update: today i completely tore down the cooling system. i took the radiator off and the thermostat is always out because its 85-90 on the daily here. i set the radiator with the flow holes pointing upward, i put the cap on and filled the entire thing with straight draino. i then took the garden hose stuck it in the top hose and backflushed the engine for about 1 hour. there mustve been 10 cotton balls worth of this crud that kept washing out. in the end of this flush the water ran completely clear. i then proceeded to flush the radiator in reverse and every last ounce of that crap came right out didnt even have to rod it out. i put everything back together after completely drying it with a blow dryer, engine and radiator, and plugged it all back together filled it up with the dirty coolant that i filtered using coffee filters (super slow and its still a little dirty but it made a huge difference) and now instead of running at about 190-200 it runs at a steady 150-160. in short, i super duper over crazy cleaned this thing out and it definitely payed off. i also made sure to evaporate that small bit of water that resonates below the water pump in that space. im running the GM orange coolant in it. i dont think it was pre mixed but i added about half a gallon to the two+ gallons that it already held a little of that coolant did flush out when i ran water through it backwards, i tried to stop it but it had already gone to the dirt.. i did however flush that area for about another hour with water so hopefully i helped it... (the water after the radiator went clean)
