Coolant Flushes: How Necessary? How Often?

Next to an oil change, a coolant flush is probably one of the most commonly offered services in an auto repair shop. And, it is one service that sometimes lends itself as a tool for a rip-off.

For one, many shops charge a very high rate for a coolant flush. I’ve heard of a shop that charges around $115 for the said service, saying that the job consumes a lot of time to finish. In reality, it’s a pretty simple job that even average car drivers can easily accomplish on their own. Of course, you just have to be careful in handling the coolant.

In other instances, some shops would recommend the service even if it’s not yet time to flush the coolant. They’ll look at your car and inspect it according to the problem that you mention, and just tell you that you also need new coolant. As a car owner, it’s your responsibility to know when the correct interval for changing coolant in your vehicle is. The absence of knowledge can easily lead you to take on the suggestion of your mechanic even if it’s not yet really time for a coolant flush.

Aside from the knowledge of the correct coolant interval in your car, you also need to be familiar with the type of coolant that is in your vehicle. There’s a new “breed” of coolant nowadays that requires a longer time to flush, unlike the usual ethylene glycol. If you have the coolant whose change interval is 100,000 miles, you will need less frequent coolant flushes. Check out the information in your car manual to learn more about the correct flushing interval. This knowledge can help you save a lot on car maintenance and automotive services while also making you less prone to automotive rip offs.

DIY Saturday: How to Do a Coolant Flush

The cooling system of your vehicle also deteriorates over time, especially the quality of the coolant used in its radiator and cooling assembly. It is because of this that periodic coolant flush and refill is important. Otherwise, when you continuously use the coolant even after its quality has already deteriorated, it won’t provide your vehicle with proper cooling and you may encounter engine overheating.

Luckily, you need not wait for something like this to happen. Doing a coolant flush is easy and you can accomplish this all by yourself. Here’s how:

1. Prepare everything that you will need: pan for the used coolant, new coolant, and radiator flush.
2. Remember not to do this work if your engine is still hot.
3. Position the coolant receptacle or pan below the radiator drain plug and then remove the plug to drain the coolant from the radiator.
4. Replace the plug and then open your radiator cap to fill your radiator with the radiator flush solution. Replace the cap and tighten it.
5. Start your vehicle and allow it to run until it reaches the right temp (refer on the gauge on your dash) – if there is an indicated number of minutes needed to run your engine as indicated in the radiator flush label, follow it.
6. Turn your vehicle off and let the engine cool before proceeding.
7. Drain the radiator flush (similar to what you did with the old coolant).
8. Refill the radiator, and the coolant reservoir, with new coolant mixed with water—follow the indications in the coolant when it comes to the right coolant-water mix ratio.

These simple processes take only a few minutes to complete, but they go a long way in keeping your cooling system and engine in good shape and in preventing possible problems and expensive repairs.