Radiator Misters

[steve wardwell]

I thought most of the damage was from salt.....we have some flaking of the fins,came to us that way.... this bus was parked in Utah for at least 3 years prior to that sat in a probate issue for at least 7 more....anyway we need a rodding or core...plan to work on  it this fall after hurricane season....we're back in fl. now

[robertglines1]

Dumb question-why would this be any different than driving in rain? I read post again and still don't get it...I don"t have the problem so don"t have misters.. is it true of all radiator material? copper/alum  or copper/copper

[steve wardwell]

none that I see ...we run 180* in the rain.......65-70

[rv_safetyman]

Most of you know that I have fought a cooling problem on my charge air cooler which is located on the passenger side.  I tried 4 electric fans and they did not do the job EXCEPT when we had rain  

Lately, I have converted to a hydraulic fan and the helped a bunch, but I still have a problem going up big hills with the potent Series 60.  BTW, I do not have a problem with coolant temperature.

To help keep the intake air at less than 150-160 degrees, I have played with misters.  There are two schools of thought.  One theory is that you spray the incoming air and let the cooler air do a more efficient job.  The second theory is that you flood the radiator with water.  I tried all kinds of spray heads including some neat heads that are intended to cool chicken houses.  

On a recent trip I wanted to try a different head that flowed quite a bit of water.  We were parked in a Wal Mart and I walked across the street to an ag supply store.  I was sure that I would find a good spray head.  Nothing.  Then the light went on.  I use a special spray head from the racing industry on my fire suppression system.  Three heads flow 2.25 gallons in 45 seconds.  That works out to about a gallon per minute per head.  I installed two heads roughly aimed at the charge air cooler.  The heads are hooked up to the house water system.  I control the heads with a solenoid valve controlled by a switch on the dash.  

I played with the system on the way home where we have to go up some darn steep, long climbs out of Denver.  I would hit the switch for about 4-5 seconds and then about 30 seconds later repeat the the short burst.  I watched the air inlet temperature on the SilverLeaf and the effect was dramatic.  You could watch the temperature drop fairly quickly if the boost was not full on and the temperature held with full boost.

Yes it is a band-aid, and yes, I might have some deposit, but I really don't want to damage this engine.  

I like the idea of a filter.  Might plumb mine through our dual element drinking water filter, or perhaps install a second filter.

Jim

[RoyJ]

Dumb question-why would this be any different than driving in rain? I read post again and still don't get it...I don"t have the problem so don"t have misters.. is it true of all radiator material? copper/alum  or copper/copper

There are no differences, except for, water from a mister is cleaner than 99% of the rain!

I too, don't understand why some people feel uneasy about spraying water onto their radiators. It's a great concept actually - In an RV, why build a cooling system that won't be used to capacity for 98% of the time, when it's much cheaper to build a smaller system, and use water misters for that 2% of special occasions?

Now, in a commerical linehaul bus/truck, it's a different story all together.

[steve wardwell]

I'll do the rad work to try to solve the prob... if I need a core......... I'll get the 4 or 5 tube (think mines a 3)  General rad from the net was 800 for mine and another hun for the next bigger size....   sent to my door  in 3 days w/bolts and gaskits.....worth it to me........s......
Ps I was using a carbon filter w/reg fla. water and plugged everything up......cleaned w/CLR  ...happy now w/RO or distilled water and great sitting all summer  no plugging at all..hey I don't even drink fl. water

[luvrbus]

Jim, you see the mister installed on lots of OTR trucks but just like you they spray the air to air charger not the radiator in fact Hayden makes one for that purpose and in the rain  it is the drop in outside temps that makes the difference.
This post got me to thinking so I pulled out a Cat manual on a D6-R it states never spray water on the radiator when the engine is running and hot as damage may occur from water being sucked through the fins.
Idle for 5 minutes cool the radiator down then then wash the radiator and never power wash but people do what they need to do,but I am not for band aids myself  


good luck

[steve wardwell]

OK dumb question....what exactly is an air to air charger?

[rv_safetyman]

Steve, the typical term is charge air cooler.  It is also called air to air cooler and other terms.  It is used to cool the air after the turbo and before the intake manifold on modern four-stroke engines.  Looks like a radiator.

Jim

[TomC]

Keep in mind that we are sucking our air from the side of the bus.  On a truck, it is being rammed in the front.  So traveling at 65mph in the rain-wouldn't that be cramming in alot of rain water into the radiator and engine?  I know my truck didn't care.

If I do get some white calcium build up on the radiator, I simply spray CLR on a cool radiator, let it sit for 5 minutes, and then hose off.  Works well everytime.  Good Luck, TomC

[PSmith]

I like my misters (homebrew using garden emitters ).  I use the water on board thru a solenoid to a switch near my side control panel in the drivers area.   (just turn my water pump on before the climb.)

When heading from Phx up the 17 to Prescott, I use the misters maybe 5 times a year for 10 minutes.  Not a big deal for me.  I haven't noticed any buildup.   I have learned that I really don't need the misters if I can see my exhaust.  I keep my foot out of it and keep the black smoke to a minimum.  That keeps the heat down.  So, I really don't need the misters, but like them for peace of mind.

Last weekend we went camping near Williams (Dog Town Lake area) and the 17 mile uphill climb from Ashfork to Williams was not a problem if I kept the black smoke(heat) to a minimum.  It's pretty touchy with an air throttle to keep it clean.   

Also keeping the rpm's up ( 1600 or higher ) is real important in hill climbing..

For me, I keep it in 1st and take my time keeping the revs up -- the old girl likes it that way !

phil

[Mex-Busnut]

And several of us would STILL like to see some pictures...

[happycamperbrat]

And several of us would STILL like to see some pictures...

[Kevin]

We live in the So Cal High Desert. When I bought our '60 '04 GM eleven years ago, I noticed the engine would exceed 200 degrees on steep inclines in warm weather. I would downshift as needed, but once I actually had to pull over to let her cool. That was coming up the backside of El Cajon Pass on a 100+ degree day... Hi temp alarm sounded.

I'd read about the radiator mister idea in Dave Galey's Bus Conversion Bible - and fashioned one of my own - by cleverly swiping two of the little spray heads from my wife's shrub irrigation line in our front yard. (Heh, heh, heh!)

I tapped into the domestic water system and used a universal (JC Whitney - $10.00) automotive windshield washer pump triggered by a spring-loaded (so I don't forget and leave it on indefinitely) switch on the side-dash control panel. Works really well with only two (180 degree pattern) spray heads - if - I dip into it on time. That's the secret for my coach anyway. As I'm building up a head of steam for the upcoming incline (whilst simultaneously fogging all immediate area mosquitoes) I lay into the mister and just keep it wailing away for the entire length of the grade, or at least as needed to keep 'er cool. This is in spite of the fact that the instructions that come with the pump motor say never to hold it on for more than 10 seconds at a time.

Wish I had the part number and supplier for the solenoid NoRivets mentioned in his post (hint-hint!) That would allow for a much better flow and increased reliability, though I've only had to replace the windshield washer pump once so far, and that was just this past July.

In eleven years of heavy use (during summer months only) I have never experienced any problem with calcium buildup on the radiator. This surprises me greatly, as we have extremely hard water here in the High Desert area.

One other thing, as we never consume the water from our domestic tank (only bathe in it) I did not incorporate any type of backflow device into the leg of water system feeding the mister pump. It would be mandatory otherwise, I should think.

Cheers

[happycamperbrat]

Kevin, where are you located? I live east of Lake Isabella. Your water and driving conditions, etc. sound like me