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When a vehicle’s heating system fails, a faulty stove radiator is a common cause of problems. Therefore, there is an urgent need to replace this element in your car. The very procedure of changing the stove element may differ depending on the design features of the car. But the key issue here is the right choice. The main controversy is about aluminum and copper products. It is not always possible to give a definite answer to which of the radiators is better - aluminum or copper. For this you need to study their features, strengths and weaknesses. This will give an objective assessment of the devices and understand whether there is an obvious leader among them.

Recommendations for choosing a radiator.

Читать далее про то какой радиатор печки лучше: алюминиевый или медный-->

How it works

First you need to understand how the heater radiators function on your car. Heat inside the cabin comes from the engine running. This is a kind of side effect from the work of the power unit. It produces heat that engineers have learned to use for the benefit of man, that is, to heat the interior of the machine with it. Heat itself is created as a result of combustion of the air-fuel mixture and friction between the surfaces of the engine elements. To remove this heat from the heated components of the motor, its design provides a cooling system. One of its functions is to heat the passenger compartment.

From here follows a logical conclusion. The hotter the engine, the warmer it can be inside the cabin. The coolant gets hot, taking heat from the engine, and goes into the heater radiator. Here a fan comes into operation, which lets air through a heated radiator and spreads it around the car. To be precise, the cabin. The driver and passengers can adjust the temperature of the hot air by means of baffles and a crane, which are located on the highway between the power unit of the car and the stove itself. This is the simplest valve of the locking type, which has a mechanical or electric type of drive. It is used to regulate the amount of cooling fluid passing through the heating system.

If you raise the temperature on the control unit, the tap will be opened more. When the temperature decreases, the opposite effect occurs. Its functionality directly affects the operation of the stove machine. If the system fails to provide a full pass for the cooling fluid heated by the engine, then the driver and passengers will be cold. An important role is played by the temperature outside In the case of a working and well-functioning heater, even it cannot warm the interior as much as possible if the external temperature is very low. The colder it is outside, the harder it is for the stove to warm up the cabin.

Radiator device

It is important to consider that there are two radiators on the car at once. One of them enters the heating system and is in many ways similar to the older brother installed in the cooling system. Their functions are also similar. Only the cooling radiator basically transfers the selected heat to the atmosphere, and the small (heating) one is intended for the cabin. Both devices provide for the presence of 2 tanks, connected by pipes to each other. To them are mounted the plates necessary to increase the cooled area. The more plates the device has, the higher the heat transfer rate will be.

Therefore, when choosing a new radiator, one should always pay attention to the number of plates present. If their density is high, then the heat transfer will be at a high level. The main difference between them is the material of manufacture. The choice in favor of copper or aluminum is not so clear. It is necessary to study in detail the characteristics and features of the two options in order to understand which of them will be better to stay in each specific case.

Advantages and disadvantages of copper devices

Let's start with copper. Many people call them the preferred choice because they have better technical characteristics. But the flaws are also present here. Let's start with the merits. These include:

1. Thermal conductivity. This is one of the main arguments that speaks in favor of copper and against aluminum. Copper devices are characterized by higher thermal conductivity compared to competitors. As you already understood from the above, the higher the heat conductivity of the radiator, the higher the quality of its work on the heating of the cabin.
2. Suitability for repair. Медь – достаточно уникальный материал. Он одновременно лёгкий, но не повреждается в результате небольших ударов и вмятин. Потому его намного проще ремонтировать при возникновении внештатных ситуаций. Опыт автовладельцев наглядно показывает, что в случае образования трещин или повреждений трубок, их легко можно запаять своими руками или обратиться за помощью к специалистам. При подобном ремонте теплопроводность не меняется, а потому частичный выход из строя не заставляет выбрасывать радиатор и покупать на его место новый.
3. Copper tank. On copper radiators put tanks from a similar material. This is considered a significant advantage, since such design features contribute to improving the performance of the product.

But for such efficiency and suitability for repair you have to pay with one objective disadvantage. It is in high price. If we compare both versions of the structure, copper will noticeably surpass the cost of its competitor from aluminum. Therefore, when choosing from car owners, this issue is very acute. Not everyone is ready to give such money, even despite the obvious advantages and the most important characteristics of the element.

Pros and cons of aluminum radiators

Comparing the strengths and weaknesses of devices, you can understand their main differences. After all, the difference between copper and aluminum radiators lies in their main characteristics. The fact that one is considered objective dignity, for the other is a serious disadvantage. Just look at the pros cons of aluminum products, and you will understand what is the difference between them.

Let's start with the positive sides of aluminum, as a material for the manufacture of car radiators.

