Atlanta Panther
Member
- Joined
- Jun 18, 2013
- Messages
- 45
- Location
- Madison, Ga
- Tractor
- Kubota L3200HST with LA524 Loader, Quick Connect; Loaded R4 Tires
I'm new to tractoring but I think I picked a good one last year (with a lot of people's guidance) in a new Kubota L3200 HST 4WD for my 20 acre horse farm that is supposed to be our retirement abode. 
Early this year it came time for the first 50 hour maintenance. I've done routine maintenance on cars and motorcycles but this is my first experience with a tractor. I've been trying to learn as much as I can from the manuals and from great web sites like this one where everyone is really helpful. I thought I'd return the favor so I created a series of postings for novices like me to show them the results of what I've learned to make it easier for them when it comes their time to do their own maintenance. I'm sure this is old hat to many of you, but comments and suggestions from the tractor veterans here are welcome!
In this thread lets change out your coolant.
You will need the following parts and tools:
Start by removing the radiator cap. At the bottom corner of the radiator is the black drain plug. It has two slots that run at 90 degrees across the face of the plug. A screwdriver is too small to fit and the plug is round so you can't use a wrench. I think this is because Kubota is afraid the user will put too much torque on the plug and snap it. There are probably better ways to remove it, but I was able to use a dull putty knife to fit into one of the slots and turn the plug until it opened. Prior to opening the plug, make sure you have your drain pan underneath ready to catch the spent coolant. It will come out bright green. After emptying the coolant reinstall the plug. On the other side of the radiator is the tall plastic coolant reservoir. Pop the cap off and drain any coolant in the tube into your pan. Unscrew the two 10mm screws holding the reservoir in place and empty the reservoir. Reinstall the reservoir and the reservoir cap and hose. You will get roughly 3-4 quarts of coolant out of the radiator even though the capacity is supposedly 6.3 Quarts plus 0.6 Quarts for the recovery tank. I suspect this is because about half of the coolant is actually staying in the block. I looked for a drain plug for the block like I've seen on other vehicles (e.g., 2 block plugs plus the radiator plug on my Powerstroke) but there was none to be found so what to do?
Here's where you have a choice of what to do depending on your preference. The manual says to put in a cooling system cleaner, follow its instructions, flush the cleaner out and put in your 50-50 coolant-water mixture in. If you want to use a Long-life coolant it tells you to empty it and flush 2 or 3 times and not use a cleaner as Long-life coolant contains anticorrosive chemicals which, if mixed with the cleaner, could react and precipitate out and form sludge, thus clogging your cooling system. You should also not mix coolant types.
I'm sure I could learn more from the experts out there, but for what it's worth, here's what I did. I'm not a big fan of putting in radiator cleaners where I cannot make sure I get it all out. Cleaners are corrosive to one degree or another. No matter how many times I flush it there would probably still be some cleaner residual in the system eating away at the system. Consequently, after emptying as much coolant as would come out of the radiator and reservoir, I filled the system with distilled water. Why distilled? No matter how soft your water, it probably still contains some minerals that could eventually precipitate out and clog your cooling system. I'm on well water here. It has about average hardness but I just feel better knowing that for a few bucks every two years I'm putting in water that won't give me a problem down the road. It may be overkill, but I sleep better.
The original coolant will be bright green. After you run your tractor a while with the first distilled water fill and drain it, the second batch will come out a little less green. The book says to do this 2-3 times when using Long-life coolant. I put distilled water in and ran the tractor for a while (did some bush hog work with it) and emptied the distilled water a total of 4 times. Each time the water came out a little less green until the last batch had just a greenish tinge to it. I figured that was good enough and after a compete emptying of the radiator and overflow reservoir; I filled them both with a 50-50 mixture. I'm not a big fan of the pre-mix 50-50 because I think sometimes the mix is a little off plus it's cheaper to go with the full strength and add your own water. I wound up using Prestone Long-Life Coolant, but only because I had it lying around. Regardless of which coolant you use, the manual says you need to replace it ever 2 years. I plan to do that. After you fill your radiator for the final time, start your tractor and bring it up to temperature while checking for any leaks. Doing a little work with your Orange Rocket would be good at this time. After shutting it down wait until it is totally cooled off; remove the radiator cap to make sure it's filled to the brim. Double check your reservoir canister to make sure the coolant level is at the upper line as well.
