Don't know what laws apply guys, I'm just trying to put some
common sense to work, to explain where the additional expansion
is coming from.
Ran a test with the radiator topped off in order to better see
just how much expansion was taking place. Topping off the
radiator is a mistake which a lot of people make when they
first acquire a Stovebolt, which leads them to think that
they have a coolant leak.
The results are that an open container of water expands at the
rated which I calculated.
The expansion in a closed cooling system is about 4x the
calculated amount in free air.
I can't see where pump agitation would have anything to do with
the increase in volume. But as John brought up, the temperatures
in the head and surrounding the cylinders would be quite high
compared to the system average. So it appears that is where
the in crease in volume comes from.
Here are a few pictures from this afternoons activity:
http://www.pbase.com/dennygraham/coolant_expansion_experiment Fun test for me and what I learned from it is exactly how much
the volume increases due to the thermal expansion with a
standard 180° stat installed.
Denny Graham
Sandwich, IL
