Thread: condensation in the valve covers

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Originally Posted by R Pope

More ventilation is indicated, and a hotter thermostat. Try a different brand of oil, some are worse for that than others.

One thing I didnt mention in my last post is the thermostat. My temp gage bearly mores from the cold side. Its been like that as long as I can remember. I have never seen it get up to what I would call the normal range. Needle being somewhere in the middle of the gage.

Now I am wondering now what degree thermostat should I go to on a stock Ford 300cid? Not sure what the degree is now on the stock one. How much of an increase should I look for in thermostats?

The truck is always parked outside on concrete drive.

Larry

Originally Posted by Crazyrat

One thing I didnt mention in my last post is the thermostat. My temp gage bearly mores from the cold side. Its been like that as long as I can remember. I have never seen it get up to what I would call the normal range. Needle being somewhere in the middle of the gage.

Now I am wondering now what degree thermostat should I go to on a stock Ford 300cid? Not sure what the degree is now on the stock one. How much of an increase should I look for in thermostats?

The truck is always parked outside on concrete drive.

Larry

You can check what the temperature is by getting a meat thermometer or a thermometer from a parts store.

Take the car out for a drive and get it warmed up good. Park it, take the radiator cap (be careful and do it slowly to get the pressure off) and stick the thermometer in the filler neck. You should get the temp within two minutes or less. You could do this by first turning the engine off and then sticking the thermometer in, but remember that the temperature will rise some immediately after turning it off.

You could do the same thing by getting one of those laser temperature guns.

Did you find the goop just after starting up? If so, it may not have time to burn off the condensation normally found in engines.

Buy yourself one of those laser remote thermometers, handiest thing you can have. "Shoot" the thermostat housing for an accurate temp reading to see how the car gauge is working. They work great for finding a missing cylinder, too. Just shoot the exhaust manifold or spark plugs.

The number one cause of vapors inside the covers is a poor PCV system. Since you checked to make sure there is a strong vacumm signal from the PCV valve, make sure the breather on the opposite valve cover is not clogged up.

As posted above, run a 180 deg. t-stat.

I once had a pin hole in a water pump backing plate on a Ford and it allowed water to get into the oil pan and turned the oil into whiteish goo.