"Ol' Duffer" wrote in message
...
In article ,
says...
I strongly suggest doing it right, pulling the tubes out, taking them
apart,
cleaning all of the contaminated material out, resealing, refilling and
re-installing.

Would you remove the engine from your car to change oil and
filter? Pulling the tubes is a *lot* more work, exposes them
to an increased risk of damage, and is normally unnecessary,
as you can clean all the optics just as well in situ. If you
feel the need to clean the anode leads, then removing the tubes
would make that a bit easier. And I guess if you are sloppy
about draining/filling, pulling the tubes moves your mess
somewhere else. I've been putting down a towel as a safety
measure. The vacuum collection chamber idea sounds interesting.
If it works well, it could make for a pretty slick operation.
I guess it's a matter of choice, but I usually leave the tubes
in place unless there's a compelling reason to move them, and
I tend to discount your implication that Bill is somehow doing
it wrong. It sounds to me like he might know what he's doing.

How can you possibly get all of the contaminated coolant out? How can you
possibly clean the encrusted residue from the lens without dissassembly. I
guess if you never took one apart you would not realize what it takes to
really clean these things. Actually, removing the crts is not that much
trouble, and there is no risk of getting coolant on the boards or anode
leads.

I have gone behind techs who have changed coolant in the home without
removing the tubes and the results were not very impressive.

If I needed to clean encrusted matter and contaminants that affected the
performance of my car I would certainly remove the engine and take it apart.
Fortunately, this is not the case, so your analogy is meaningless.

Leonard