In an effort to further reduce my engine bay temps, (already have a 160 stat and will be wrapping headers with DEI heat wrap) im curious if anyone has considered wrapping the actual radiator hoses with header heat wrap or even reflective thermal tape.

The reason I am asking is my intake charge pipe from my blower sits on the lower radiator hose a good anount and I was thinking that wrapping the hose with header wrap would help two fold, lowering engine bay temps as well as IAT temps. I've tried to adjust the intake piping, but theeres not enough wiggle room to make it not touch so another alternative is needed.

Thoughts? Would heat wrap cause the engine to actually run hotter? Would the hose deteriorate due to it trapping water in the wrap? Etc

Let me know what you think!

Ant

 

You could, but consider that you've got 8 aluminum tubes at 1200F shedding heat as quickly as aluminum does.

Then you've got a couple of rubber hoses at 200F shedding heat as slowly as rubber does.

I bet the win is so small relative to, for example, wrapping the exhaust that you'd never notice it. Can't hurt, of course. But it seems like a tiny, tiny factor.

 

I put DEI heat sheath around mine to prevent the heat from soaking into my AFE intake. It has Velcro closure to very easy to put on. I left it a bit loose just to allow a little airflow around the hoses (similar to the small air gap on the DEI cat shields).

 

I also had my exhaust manifolds ceramic coated while they were out for porting which made quite a difference in underhood temps.

 

100% agree, headers are first thing to do. Have 3 rolls of the DEI titanium wrap here ready to go on. Gonna do headers and X-pipe while I am at it. But, my worry is that since the radiator hose is clearly touching the charge pipe a good amount, its heat soaking the aluminum pipe itself. Thats what I want to cut down on.

I actually had the same thing, but much smaller quantity of it on my hoses from my halltech intake originally. I just took it off as it was falling apart. Thats why im searching for a replacement. Would like to get something that fits a little tighter than that though, but still allow a little room for expansion.

 

So how does this work when the headers are used? Do they only coat the outside? Or do they somehow clean the inside and coat that also?

 

Interior and exterior are cleaned prior to coating. A coater actually once told me the adhesion is better on used pipes after the steel has been heat cycled.

 

Very good to know! Any info on who did your coating and what the coating is and its rating? Jet Hot?

 

Ruben @ SoCal Porting and Michael @ SPCoating in Arlington, TX. I use the black 2000F coating nearest the heads and 1600F silver downstream from there; both have proven to be effective and durable.

 

Might do better wrapping the intake pipe to keep the heat out. DEI makes a Velcro intake tube wrap.

 

The intake pipe is attractively polished aluminum. T'would be a shame to cover that up

Thats why I am exploring options for the radiator hoses specifically.

 

So the little bit of heat that the wrapped radiator hoses don't dissipate is now being dissipated by the radiator...blowing the same total amount of hot air thru your engine compartment....seems pointless.

 

You could always use some of that adhesive gold foil on the underside of the pipe near the radiator hose.

 

Anyone know if wrapping the radiator hoses would trap more heat and cause the rubber to fail earlier?

 

I'd wrap both if they are close together. I'd always wrap the intake pipe, though.

When I put a "cold air intake" on any vehicle, the job isn't finished until the intake piping is very well insulated. That includes any bulkhead or compartment where the air filter sits. That compartment is also isolated from engine air completely Often the "kits" fit poorly and don't seal to the hood or the surrounding sheet metal. Foil covered soft foam insulation and metal foil all weather rated "duct tape" are used for both issues. Actually, sometimes I use fiberglass wrapped in foil and metal foil tape for the piping. "Frost king" makes some good insulation designed for pipes and HVAC ducts which works well for these situations

On other vehicles where the intake pipe and one of the radiator hoses snake around each other and are in close contact (the one that comes to mind immediately is the Chevy S10 and Blazer with the 4.3L V6), I also insulate the radiator hose.

On forced induction applications, I try to insulate everything after the intercooler, too.
Aluminum is the worst possible material for a boosted intake pipe, unless you're boosted to the point where the air in the pipe is hotter than the air surrounding it. Do you have IAT data under boost? Is your boosted charge temperature above the under hood air temperature? If the air in the pipe is hotter than the surrounding air, then an aluminum pipe acts as part of the intercooler system.

If the air in the pipe is cooler than the air surrounding the pipe, and you want to keep it cooler, the first choice would would be polycarbonate pipe (provided temperatures are under about 240F). Second choice would be high temperature rated silicone rubber hoses, molded to the correct shape if possible. Stainless steel pipe would be a fairly distant third choice. Aluminum isn't even on the list of choices, unless it's only used between the compressor and the intercooler.
A low temperature thermostat can actually raise the air temperature under the hood. Especially when the vehicle stops for more than a few seconds.

More information is needed.

Are you running a stock exhaust? Stock catalytic converters? Or aftermarket cats in the stock locations? What tune are you running? Is the tune specifically matched to the thermostat temperature you're running?

