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what is this valve??

2K views 15 replies 8 participants last post by  01safari 
#1 ·
This valve comes from the radiaor and goes some where else. it has a on and off and no one can tell me what this is for . Should I have it on or off? it is currently off . even a couple of mechanics didnt know :confused: The red handle valve

Any info appreciated




Thanks
 
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#2 ·
Thats not factory you know........ :lol:

Thats a heater hose that is probably running to the heater core on the passenger side of the firewall. Is the factory vacuum controlled heater control valve(say that 10 times) still on the passenger fender? Someone probably deleted the heater control valve and put that manual valve in. Right now in your pic the valve is open.
You can see here in this pic where the heater control valve should be sitting(I deleted mine):


If they did delete it....its not a bad thing as they are prone to sticking or leaking over time. :chevy:
 
#3 ·
Mr_Bowtie said:
Thats not factory you know........ :lol:

Thats a heater hose that is probably running to the heater core on the passenger side of the firewall. Is the factory vacuum controlled heater control valve(say that 10 times) still on the passenger fender? Someone probably deleted the heater control valve and put that manual valve in. Right now in your pic the valve is open.
You can see here in this pic where the heater control valve should be sitting(I deleted mine):
[ [url=http://inlinethumb50.webshots.com/43569/2617866280047558762S600x600Q85.jpg] ][/url]

If they did delete it....its not a bad thing as they are prone to sticking or leaking over time. :chevy:
:rofl: Thats a 1/2" ball valve. I wonder if a plumber owned that van before you!
 
#7 ·
astroturf said:
Looks like the source for leaking anti-freeze. Second and Third Pic.
Actually she doesnt leak , thats me being dumb and spraying a touch of lube and the over spray hitting those areas. So it makes no difference if its on or off? also the flush kit idea was prettu cool! although I think i had the rediator replaced 3 years ago.

Also sorry if this was answered in the poss above(just woke up work the nihght shift) but what advantagewould this valve do anyways? would u fellas keep it on or off?

Im learning as I go still and doing little lods that I can to get better performance . my girl just hit 200 , 000 a week or so ago and i actually took her on a long trip and had not one problem.

youll be seeing in the coming days what im doing to it :)
 
#8 ·
astroturf said:
Looks like the source for leaking anti-freeze. Second and Third Pic.
Actually she doesnt leak , thats me being dumb and spraying a touch of lube and the over spray hitting those areas. So it makes no difference if its on or off? also the flush kit idea was prettu cool! although I think i had the rediator replaced 3 years ago.

Also sorry if this was answered in the poss above(just woke up work the nihght shift) but what advantagewould this valve do anyways? would u fellas keep it on or off?

Im learning as I go still and doing little lods that I can to get better performance . my girl just hit 200 , 000 a week or so ago and i actually took her on a long trip and had not one problem.

youll be seeing in the coming days what im doing to it :)
 
#11 ·
I would like to find out why it was ever installed in the first place. Sadly the first owner my Uncle passed away .
 
#13 ·
It looks that way Jim.
I had an '88 which I parted out, on that Van that connection was used for the heater.
 
#15 ·
I have two theories as to why your uncle might have put that valve in there:

1. If you have a problem with the blend door in your HVAC, it would leak heated air from the heater core side of the HVAC. This would mean you get hot air in the summertime, when you really don't want it. so the valve would turn off the flow to the heater core, thus no more heat in the summer. Maybe an easier fix than cracking open the HVAC unit to get at the blend door.

2. If you have a leak in the heater core, you can stop the flow of antifreeze to the heater core with this valve. Again, easier than opening up the HVAC unit to get at the heater core to fix/replace it.

I would suspect the first one, since if the heater core were leaking, and the valve has been open for a while, you would know by now, because you would have a nice puddle of antifreeze on your carpet. Do you get warm air from the vents even if you slide the temp switch all the way to cool? If so, then you may have a blend door problem.
 
#16 ·
I know someone who installed valves just like that in his astro. He had said that since the heater core shared the same box as the A/C evaporator, some of the heat from the heater core could transfer to the evaporator. He would turn the valves off during the summer months and then back on during the winter. He claimed that duct temp. dropped by about 10 degrees when he did that.
 
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