned. But you are not that used in fooling around the car, it is better if you let a mechanic do the work.

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Water Damage to Your Interior

For many car owners, one of the things that can be very troublesome is when there is water damage to your interior. Water getting into your car’s interior can cause plenty of problems. First off, it can affect upholstery, can cause mold to grow and deteriorate your interior. While water damage can be a problem, in many cases it is easy to stop.

Car Water Damage

Here are some tips.

After a big rain, check your vehicle for water damage. The reason you should check for damage even if you don’t see any evidence of water in your vehicle, is that by catching a small leak in the earliest of stages you can make sure that water damage doesn’t get worse. Usually check around all seals first. Your sunroof/moonroof, by the door seals, the trunk, etc. These seals are usually the main places where water damage occurs. Sometimes fixing the problem can be as easy as making sure a door is closed all the way or cleaning out a seal of debris.

If you find water damage such as a small puddle of water on the floor of your vehicle or on the upholstery, remove as much moisture as possible. The best way to remove small amounts of water is with a vacuum. Vacuums will suck out most of the moisture in the upholstery. It is also a good idea to shampoo the upholstery afterwards which will also remove many of the mold spores that might be in the cloth upholstery from the rain. If mold starts to grow in your vehicle and a leak persists, you can be asking for lots of trouble. Not only will your car smell funky, but health wise some mold spores can exacerbate health issues.

If your vehicle is in a flood and completely damaged, you will need expert help which will usually entail a professional cleaning and might require a complete change of upholstery and electronics.

Tags: Car Maintenance

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Nitrous Oxide Kits

If you are a car tuning enthusiast, you probably know all about nitrous oxide or at least seen it action in your favorite racing movie. However, nitros oxide is not a Hollywood tall tale, it is a legitimate way and in many municipalities, still a legal way to boost the performance of your vehicle.

Nitrous Oxide Kit

What Does Nitrous Oxide Do?

Nitrous Oxide increases the performance in a vehicle by feeding the engine more oxygen. In a normal gasoline engine, oxygen from outside the vehicle gets sucked into the engine and mixes with fuel where it is ignited and burned creating power. Since vehicles are specifically made to mix regular gasoline and ordinary air, the power to your vehicle is pretty standard. However, when regular gasoline is mixed with air that has a tremendous amount of oxygen within it, the fuel burns much more quickly and powerful causing a huge boost in performance- specifically horsepower that can help rocket a car from 0-60 in much quicker time and a higher rate of speed.

Fitting Your Vehicle for Nitrous Oxide

Generally speaking, fitting your vehicle for nitrous oxide is not that difficult. Nitrous Oxide comes in a canister- sort of like an oxygen tank- except smaller and the tank is usually blue. Most put the nitrous tank in the trunk of their car or near the back seat. The controls however are accessible to the driver. The nitrous tank is then connected to the intake and carburetor for easy access to the engine. Many systems utilize a fogger system which sprays a mist of nitrous which is easily broken down into nitrogen and oxygen making it easy for your car to burn. Set ups of nitrous oxide into your vehicle are usually affordable, but if you are a novice it is best to let the pros hook your system up.

Tags: Car Maintenance, Car Parts, Car Performance

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