Do you guys flush your rad?

R1Style

R1Style

Well-known member
Like the title says, for those storing their bikes in an non heated garage, are you flushing the distilled water out and adding coolant in over the winter?

My garage is insulated but not heated... I'm worried about the water freezing.

What do you guys normally do?
 
Same, non-heated garage here. I'll dump 1/2 the distilled/wetter and fill with 1/2 antifreeze. Run bike to circulate and peace of mind that water won't freeze.
I'll do the overflow reservoir as well.
 
I do not. My garage is insulated and the doors are R5 insulated. I've seen it get down to 3 degrees C when it's -25 outside, so I put a small heater out there for those days so I can sleep at night. That usually gets the temp back up to 5 or 8 degrees within 12 hours. It's a double garage with 2 single doors, so lots of R5 surface area to let the cold creep in, and I've never seen it below 3.
 
doozerdave said:
I do not. My garage is insulated and the doors are R5 insulated. I've seen it get down to 3 degrees C when it's -25 outside, so I put a small heater out there for those days so I can sleep at night. That usually gets the temp back up to 5 or 8 degrees within 12 hours. It's a double garage with 2 single doors, so lots of R5 surface area to let the cold creep in, and I've never seen it below 3.
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That's interesting. My house is a brand new build and I had it insulated with R5 and paid a premium to get insulated doors as well. I haven't been through a winter yet (just moved in last month) so I don't know how cold it will get.
I'll keep track of my garage temperature over the winter but for just a piece of mind I think I'll go ahead and flush the water out this weekend and put antifreeze back in.

My wife and I will be parking our cars in the garage so opening it throughout the winter will probably drop temps big time.
 
R1Style said:
My wife and I will be parking our cars in the garage so opening it throughout the winter will probably drop temps big time.
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That's a good point. I don't park in the garage. The doors stay closed for days at a time, especially when it's really cold out. I have my thermometer on one of the exterior walls, just in front of where my track bike is parked. I might put it closer to the doors this winter to see if there's much of a difference.
 
I just fill it with 50/50 antifreeze and d.water

I have heard of people just draining it and disconnecting the rad hose.

Since owning a pool and having to winterize it, I'm going to stick with mixing it. 30 mins out of my day in the fall and spring for peace of mind.
 
madman4you said:
Fill it with antifreeze or your bike will turn into an E-Bike for the 2014 season.
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No. I'm not filling mine with antifreeze after spending most of the season trying to fully flush out the garbage that built up inside because of the antifreeze.
 
Nick_f said:
I just fill it with 50/50 antifreeze and d.water

I have heard of people just draining it and disconnecting the rad hose.

Since owning a pool and having to winterize it, I'm going to stick with mixing it. 30 mins out of my day in the fall and spring for peace of mind.
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Actually that's not a bad idea either. I might just dump all the fluid and leave it empty for the winter... I probably won't be starting it periodically anyways.

madman4you said:
Fill it with antifreeze or your bike will turn into an E-Bike for the 2014 season.
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Promise?
 
I'm not a fan of leaving it empty, and certainly wouldn't leave it open. Air accelerates oxidation.
 
I left it empty last winter, and nothing bad seemed to happen. I'll put 50/50 coolant this year, but only because I plan to do some engine work during the winter and would like to have the option to start it if I wish so. Also to occasionally go around the block with hope to shake off the winter gloominess from my soul, and maybe do a few pleasantly warm burnouts on the icy driveway.
 
Antifreeze is definitely a good idea. Water will become very acidic and eat away at the metal in the cooling system
 
I got 5 bikes to winterize this winter

Aint-Nobody-Got-Time-for-That.gif


Drain the water wetter, and disconnect the hose ..that's it
 
Don't forget the overflow. I fill my with coolant cuz my garage is far from heated and I don't trust that there wont be a little water left in. But to each their own.
 
brucewayne said:
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Saw your post before you deleted it. This section is about track, and coolant is not allowed at the track because it's slippery and hard to clean if spilled in a crash, which essentially ruins everybody's day. So track bikes run with water, which tends to freeze in the winter and ruin the rad and pump. Hence the discussion here. Welcome to the best section on GTAM :)
 
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