stupid!!!!!!!? I already know that I was stupid so don't tell me that cuz all I have in my jeep is water. Well it got cold and snow fell and now my radiator is an Ice block I don't know how to un thaw it I know that the block is fine and the engin is fine I got lucky and my thermstat is stuck closed and all the water was pushed out of the engine so that is dry and the car will startt but it quckly over heats because there is no water in the engine... but now I have the problem of trying to un freez my radiator I don't have a gurage to put the car in so I am stuck doing this in the snow good thing is that it is worm out so I hope I can unthaw it before the next snow fall hits that is expected in two days so I need to do this fast and get antifreez in the car I have a heater in front of it now and that seems to be helping but it has only turned it into a slushey mixture of Ice and water. I tryed a hairdryer and that just dosn't put out enough heat to thaw the ice. I left a work light on in the car between the water pump and the radiator all night that seems to keep the ice from expanding overnight but isn't helping the ice melt.What do I do to make this Ice melt as fast as possible i know that it is going to take hours to melt but I have two days so... any ideas????
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Radiator and over flow frozen in 1996 jeep grand cherokee Please help I was
- Thread starter Holly K
- Start date
Happened to me in Kansas,went from 50 degrees to 10 degrees overnight.Old farmer had me start car and idle it,he put a piece of cardboard in front of radiator,took a while but it thawed out in over an hour.But before you do this,remove overflow bottle and thaw and make sure you didn't pop a freeze plug,it's why they are in the block.Plugs pop so won't crack the block.Don't be surprised if thermostat is frozen shut.be sure to turn on heater but leave blower off and sit with car in case it boils over,you do not want it to boil over and don't pour hot water on any thing under hood.
You need to get this vehicle inside to a warm place ASAP before you do some expensive damage to the engine.
As water freezes it expands. This expansion is strong enough to damage your engine. At the very least, you could pop one or more freeze plugs. These are lightweight metal disks located in the engine block and cylinder head(s). In theory these pop out of the block to allow room for freezing water in the water jacket. If you poped a freeze plug you will want to have this vehicle towed to a mechanic for repairs.
Worst case this ice in your engine can crack your engine block, cylinder head(s), radiator, and heater core.
Starting the engine may not be a good idea. There is a good possibility that the water pump has ice in it. If you start the engine you could destroy the water pump and serpentine belt.
Try this. Remove the fuse for the fuel pump. Open the hood and have a friend watch the water pump. Crank the engine a little. Your friend is watching for the water pump pulley turning. If it turns you are OK. Replace the fuel pump fuse.
If you are on a budget, try this. If you are in a garage, open the garage door. Start the engine and let it run for a few minutes. Watch the engine for leaks. If water starts leaking turn the engine off immediately. You have damage that must be repaired immediately.
If there are no leaks. Turn the engine off for a few minutes and close the hood. After a few minutes, open the hood, start the engine, and allow it to run for a few minutes. Repeat this process for as long as it takes to thaw the engine.
Once the ice is melted you really need to drain all of the water from the engine and replace it with the correct mixture of antifreeze. Most engines will also have a block drain plug. Remove this plug also to get all of the water from the engine block. If you don't get all of the water from the engine it will dilute any antifreeze that you add later. Do this right away so the engine does not freeze again.
$20 worth of antifreeze can save you $5000 in engine repairs. Well worth the investment don't you think?
As water freezes it expands. This expansion is strong enough to damage your engine. At the very least, you could pop one or more freeze plugs. These are lightweight metal disks located in the engine block and cylinder head(s). In theory these pop out of the block to allow room for freezing water in the water jacket. If you poped a freeze plug you will want to have this vehicle towed to a mechanic for repairs.
Worst case this ice in your engine can crack your engine block, cylinder head(s), radiator, and heater core.
Starting the engine may not be a good idea. There is a good possibility that the water pump has ice in it. If you start the engine you could destroy the water pump and serpentine belt.
Try this. Remove the fuse for the fuel pump. Open the hood and have a friend watch the water pump. Crank the engine a little. Your friend is watching for the water pump pulley turning. If it turns you are OK. Replace the fuel pump fuse.
If you are on a budget, try this. If you are in a garage, open the garage door. Start the engine and let it run for a few minutes. Watch the engine for leaks. If water starts leaking turn the engine off immediately. You have damage that must be repaired immediately.
If there are no leaks. Turn the engine off for a few minutes and close the hood. After a few minutes, open the hood, start the engine, and allow it to run for a few minutes. Repeat this process for as long as it takes to thaw the engine.
Once the ice is melted you really need to drain all of the water from the engine and replace it with the correct mixture of antifreeze. Most engines will also have a block drain plug. Remove this plug also to get all of the water from the engine block. If you don't get all of the water from the engine it will dilute any antifreeze that you add later. Do this right away so the engine does not freeze again.
$20 worth of antifreeze can save you $5000 in engine repairs. Well worth the investment don't you think?