Cooling With Dishwater
Calvin Terry e-mailed us from Lubbock, Texas with this sudsy 'Trick. Calvin tells us he didn't believe this one until he tried it himself. We might not believe it either, but we'll take his word for it. If you've got an old radiator that's plugged internally with years-worth of crud, and not allowing your engine to run cool, Calvin says you can clean it with dish soap. First, drain all the old coolant, antifreeze and so on. Be sure to do this so that you can dispose of the old coolant responsibly. It's deadly poison to your pets. Next, fill the radiator with plain water and add a capful of Cascade dishwashing soap. Now drive the rig for about an hour, then drain all the soapy mess out and flush the system thoroughly. According to Calvin, the soap will clean out all the buildup and save you a pricey trip to the radiator shop. Thanks for slipping this one our way, Calvin
Hosed Spark Plug
Here is a trick we've used for years while changing spark plugs on VW and Porsche engines. It works equally well on any hard-to-reach spark plug on any 4x4, as Bart Kauder, of Cascade, Iowa brought to our attention. Have you ever attempted to thread a 'plug into a hidden head-hole with a ratchet, equipped with two wobblies and three extensions, all to try and reach around the manifold, smog tubes, fender and so on? Instead, simply slip a 6- to 12-inch length of air hose or similar sized gas hose over the porcelain end of the 'plug, snake the plug through the maze and into the hole and spin the hose by hand. The hose can be bent up to 90 degrees and will grip the 'plug firmly enough to get the threads started. Once the threads have started, the hose is removed, and the spark plug can usually be reached with conventional tools for tightening. Thanks for reaching us with this one, Bart.
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