I started my engine this weekend. After it warmed up it spit out some antifreeze. The system is press urized. How do i know i have the correct amount of antifreeze? Do i need to install a small expansion tank? Not a big fan of the look of this tank on this car. Thanks for all the help.
As far as enough to protect from freezing any auto parts store will sell a tester to see how low you are protected.My sbc 32 doesnt have a over flow can,and doesnt loose much if any. Leave the level down an inch so as it gets hot it wont over flow. If you fill to the cap level its going to need more room as it gets hot,and that room is the ground.
Is your concern the concentration mixture of water and antifreeze? Looks like you've got an oldie for a radiator. Could the radiator be questionable? Its sometimes best at least in my eyes, to ditch and old Harrison and the seven pound cap it carries to and upgraded radiator and higher rated cap. This would make the proper change needed in your stat choice that could also could play a roll. Perhaps your system still needs to be burped. Assuming the engine fan, less shroud is suitable for you, I'm sure you will get this resolved if its heating your addressing not a coolant mixture Looks like you will be on your way in no time. Enjoy your car and the ride.
My ride did the same thing. There has to be some room for expansion as the coolant heats if you aren't running an external expansion tank. I would suggest to get it up to temperature and let it spit out what it doesn't want. Let it cool an see where the coolant level is. With your radiator fill you might have to us a dip stick of sorts. Then bring it back up to temperature and see if it spits out any more. If it doesn't, it is at the correct level. Even though I didn't want to, I added an external tank to mine. I tucked it up against the left cylinder head. It is lower than recommended, but it works just fine.
On my Model A, I just fill it to the top, once it warms up it’ll spit some out, it’s good from there. It’d be good to add some type of overflow so it’s not dumping it on the ground when it spits it out.
Leave 1” down or add a recovery tank… your choice. Standard for 50-60-70’s cars. Before a tank when I left it down the coolant will contaminate due to the outside air in the system.
Enough antifreeze as in a 50% mix or how do you know if the radiator is full. Both 31Apickup and Jimmy six hit right on what my 60 years of dealing with vertical core radiators says is right. Normally you fill it to within an inch or so from the top and leave the rest for expansion. Second is that if you fill it too full it will find it's own level that it wants to run at by puking out the excess. A properly working recovery tank holds the coolant that normally would be puked out on the ground and then lets the radiator draw it back in when it cools off. That does keep the insides of the radiator from being exposed to the elements as you have coolant flowing out and back in rather than air.
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