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Old 10-05-2015, 10:27 AM   #1
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Brown Foam in Coolant Reservoir

Hi All,

In my coolant reservoir (degas bottle??) mu coolant has a brown, foam head , please note the pics.





The guys at the diesel shop have no idea what this is. They're very certain its not oil or some other additive (such as Stop Leak, etc.) but they are at a loss what could be causing this. They did a complete cooling system flush and filled with new Ford Premium Gold @ 400 miles ago; the foam and brown color has returned. My temp never went above normal during the 400 miles since the flush, this include two trips up the Sierra's and back.

Has anyone experience anything like this or know what could be causing it?

In another thread, daveb stated:
Quote:
My Hydronic is tied to my coolant system ...
I also have a hydronic (although I have not run it since purchasing the van in May), can this be part of the issue?

Thanks a bunch,
james

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Old 10-05-2015, 11:25 AM   #2
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Re: Brown Foam in Coolant Reservoir

Reading material:

Look at post 14 here and pm him your pics or ask him to look at your thread over here at sportsmobileforum.com:

http://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/12909 ... nated.html

http://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/13932 ... tions.html
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Old 10-05-2015, 12:03 PM   #3
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Re: Brown Foam in Coolant Reservoir

Thanks E350, I'll take a look.
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Old 10-05-2015, 01:00 PM   #4
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Re: Brown Foam in Coolant Reservoir

BTW, you may have posted it and I missed it, but it would help if you posted the year, make, model and engine of your van.
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Old 10-05-2015, 04:33 PM   #5
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Re: Brown Foam in Coolant Reservoir

Likely an oil leak.

Had the oil cooler replaced on my 7.3L (preventative measure) when I had my radiator replaced and coolant system flushed, and I got a brand new OEM Ford cooler that was not properly welded and the oil mixed with the coolant. Brown sludge in the expansion tank. Needless to say, my coolant system needed to be re-flushed and the oil cooler replaced (the shop that did the work billed Ford for the extra labor and replacement oil and coolant).


Herb

[EDIT: thinking about some more, I'd say mine was more of a gray sludge, than a brown sludge. Definitely felt oily when I touched it]
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Old 10-05-2015, 06:34 PM   #6
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Re: Brown Foam in Coolant Reservoir

I didn't have the thick foam but I had the brownish buildup. I also had a lot pressure being relieved leaving deposits on the outside of the bottle. My final driveway test was taping a disposable rubber glove to the degas opening and it immediately blew up when I started the engine. I ended up having to replace the cylinder heads and head studs.
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Old 10-05-2015, 09:08 PM   #7
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Re: Brown Foam in Coolant Reservoir

I would be awfully suspicious of the heads gaskets. Oil leaking form the cooler doesn't usually foam up like that, but when it leaks from the heads, the hot exhaust gasses cause it to polymerize with the coolant making the brown foam.

NAPA sells an exhaust gas test kit which will detect exhaust gasses in your coolant. Easy way to confirm a blown head gasket (even slightly blown). However, it may not detect in early/intermittent leak which only happens under high temps/high-load.
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