Here are a couple of other things to note. The manual says you should mix the coolant outside the radiator first and then pour the mixture in the radiator. I assume this is to ensure you have the proper 50-50 mixture. I'm not sure it's really necessary. After all, it mixes as it flows through the system. I just put a pint in at a time of each liquid (coolant and distilled water) starting with the coolant. In this way, if I wind up putting slightly more coolant in, I figure that should be OK. One thing that does concern me is, after emptying out the last flush of distilled water, whether there was a lot of water left in the block with little coolant. I plan to take a hydrometer to see how it tests. Depending on the results, I may need to adjust my method and add a higher percentage of coolant when I make my final fill.
My spent coolant and my water flushes both showed a brownish substance at the bottom of the gallon milk jugs I used after sitting for a little time. I suspect this is scale or rust (?) that sloughs off the inside of the cooling system. I suspect this is what the cleaner is designed to get out. The amount seemed to lessen with each flush which I took as a good sign.
Before finishing up, clean the radiator screen by pulling it out from the side. You'd be surprised how much that screen can clog up with grass clippings, etc. The screen is about the same size as your radiator and is located right in front of the radiator behind the air filter. You take it out by pulling up on the spring retainer on either side of the tractor at the top of the screen, gripping the black tab and sliding it out. Hose off the screen to remove any debris. While you're at it, take your hose and spray from the engine side through the radiator and oil cooler to dislodge any junk that's clogging the radiator fins and oil cooler. Note that you have to either have your loader off the tractor or put it up overhead so the screen can slide out. I'm not sure putting the bucket overhead is a good thing but taking the loader off is a pain as well. You choose. As an aside, if you see the temperature on your Kubota going up, the first thing I would check is whether your screen in clogged. It happened to me.
Last thing. Check your hoses to make sure they are not swollen, hardened or cracked. In addition, make sure your clamps are good and tight and you have no leaks. Your hoses and clamps need to be checked every 200 hours or six months, whichever occurs first. The coolant needs to be changed every two years so mark it on your calendar.
Good Luck!
:cool2:
Early this year it came time for the first 50 hour maintenance. I've done routine maintenance on cars and motorcycles but this is my first experience with a tractor. I've been trying to learn as much as I can from the manuals and from great web sites like this one where everyone is really helpful. I thought I'd return the favor so I created a series of postings for novices like me to show them the results of what I've learned to make it easier for them when it comes their time to do their own maintenance. I'm sure this is old hat to many of you, but comments and suggestions from the tractor veterans here are welcome!
In this thread lets change out your coolant.
You will need the following parts and tools:
- 1 gallon of Anti-Freeze & Coolant about $10
- 5 gallons Distilled Water $.89 each
- Oil Drain Pan
- Funnel
- Putty knife or similar tool
- 10mm socket
Start by removing the radiator cap. At the bottom corner of the radiator is the black drain plug. It has two slots that run at 90 degrees across the face of the plug. A screwdriver is too small to fit and the plug is round so you can't use a wrench. I think this is because Kubota is afraid the user will put too much torque on the plug and snap it. There are probably better ways to remove it, but I was able to use a dull putty knife to fit into one of the slots and turn the plug until it opened. Prior to opening the plug, make sure you have your drain pan underneath ready to catch the spent coolant. It will come out bright green. After emptying the coolant reinstall the plug. On the other side of the radiator is the tall plastic coolant reservoir. Pop the cap off and drain any coolant in the tube into your pan. Unscrew the two 10mm screws holding the reservoir in place and empty the reservoir. Reinstall the reservoir and the reservoir cap and hose. You will get roughly 3-4 quarts of coolant out of the radiator even though the capacity is supposedly 6.3 Quarts plus 0.6 Quarts for the recovery tank. I suspect this is because about half of the coolant is actually staying in the block. I looked for a drain plug for the block like I've seen on other vehicles (e.g., 2 block plugs plus the radiator plug on my Powerstroke) but there was none to be found so what to do?
