Things You Need To Know About Car Radiator Caps

 

The radiator cap is an essential part of a car's safety and proper operation, but it is also often the cheapest and most overlooked part of the cooling system. The radiator cap acts as a pressure relief valve, dumping hot fluid and reintroducing cold fluid, maintaining optimum pressure and temperature within the cooling system. Next, let me talk about what exactly the radiator cap does.

1. Prevent overheating

Car radiator caps maintain a certain pressure inside the cooling system and raise the boiling point of the coolant. You may be wondering why the system needs to maintain pressure. In fact, as the coolant expands as it heats, the size of the system cannot be changed and it will only increase the internal pressure. Each additional pound of pressure increases the coolant's boiling point by 2-3 degrees, which will effectively prevent the coolant from boiling and prevent the cooling system from overheating.

2. Allow coolant to flow

The radiator cap has a vacuum valve that allows coolant to flow from the reservoir to the radiator during cooling. When the coolant temperature drops, the coolant contracts and creates a vacuum. At this point, the vacuum valve opens and draws coolant from the reservoir back to the radiator to the proper level. Not only can a damaged radiator cap cause the engine to overheat at lower temperatures, it can also prevent coolant from returning to the engine, creating a vacuum and causing the radiator hose to collapse.

3. Sealing

In cooling systems, clean and fresh coolant is also key. The radiator cap seals off the cooling system and external contaminants to maintain coolant purity. Also, air is the enemy of the cooling system. The entry of air prevents the cooling system from maintaining the proper operating temperature and can even lead to overheating, at which point the radiator cap acts as a seal to prevent any air from entering the system.

In various accident reports, we've seen the tragic consequences of a failed car radiator cap or chronically overheated systnullem. Often we can avoid these problems by simply replacing the car radiator cap. In cooling systems, besides radiator caps, hoses, clamps, thermostats, gaskets and water pumps are also important and we have to make sure that all parts are in good working order. Check these parts regularly, if they are not qualified, please replace them immediately to provide 100% safety for yourself, your family and friends.