cloudy water!! :(

[bettie boo]

hi guys, my coolant water is cloudy and when i stop it bubbles out of the tank via the cap do i have a problem? or is this normal?
cheers
matt

 

[natch97]

maybe the seals broke on the cap?

 

[bettie boo]

yea i'll look at that! more worried about the water being cloudy white!!!

 

[BenF]

sounds like you cylinder head gasket has gone

get it checked out asap - drive your car as little as possible - in the worst case scenario you end up with a seized engine

sorry to sound dramatic, and I hope I am wrong, but the consequences could be catastrophic for your engine

 

[PumaNoob]

If the head gasket was going, it wouldnt be so much cloudy, it would have oil in it. When you say the coolant bubbles out the tank, do you mean with the cap still on, or when you take the cap off? Because if its when you take the cap off, and the engine is still hot, then its perfectly normal, and it would look cloudy with all the bubbles in, but if its bubbling out the header tank with the cap still on, then it could be head gasket, signs of this are alot of white smoke comming out the exhaust, coolant levels dropping constantly, oil in the coolant, froth or milkshake like substance in the oil, and when engine is warm, the pipes go hard, because of the pressure in them. You wouldnt always get all of these symptoms, but you would get some.

 

[BenF]

If the head gasket was going, it wouldnt be so much cloudy, it would have oil in it. When you say the coolant bubbles out the tank, do you mean with the cap still on, or when you take the cap off? Because if its when you take the cap off, and the engine is still hot, then its perfectly normal, and it would look cloudy with all the bubbles in, but if its bubbling out the header tank with the cap still on, then it could be head gasket, signs of this are alot of white smoke comming out the exhaust, coolant levels dropping constantly, oil in the coolant, froth or milkshake like substance in the oil, and when engine is warm, the pipes go hard, because of the pressure in them. You wouldnt always get all of these symptoms, but you would get some.

I had a cylinder head gasket go on a Renault 5 (don't even go there!) and had a white emulsion in the coolant, and never a direct sign of oil

there was also a major loss of oil through the cylinders that did not burn and was discharged out of the exhaust pipe - I was running on almost no lubricant and was really lucky that the engine did not seize

 

[bettie boo]

it bubbles out sometimes after a long run with the cap on! but i have no oil in the water the level goes down slighlty over the week and the oil looks brand new!!! so...... lol :?

 

[martinthrapston]

get a new cap as the other 1 might not be the right type.then go from there,if oil is ok could be a blocked rad or hcv fault..

 

[bettie boo]

well i have only just changed last month the hcv and the heater matrix! i don't know! i have flushed the system a couple times see how that turns out tommorrow after a little drive!

 

[martinthrapston]

did you use a genuine ford hcv or 1 off ebay??

 

[PumaNoob]

did you manage to check if the pipes were hard when the engine was hot? and does your temp gauge show too hot, or normal? If its showing normal, then as martinthrapston suggested, you probarbly have a dodgy header tank and/or cap. If there is a blockage in the coolant system, it would overheat, but not neccisarily show up on the gauge. The baffling thing for me is the cloudy coolant, before you start the car, is the coolant cloudy, or clear? It could be just small air bubbles that make it appear cloudy??

 

[martinthrapston]

is there antifreeze in the system???

 

[bettie boo]

there was anti-freeze in the system! i didn't check the hoses but the temp guage hits halfway and doesn't move! as for the hcv its proper i,ve had an ebay one b4 pile of poo that was lol well i only say cloudy because where it spills out the tank and dries it leaves a chalky white powder!!

 

[martinthrapston]

sounds like a faulty cap then,its not holding up on the pressure which is causing the water to bubble and escape thro the cap

 

[PumaNoob]

Yeah, id second that, you might get a second hand header tank off fleebay, then you have a tank and cap!

 

[bettie boo]

Sounds better than a head gasket lol so the chalky white powder is any problem either? i think i'll do the cap up real tight and keep an eye on things! cheers guys

 

[spike.]

is the water cloudy after car has been at rest overnight, and allow to cool, of does it clear with time (while engine off)?

 

[martinthrapston]

Sounds better than a head gasket lol so the chalky white powder is any problem either? i think i'll do the cap up real tight and keep an eye on things! cheers guys

just get a new cap,tightening it up more wont stop the problem if the cap is faulty or damaged,you willl end up having hg failure which is more expensive than a a new cap...