RollTide

I just had the head gasket replaced. The head was milled and pressure checked and new head bolts. After a few days it started pushing the coolant to the reservoir and would try to overheat due to less coolant in the system. I never let it get to HOT. So, I go to Autozone and buy a block tester kit. I test it three times for 2-3 minutes and the liquid stayed blued. Tested the reservoir twice for 2-3 minutes and nothing there either. Before I had the head gasket replaced I changed the cap and thermostat with stant parts. I decided to buy oem honda parts but the dealer was out of stock. So, I bought them online and am waiting for them to come in. What else could make the tiny bubbles in the system and cause the coolant to over flow? Also, I must admit I think I put the thermostat in with the small vent hole at 6 o'clock position.

One other thing. It seems to push coolant over more on the hotter days. The past two days have been over cast and not quite as hot and it didn't push coolant near as bad.

lazlong

Sounds like you have a big air pocket further up the system. Let it idle to operating temp and start massaging all the coolant hoses.

What's the ratio of coolant to antifreeze?

RollTide

Not sure on the ratio. I would assume 50/50. It is whatever the mechanic who did the head gasket work put in it.

john222

Well, sounds like either the head gasket is bad again or you have a cracked block. Shouldn't take that long to push an air pocket out of the head.

Honda should have a recall or at least pick up the cost to repair all these blown head gaskets.

RollTide

John....that's what has me puzzled. If the head gasket was blown again or a cracked block it would push combustion gases into the coolant or lose coolant. The tester showed negative all 3 times and no coolant loss.

Are there any emissions controls that are tied to the cooling system that could introduce air into the system?

john222

Well, you said the coolant level was increasing in the bottle, so it's being displaced from the head with some kind of gas. How are you getting the coolant level back to normal in the expansion tank? Siphoning it back over to the radiator? And, if you just keep driving, will it overflow the expansion tank?

RollTide

I use a piece of electrical tape around the mouth of the reservoir to cover the two vent holes. Then I use my kids' plunger type water gun and push it back into the radiator.

It will overflow the reservoir sometimes. It seems it depends on how hot it is that day. I check it pretty much every day and push it back if it needs to. I guess the next thing to do is pressurize one cylinder at a time and see if it blows bubbles in the radiator. Like you said though, it seems the hg is blown causing the coolant to overflow but the block tester showed negative for combustion gases in the coolant. Weird!

john222

Do you ever hear any gurgling or swishing behind the dash? That's a dead giveaway of low coolant level in the head.

Also, did you turn your heater on to full heat when you refilled the radiator?

I'm still thinking head gasket. I'm also thinking they may have screwed up the timing by a tooth to cause your rough idle and poor gas mileage. Doesn't the garage have a 1 yr workmanship warranty?

RollTide

Don't remember saying anything about rough idle or poor gas mileage. The thing purrs like a kitten and gets 36-38mpg. Almost got 39 once. I just did another combustion leak test after running down the highway for about ten miles at 75-80mph and it came up negative again and so did the reservoir. I parked the car on an incline facing up and burped the system for at least 45 minutes to an hour with the heater on. Saw quite a few burps but still had tiny tiny tiny bubbles coming up. Not near as bad as it was. Thanks for all the replies John222 and trying to help me figure this thing out. I wonder if the head is torqued to the right specs. I might check that tomorrow. It's too dang hot outside right now and the gnats were driving me insane!

Thanks,
Steve

john222

I wouldn't bother with the head bolts yet. Just give it a few days and keep an eye on the expansion tank.

RollTide

I'm gonna wait till later next week. The oem Honda t-stat and radiator cap will be in Wednesday and I will do a thorough burp n bleed on the system. Thanks for the help!

RollTide

I was planning on doing the test where you put air pressure on each cylinder to see if bubbles come up through the radiator fill neck. Are ya supposed to do it at normal operating temp or when the engine is cold?

john222

Don't know I've never tried that test. The dealer pressurized my cooling system with an attachment at the radiator cap. They pressurized it for more than an hour and the pressure didn't drop. Telling us nothing. In the end it was the head gasket.

Anyway, I presume that your system is still pushing coolant into the coolant tank. If the radiator cap, fans and thermostat are working properly then it's the head gasket.

RollTide

I did change the cap today and the fans do kick on. Haven't had time to do the t-stat yet. It has rained all weekend down here.

RollTide

Finally got around to installing a new oem t-stat. Changed the t-stat out, jacked the car way up, turned on the heater and started refilling the cooling system. And this time the t-stat was put it with the vent hole straight up. To my amazement there were no bubbles after the system was burped. So, I take the car out for about a 20 minute ride with the a/c on and still had coolant push over to the reservoir. It filled to about 3/4 full. Is it possible to have too much coolant in the system? Every time the fans kicked on the level would drop some and I'd fill it back up. I did this several fan cycles. Summary, right now after head gasket change, no air bubbles, block tester came up negative, thermostat installed correctly and new oem radiator cap. Still pushing over coolant.

john222

Let the car sit for several hours and look to see if the coolant level in the tank drops back to the normal level. If it doesn't, it's the head gasket..

lsvef

It honestly sounds like the head gasket to me n that the mechanic didnt do a proper job of installing it. I would take it back and tell him what going on

92NoTeC

^ditto. There's a lot that can go wrong during a head gasket installation.

Bxjay16

hmm i wounder how we can an get this movement started? They should replace the entire engine itself.

RollTide

Well. still don't know what the problem is. Still filling up the resevoir but it does suck nearly all of it back in. Did another engine block test with the blue fluid and it came out negative. Stayed blue the whole time. Would a partialy clogged radiator cause this and still keep the engine cool enough with enough coolant in the radiator?

john222

Usually when the head gasket is blown, it doesn't suck the coolant back from the expansion tank. Maybe you have a restricted radiator. Their was a service bulletin (AllData 08-098 ) for some 2004 & 2005 civics that have restricted radiators..... This is a definite possibility. You might want to do a search for the affected vin numbers.

RollTide

Found it! Went back out to my car and looked in the radiator with a flash light and what little bit I could see, it looked brand new inside. I just don't wanna believe it's a blown head gasket only weeks after having it replaced.

RollTide

Just back from topping off the coolant and burping it. At idle I'm getting no bubbles. A few minutes after the fans kick off the level rises to the top of the filler neck. When the fans kick on and the level drops I rev the engine and here come the bubbles. I think I may go ahead and do another head gasket my self even though the block tester comes back negative. I've read conflicting posts about what gasket to use. Felpro or Honda. I might torque the head bolts a little more. I've read on a couple forums that you can actually go 10-20 more ft/lbs. What do y'all think?

Oh well, this thing is driving nuts and if a new gasket doesn't fix it then it's time for drastic measures.

john222

The garage that did the head gasket should have a workmanship warranty. Usually a year. I would take it back and see what they can do.

john222

Just to clarify something... Coolant is being pushed from the block into the expansion tank. Currently your sucking the coolant out of the expansion tank and dumping it back into the radiator. Right? What happens if you stop doing that? Does the level keep rising in the expansion tank until it overflows the expansion tank? If it does it's definitely your head gasket or a cracked block. I would take it back to the garage.