1. Price. If the cost of copper radiators related to the disadvantages, then here is a serious advantage. If you compare the price tags for both products, aluminum will win about 2 times. Much depends on the manufacturer, but still the difference in cost remains significant. The buyer can save a lot. Because of this, mainly aluminum units have such a large audience.
2. Heat transfer. Provided that the number of plates will be increased, that is, the cooling area will become larger, aluminum is not much less than copper in terms of heat transfer. Therefore, in this component they are almost the same. But recall that aluminum is cheaper.
3. Range. A huge proportion of modern machines that have been produced over the past few years, are equipped with aluminum aggregates from the factory. Because of this, the number of their counterparts and original spare parts offered by different manufacturers is growing. Copper versions have a more modest choice.

With the benefits finished. Go to the back of the medal. Aluminum is not so good. The voiced benefits are beyond doubt. But nevertheless motorists make a choice in favor of copper after they have studied the main disadvantages of the considered design variant.

Therefore, the minuses should definitely indicate. This clearly shows the differences between the elements. The main disadvantages include:

1. Thermal conductivity. This is a very important drawback, which literally negates all the objective positive qualities of devices. If the driver needs to get the most efficient radiator so that the heating system works efficiently and fully warmed up the interior, he will not look towards aluminum.
2. Suitability for repair Discounts for new cars! Profitable loan from 9.9% installments 0% adom.ru. She is absent in this case. If the pipes are damaged, re-soldering them even with the participation of experts will fail. It is necessary to change the entire assembly at once. There are some products that supply the market initially with cracks in the tanks. These are predominantly little-known firms of dubious origin. In theory, you can change the tank, and this practice occurs. But in fact, such manipulations are very dangerous and can lead to breakage of the car stove.
3. Corrosion. The appearance of rust, that is, the corrosion process, for aluminum is considered an objective and significant disadvantage. Such phenomena further reduce the quality of heat transfer, contribute to the appearance of smudges and further exit of the heating system.

Approximately such conclusions can be drawn with respect to these devices, made of two different materials.

What to choose

The question of choice is still open. But you need to try to answer it as objectively as possible. Despite the shortcomings voiced, a few years ago, when choosing a radiator, everyone would definitely have settled on a copper product. Objectively, such constructions were better and could provide excellent performance of the entire heating system of the car. But now the situation is different. There are many manufacturers, but there are no really high-quality copper elements as they were before. This is due to the desire to reduce the cost of production.

As a result, various impurities began to be added to copper, which adversely affect the strength, quality, thermal conductivity, and other factors, which were always considered the main advantages. Therefore, it is more logical to make a choice in favor of aluminum. This material does not need to be cheapened due to impurities, therefore it practically fully retains its advantages. And the car owners call the drawbacks not so significant, because the radiator is still an expendable material that can be changed every few years.

Under current conditions, aluminum is objectively better than copper. But if you manage to find the highest quality product, where there are no impurities of other metals, then you can safely opt for a copper radiator stove. But from what should be categorically abandoned, so it is from the dyed heating radiators. The presence of a layer of paint significantly reduces heat transfer. In addition, when the paintwork is heated, it begins to emit an unpleasant odor that enters the interior of the car. Try to closely monitor the heating system, to prevent clogging of channels. If they turn out to be clogged, the fact of what material these elements of the vehicle's heating system are made of will no longer play here.

Manufacturers

If you have managed to determine for yourself which radiator is better, then it remains to solve only the issue with the manufacturer. Copper and aluminum are actively used in the manufacture of their products by various firms involved in the creation of components for automotive heating systems. There are a lot of good manufacturers, but everyone has their own experience in working with various plants. Objectively, the best company can not be determined. Someone speaks well of them, others were not particularly pleased. The question is quite subjective.

But if we take into account the number of reviews, sales and expert opinion, then the list of the most preferred manufacturers of copper and aluminum radiators for car heating systems should include:

• Fenox;
• Bautler;
• Luzar;
• Radiator Iran;
• Oberkraft;
• DZA.

Do not try to save much on similar devices for your car. Suppose you stopped at the aluminum version, which initially costs less than its competitor, but at too low a price, do not expect high performance or other positive characteristics. Radiators are not designed for the entire period of operation of the vehicle. Because this element at some point will need to be changed. Most experts agree that for imported and domestic cars, despite its shortcomings, the aluminum device will be the best solution. Such units are able to serve their time without creating unnecessary problems in the operation of the heating system.

RememberThat dirt is formed in the same way in both versions. And it happens inside and outside.

From the outside, the device is not so difficult to clean. It takes a minimum of time and fixtures. But with the inside of things are much more complicated. It is difficult to clean up properly, not everyone will be able to cope with it on their own. Provided that the cooling system on the engine of your car is clean, you have a new car or a major overhaul recently, the copper radiator of the stove will be able to perfectly show its best qualities. Of course, if your machine is designed to use such elements.

If you do not know the condition of the heating and cooling system, you do not need to create additional problems and spend extra money. Put a good aluminum radiator and change it to the same after several years of operation. As practice shows, such a way out of the situation is the most effective and correct.