Archive for November, 2007

IAC Valve on 1995 Toyota Corolla

While tracking the gas mileage on a 1995 Toyota Corolla DX the mileage was dropping a little each week even during highway driving conditions. The cause of the mileage drop was difficult to pin down at first, we did a tune-up and all of the basic maintenance but no luck.

But the problem persisted until the car was down to getting only 30 miles per gallon and it used to get a solid 38 mpg. I knew something must be wrong so I took it to Toyota to have them check it out. They found nothing wrong either electronically or mechanically.

The car only has 80,000 miles on it so I figured that it couldn’t be wear causing any problems not yet at least. When I was in the car business it was not uncommon to see a Toyota Corolla with 200,000 miles on it and still running strong.

During closer observation of the engine I noticed that it idled fast as though it was cold after I had been driving it for several miles and the temperature gauge was in the normal range. In the same conditions a few miles down the road the idle was normal then after that it went to fast idle again. I went to the dealer again and asked them what it could be and they said that they have never heard of that happening. I decided to investigate the problem myself to avoid expensive diagnostic costs. I checked a maintenance manual for the car and found that there was an (IAC) idle air control valve that let air bypass the throttle body when the engine was cold to allow for a faster idle.

Once the engine was up to temperature the valve would close and the idle would return to normal. I checked and changed the easy things first, PCV Valve, air cleaner, etc. to no avail.I decided that I was going to have to remove the Idle Air Control valve and check its performance.

It resides directly below the throttle body and has coolant lines running through its housing to provide water from the cooling system to the thermally activated motor that turns the Idle Air Control Valve on and off.

I was working on the engine when it was cold so not too much water leaked out. When I got to the valve shaft I noticed some corrosion on it and cleaned that off, otherwise it was operation normally.

After putting the IAC valve back together I drove the car to see if there was any change and there was not. It still idled erratically. As the engine was warming up, however, I noticed that the temperature gauge went way down when the thermostat opened up them gradually returned to its normal range. That seemed odd so I got a temperature probe and dipped it into the coolant to see exactly where it was and found that it was approximately ten degrees cooler than it should have been.

At that point I just let the engine idle for fifteen minutes and the idle went to normal and the coolant temperature went to its operating range. That told me that the problem was the thermostat.I replaced the thermostat with a genuine Toyota part even though it is more expensive it is worth the money because it is exactly like the old one and the gasket pattern is the same. To replace it with an after market thermostat would require a different gasket type and I didn’t want to take the chance of causing another problem just to save five bucks on a thermostat.

The gas mileage returned to its normal 38 miles per gallon and the idle slows as soon as the engine runs for around ten minutes and the temperature gauge is steady. It’s as good as new or maybe even better.

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Leaking Toilet

Toilet leaks can only come from a few places on the toilet, but because they aren't always easy to take apart and work with you have to allow some time to do the job right so you don't have to do it over.

If you have to work on a toilet it is a good idea to get the parts you will need first so you don't have to leave in the middle of the job to go to the plumbing store. Toilets, like anything else, has a manufacturer name and parts correspond to the manufacturer so copy the name of the manufacturer and look for parts made specifically for that brand of toilet.

If you aren't sure about what you will need to fix the leak just buy extra parts and bring back what you don't use. Most hardware or home supply stores will allow you to return parts that you don't use so don't be afraid to over buy to get the job done.

If you have a leak coming from the tank and dripping on the floor of the bathroom, while the toilet is just sitting there and not being flushed, the leak is most likely coming from the bolts that hold the tank to the toilet.

At worse, it could be a crack in the tank, but I have never experienced that. I have only found water coming from the bolts holding the tank on to the toilet. To repair the leak you have to shut off the water supply to the toilet and flush it until all of the water is gone from the tank. There may be some water left in the tank when it stops going down as you flush that will need to be sopped up with a sponge.

Once you have all of the water out of the tank you will have to remove the bolts holding the tank on to the toilet. When you have one of the bolts removed you will need to put a new washer on it along with some caulk. I have never had a new washer seal completely with out using some caulk. Put caulk on both sides of the washer and re-install the bolt and washer into the tank.

Repeat the same steps on the other bolt. If you carefully remove one bolt at a time and replace the washer then put the bolt back before you remove the other bolt you may be able to get away without removing the water supply line. If you find that this is not the case you will have to remove the water supply line also.

After you replace both washers and caulk them you can re-install the water supply line and fill the tank and check for leaks. If you had to remove the tank you will have to flush a couple of times and watch for leaks from the gasket that connects the toilet tank to the toilet itself. The only time water passes through there is while the toilet is flushing. If you notice a leak coming from there you will have to re-seat the gasket between the bowl and tank.

Refrigerator-Cleaning Cooling Coils Is Necessary For Compressor Health

Not long ago I entered a post on the importance of cleaning the cooling coils underneath a refrigerator every six months. Last Friday when my neighbors compressor on his refrigerator went bad it seems six months may be too long of a time between cleanings. My neighbor has two long-hair dogs and over the summer the dogs shed their hair more than usual and a lot of it got sucked into the refrigerator cooling coils and after months of building up and blocking air flow the compressor had no way to cool itself and it went bad. There was no warning or symptoms it just quit cooling the inside of the refrigerator. The compressor was very hot to the touch and kept clicking and that was it, it wouldn't run at all.

Judging from how much hair was packed in the coils it would be a good idea to clean the cooling coils every 3 months if you have a lot of pets that shed hair near the refrigerator and that could go for either a cat or dog. Cat hair can collect on the coils as well as dog hair the only difference is that the cat hair is thinner and may not clog the coils completely but it should be removed on a regular interval so it is not forgotten about.

Replacing the compressor on the refrigerator has been an expensive lesson for my neighbor and he plans on cleaning the coils every four months in the future, probably not a bad idea.