Here's where you have a choice of what to do depending on your preference. The manual says to put in a cooling system cleaner, follow its instructions, flush the cleaner out and put in your 50-50 coolant-water mixture in. If you want to use a Long-life coolant it tells you to empty it and flush 2 or 3 times and not use a cleaner as Long-life coolant contains anticorrosive chemicals which, if mixed with the cleaner, could react and precipitate out and form sludge, thus clogging your cooling system. You should also not mix coolant types.
I'm sure I could learn more from the experts out there, but for what it's worth, here's what I did. I'm not a big fan of putting in radiator cleaners where I cannot make sure I get it all out. Cleaners are corrosive to one degree or another. No matter how many times I flush it there would probably still be some cleaner residual in the system eating away at the system. Consequently, after emptying as much coolant as would come out of the radiator and reservoir, I filled the system with distilled water. Why distilled? No matter how soft your water, it probably still contains some minerals that could eventually precipitate out and clog your cooling system. I'm on well water here. It has about average hardness but I just feel better knowing that for a few bucks every two years I'm putting in water that won't give me a problem down the road. It may be overkill, but I sleep better.
The original coolant will be bright green. After you run your tractor a while with the first distilled water fill and drain it, the second batch will come out a little less green. The book says to do this 2-3 times when using Long-life coolant. I put distilled water in and ran the tractor for a while (did some bush hog work with it) and emptied the distilled water a total of 4 times. Each time the water came out a little less green until the last batch had just a greenish tinge to it. I figured that was good enough and after a compete emptying of the radiator and overflow reservoir; I filled them both with a 50-50 mixture. I'm not a big fan of the pre-mix 50-50 because I think sometimes the mix is a little off plus it's cheaper to go with the full strength and add your own water. I wound up using Prestone Long-Life Coolant, but only because I had it lying around. Regardless of which coolant you use, the manual says you need to replace it ever 2 years. I plan to do that. After you fill your radiator for the final time, start your tractor and bring it up to temperature while checking for any leaks. Doing a little work with your Orange Rocket would be good at this time. After shutting it down wait until it is totally cooled off; remove the radiator cap to make sure it's filled to the brim. Double check your reservoir canister to make sure the coolant level is at the upper line as well.
Here are a couple of other things to note. The manual says you should mix the coolant outside the radiator first and then pour the mixture in the radiator. I assume this is to ensure you have the proper 50-50 mixture. I'm not sure it's really necessary. After all, it mixes as it flows through the system. I just put a pint in at a time of each liquid (coolant and distilled water) starting with the coolant. In this way, if I wind up putting slightly more coolant in, I figure that should be OK. One thing that does concern me is, after emptying out the last flush of distilled water, whether there was a lot of water left in the block with little coolant. I plan to take a hydrometer to see how it tests. Depending on the results, I may need to adjust my method and add a higher percentage of coolant when I make my final fill.
My spent coolant and my water flushes both showed a brownish substance at the bottom of the gallon milk jugs I used after sitting for a little time. I suspect this is scale or rust (?) that sloughs off the inside of the cooling system. I suspect this is what the cleaner is designed to get out. The amount seemed to lessen with each flush which I took as a good sign.
Before finishing up, clean the radiator screen by pulling it out from the side. You'd be surprised how much that screen can clog up with grass clippings, etc. The screen is about the same size as your radiator and is located right in front of the radiator behind the air filter. You take it out by pulling up on the spring retainer on either side of the tractor at the top of the screen, gripping the black tab and sliding it out. Hose off the screen to remove any debris. While you're at it, take your hose and spray from the engine side through the radiator and oil cooler to dislodge any junk that's clogging the radiator fins and oil cooler. Note that you have to either have your loader off the tractor or put it up overhead so the screen can slide out. I'm not sure putting the bucket overhead is a good thing but taking the loader off is a pain as well. You choose. As an aside, if you see the temperature on your Kubota going up, the first thing I would check is whether your screen in clogged. It happened to me.
Last thing. Check your hoses to make sure they are not swollen, hardened or cracked. In addition, make sure your clamps are good and tight and you have no leaks. Your hoses and clamps need to be checked every 200 hours or six months, whichever occurs first. The coolant needs to be changed every two years so mark it on your calendar.
Good Luck!
:cool2: