AC Heater Hose Mod option?

[ernzo]

I read the (very good) thread on the AC heater hose thread Mod for early gen1 Ex.

Where I live, I will never use the heater until later in September.

Can I just clamp of add a shut off valve to the hose (until I get the Mod done, of course...!)

Maybe jam on a vice grip? Hehehe!

 

[runderwo]

Don't use vice grips, the teeth will wreck the hose. They make hose pinch off tools specifically for this purpose.

http://www.2kpaints.co.za/acatalog/1344.jpg

 

[Maniak]

No, you cannot just block the hose. You can bypass the heater core for now and put in the heater control bypass valve later.

~Mark

 

[jd4242]

just take one hose off and run the one that's left to where you took the other one off,water pump to the intake,one hose.what mod are you doing?

 

[ernzo]

Yea I was pretty sure that blocking the hose would be a bust...

The MOD is adding a vacuum controlled heater valve to the line (plenty of details here w/pics!) but really I just want to turn it off and on depending on the season.

I assume that the valves are actually by-pass and I see that I can get one without the vacuum so that I can make it a manual.

Maybe, if it is easy, I will just loop the hose for now, does that sound good?

 

[Maniak]

Looping them is just fine..

The heater control bypass valve from a 1994 X lets the fluid through it to the heater core UNTIl vacuum is supplied. Once it gets vacuum it loops the fluid (bypasses the heater core) back to the water pump.

It is a great mod. We have a heater control valve from a '94 X on both our '92 Explorer AND on our 1978 e-250 van. Heck, we put one on my friends 88 f-150. Each vehicle had a vacuum source that was only active at a certain position on the heater/ac controls.

~Mark

 

[ernzo]

Yea, I like the Mod but my concern is that I really want to bypass all the time when it is hot, not just on max-ac. I know that I can fix the flap so that it seals better, but for some reason I think that is difficult...

btw...thanks Maniac (again) for your reply!

 

[Maniak]

An idea I had, but I haven't implemented yet is to use a vacuum solenoid. Basically you take a vacuum source, put it to this solenoid and when you put 12V to the solenoid it lets the vacuum pass which will make the heater control valve bypass the heater core. You could hook it up to a switch and control the water into the heater core manually.

Its a thought I've been kicking around for a while but I haven't tried it yet so I don't know if my "theory" is correct.

~Mark

 

[ernzo]

Hmmmmm! good idea..

i see on ebay that i can buy the valve without the vacuum part so it can be manual...

 

[Potomac30]

I cut the heater hoses about 6" from the heater core and added some 5/8 hose barbs. In May, I bypass the heater core, in October, I reconnect it. I didn't do the hoses right at the heater core because it's harder to dis and re-connect that way. I plug the open hose ends to the heater core to keep trash out.

It makes it easy to flush your heater core and coolant system.

 

[TedJ]

Why not just install the heater control valve, and manually connect or disconnect the vacuum line when you want it on or off? It's certainly easier than messing with the hoses, there are plenty of unused vacuum ports on the tree, and if you can figure out how to integrate it with the controls you can do that later.

 

[Maniak]

If you were to hook a vacuum line right from the vacuum tree on the intake to the heater control bypass valve you would actually be letting hot water into the heater somewhat often. When you accelerate hard, like getting on the freeway, you lose vacuum which would allow the hot water into the heater core while you had no/low vacuum.

I do like the idea of a cable controlled heater control bypass valve though.. Not sure how I like that in an X, but in the old van that would fit right in.

~Mark

 

[TedJ]

If you were to hook a vacuum line right from the vacuum tree on the intake to the heater control bypass valve you would actually be letting hot water into the heater somewhat often. When you accelerate hard, like getting on the freeway, you lose vacuum which would allow the hot water into the heater core while you had no/low vacuum.

~Mark

Good point. One way valve? (like the brake booster)

 

[Maniak]

I've been trying to figure that out for the last week.

I was thinking, if you use a 1 way valve (say with a 12v vacuum solenoid) when you flipped the switch to stop putting vacuum to the valve would it actually release? In my mind, the answer would be no or at least extremely slow.

I remember some 80's fords (feedback carb style) using 1 way valves that would actually leak (they had odd colors like white/green). I'm thinking that using a 3 way 12v vacuum solenoid would allow you to put a switched vacuum source through one of those leaking 1 way valves so it would put vacuum to bypass valve. Then when you released the vacuum solenoid it would let the vacuum out somewhat slowly. IIRC it took about 30 seconds for the vacuum to release. I guess if I wanted more time I could put a vacuum reservoir between the solenoid and the 1 way valve Or I could pull the vacuum from a vacuum line that is already connected to the factory vacuum canister (looks like a coffee can on the 80's fords).

~Mark

 

[TedJ]

If you think about it, Ford already solved this problem. In the later years that came stock with the valve, there must be some way that it can apply (at least mostly) constant vacuum to the valve (through the heater control) and to the thermostatic hot air intake on the intake tube to the airbox.

Any idea how they do this? I think there is a small vacuum reservoir on the top of the heater case at least.

 

[ernzo]

Ok, part is here and I am going to get to it this weekend. Looks simple enough although I am not sure about the vacuum source yet. I will try to post pics.....

 

[Delta_1980]

mod done! 45 min

now for the solenoid.

 

[ernzo]

Ooops!

Ok I bought the valve and mounted it and rigged the switch closed and it worked...for about a week then the valve broke! Hot water is getting into the heater core again, the valve is broke and I am somewhat pissed...

Later today I will dismount the valve and report back. What happened? Cheap parts? User error?

 

[YBCold]

i would just loop the heater hose back into engine. and when winter comes just reconnect and bleed the system of air

 

[ernzo]

I went to CarQuest and bought a heater hose shut off valve, it worked perfectly! Kinda wish I had just done this at first.

I did check to Ford Heater Valve that I bought and yes, it did fail after about 2 weeks! When I close the valve and blow through, air easily goes through so I suppose water would as well.

Oh well, the shut off valve is fine for me as in the winter I will just leave it open and when things warm up, I can shut it..