Hard antifreeze

[barbender]

 I just picked my LT40 super up used this fall, I could tell the maintenence had been lacking and meant to look over the antifreeze to make sure it was good for -32°F. Well I've been real busy and forgot about it (it would've taken 5 minutes to check :) I went out to look at it this morning and coolant was leaking out >:( Yep, it froze, hopefully the block didn't crack on the little lombardini, none of the frost plugs pushed out or anything. I'm keeping my fingers crossed. It was leaking around a hose clamp that swelled up. I'm mad at myself and also the ding dong I bought it from, I bought it in Wisconsin, I don't think it is so warm over there that you don't have to run 50/50 antifreeze :

[houtwurm]

 :-  [i hope you are luckie

[customdave]

Ouch! hopefully you caught in time, lets us know how you make out, keep  your fingers crossed. Good luck!!!

                                                  Dave

[beenthere]

 Expect you have had some serious freeze with negative temps below 0 F where you are.
Will pray for you, but sometimes it doesn't take much.

[paul case]

when my dad and were custom baling hay for folks we did field repairs often and fixed it however we could to get going again. sometimes that meant putting straight water in. when it would get cold in the fall and all the equipment was home we always had to check them all. usually the evening before the first hard freeze. oooooh that was a cold time to do it. made a good habit for me. i still check all my water cooled engines in  the fall. then i dont worry about it. this year is the first one in a long time that i didnt have to add any antifreeze to anything. pc

[Chuck White]

Well, here's hoping that it's just a leak around that hose connection.

Good luck.

[kderby]

I'll bet you are ok.  There is "frozen" and there is "FROZEN!"  How cold has it been getting and for how long?

You do not want to make a habit of poor freeze protection.  That mistake can be very expensive.  In my experience you sometimes get away with some level of freeze event.

Following this up.....did you get the entire engine thawed then add/cycle the proper solution in the coolant system?

I hope you got away with it.  A lesson learned without buying a new block would be a good outcome at this point.

Kderby

[red oaks lumber]

i live in wisconsin, dam straight you can run 50/50 anti freeze in the winter. if your mill is inside a heated shed. if you didn't freeze the block with the real cold we have been getting consider your self one lucky chap.

[chevytaHOE5674]

It has been below zero for the last 4 or so mornings here in da UP with -22*F this morning. Highs have only been in the teens to low 20's so I'll bet Minnesota has been coldddd.

Hopefully it just bulged the hoses and nothing else.

[sandhills]

I have a IH 1486 tractor that leaks around the hoses every winter when the weather first starts getting cold, it never fails and all I have to do is tighten all the clamps.  I hope you get lucky enough that's all it takes.  If the block did happen to crack, especially NOT around any frost plugs they can be successfully welded by someone who knows what they're doing but hopefully it won't be a problem.

[beenthere]

I think Deer RiverMN showed -24° F yesterday morning about 6 am.
And looks like the high for the day didn't get above -10 deg for a couple days or more.

That be serious cold.

[pigman]

If coolant was leaking before it warmed up much, the coolant did not freeze too hard.

[beenthere]

Were you a detective in your previous life? 
Good catch.
;D ;D ;D

[barbender]

Well, as someone mentioned, there is froze and then there is FROZE, I'm thinking I got the former, the slushy and slightly bulged froze : I won't be a fool and say nothing is cracked until I fire it up tomorrow and hopefully all is good. I don't have access to a heated shop, so I ended up putting a 120v tank heater on it, I'll let that thaw it out so I can drain it and put some MN rated coolant in it : Yes, it has been pretty frigid the last few days, but I've seen much worse before. This is the second time I have "slushed" an engine, we used to have a Suburban that I had to replace the coolant in, we got to the first really cold morning (about this time of year, if I remember right) and I started it up to let it warm up, I had to pick up my sister and bil from the airport. The whole fam gets out to the rig, all bundled up cause it's -20°F, and here the thing is overheated Everybody gets sent back inside, I let it cool off and pop the radiator cap. Sure enough, the radiator is slushed up. Well, all I can tell is happened is the coolant I used was labeled regular, not diluted, antifreeze. This was when they first started selling the 50/50 mix up here, so I was very particular to watch out for that. I bought the full strength and mixed it 50/50. Well, when I put it in I thought it looke a little thin, and once again I should have checked it. So, short story long : I think the jug was mislabeled, it was already 50/50 and I cut it in half again so it was 25/75 >:( Whatever the case, I got it thawed out and there was no harm done. But, how many times can I get away with being this dumb? :(

[paul case]

AT LEAT 1 MORE YEAR.  i am about the same way. a little trusting or careless when it comes to what something says it is. it is a hard lesson learned when it ruins something expensive. pc

[barbender]

Well, I got it thawed out and fired up today, seems to be no harm done. I'll have to wait to give the final word, I drained it all down and had to remove the radiator and move it to a warm place to get it thawed completely : I'll re-assemble it tomorrow and put the correct solution in it, you can bet ;) I'm trying to find a block heater for it while I've got it all drained down.

[Magicman]

A wise man listens to the first "gotcha", and responds.   ;)  You did good.