The down side to a low temperature thermostat is that the computer can enrich the mixture due to the low reading from the ECT sensor. If the tuning map for ECT adjustments isn't matched to the thermostat, you'll be running rich with a lower temp thermostat, and that will put more unburned fuel in the exhaust stream, which makes the catlysts run hotter. If you're way below the target ECT temp, the cats can run a lot hotter. When you stop, the air around the cats is heated up a lot more due to the rich mixture from the coolant temp, and that hot air makes its way through the engine bay, heating everything else up.

 

I've run 150,000 total miles on two vehicles with on the upper radiator hose and thermostat outlet pipe. I've also put that same insulation on some friends' vehicles. I change hoses out between 60,000 and 75,000 miles, and I've never noticed a difference in the overall "crunchiness" of the upper and lower hoses. I can't speak to longer term effects, because I consider that the appropriate time/mileage for routine replacement.

 

Not quite. Thats why we have a radiator cowl to carry the hot air from the radiator out of the hood vent.

Great idea. I like that.

This is primarily one of the questions the thread is based on. One of the specific thinngs I am trying to figure out.

A lot for me to cover here, forgive me if I leave anything out lol - the car is over 800HP and is an LT1, pushing 13+ PSI, so IAT gets a bit hot. Im running 30GPH of meth (100%, not 50/50) so its cooling the charge a good enough amount when I am at WOT. The car is tuned for the stat, and fan settings adjusted, by a very well know tuner. I've been in the tune with HPT so no worries with any of that. Candidly I am trying to find a way to have my cake and eat it too. The car is a high HP drag car, and is a full on show car. Applying insulation all over the intake tubing is not an option here, though I have no doubt your recommendations will help.

Lets assume that everything else under the engine bay is already "handled" here. I don't want to get into a "how do I reduce engine bay temps overall. Let's shift the focus back to the main concern being the coolant hoses.

If they are heat wrapped will it causes increased heat or will it help reduce heat?

Will The hoses fall apart after a while due to getting wet and teapping water?

Will wrapping them cause concern for the expansion of the hose due to heat?

Another member also suggested that using a piece of radiator hose cut down lengthwise and wrapped around the coolant hose where the intake tune touches for extra protection and an increased thermal barrier. Thats also a great idea.

These are the things im trying to figure out.

 

Yes. Exactly the kind of info im looking for. I've been considering something just like this that DEI makes..

 

OK, I see what you're saying. But humor me for just a bit. Consider this "trust but verify" tips for you, and also I'm posting for the folks who search for "160 thermostat" and find there way here and their situation might not be as well sorted as yours.

Getting the fans right is an important part of tuning for a lower temperature thermostat. But that's not the only issue, and some tuners are less aware of the other issues. The big thing is the fuel trim adjustments based on the engine coolant temperature sensor (ECT). Those need to match the thermostat. If you run a cooler temp thermostat than the tune is set up for (or if the tuner only adjusted the fan temps for the cooler thermostat), you'll see high fuel trims as the computer tries to warm the engine to the coolant temperature it expects for the thermostat the ECT fuel trim maps are set up for.

The way to verify you have those maps matched to your thermostat is some observation (recording a "trace file" is even better) of normal (calm) driving after the thing is warmed up. You want to watch the short term and long term fuel trims for both banks. If the thermostat matches the tuning maps, they should bounce around quite a bit, but should average pretty close to zero over ten to twenty miles of "normal" driving.

If your thermostat is too cool for your tune (or, looking at it the other way, your tune is too hot for your thermostat), you'll see higher averages for the fuel trims. I consider any average over about 5% (positive) fuel trim to be cause for concern. This can push things "past the peak" for a rich mixture, and can actually reduce power slightly under full load conditions.
Wrapping the hoses to the radiator will channel more heat to the radiator. In most cars, that will heat the air as it enters the space under the hood and spread that heat all around the under hood space. On a C7, depending on how effective the ducting on the back of the radiator actually is, it's less of an issue.

Where the hoses are closer to other things (intake plumbing in particular), insulation reduces the heat transfer directly from the coolant in the coolant hose to the air (or whatever) in the nearby plumbing. It's also good, for example, to route refrigerant plumbing from the air conditioning away from the radiator hoses.

Even in "normal vehicles," if the intake plumbing is close to the radiator hose, it's worth insulating. Most of the air coming in through the radiator doesn't go over by the intake plumbing, so most of the heat transfered to the air through the radiator doesn't raise the intake air temps.
The radiator hoses are wet on the inside. They shouldn't degrade from water. Chemicals (salts) could be harmful, though. Road salt isn't an issue for you, but "salty air" might be if you're near the coast.
That shouldn't be an issue. If the hoses expand that much, you have other serious problems. Even then, the wrap will become "supplemental reinforcement."
A second layer of hose would be better than nothing, but probably not as effective as fiberglass insulation and/or foil.

 

I did this for the little coolant hose that sits on top of the intake/touches the MAF.

You can sort of see it in this picture:

link to full size image: http://www.dsmstyle.com/photopost/da...0808151002.jpg