Checking your Radiator and Coolant Hoses

Car Maintenance Checklist Series

How often: This should be done each and every month.

Time required: 5-15 minutes depending on make, and model.

Checking on your radiator and coolant is a habit that you should get into each and every month.  It may sound foreign to you now, but be rest assured, that it isn’t that hard to check, I promise.  You’ll want to make sure that your car’s engine is getting all the fluids that it needs to run properly.

How to check your hoses –

Locate your car’s hoses:  You’ll want to pull up your hood, and locate your car’s two radiator hoses.  If you don’t know where to look, look directly at the engine, and spot the hoses coming out.  The top one will take the hot coolant away from the engine, while the one below returns the cool liquid.

Inspect the hoses: Inspect the hose as you would a garden hose or something of that nature.  You’ll want to look for any spots, or leaks that don’t look like they should be there.  If you do spot something like this, you’ll want to get it fixed asap.

Look for the clamp: Look for the clamp where the hose is near.  You’ll want to inspect this clamp, and make sure that the hose is settled in there tightly.  If you can move it around, and rotate it, that’s not a good sign.  You’ll either want to tighten the clamps, or get it fixed by a professional.

Check the firmness: Next, you’ll want to squeeze the hose.  If the hose is firm, that’s great.  If it doesn’t spring back, you may want to look into getting that hose replaced.

Change your coolant: If your coolant does need to be changed, make sure that you wear gloves, and safely dispose of the liquid.  Also be sure to follow these steps with replacing the hoses as well.

This process shouldn’t take you longer than 15 minutes to do.  The newer make and model based cars are a lot easier to check.

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