I don't understand the coolant bleeder/tank system

[Brian in Tucson]

I have less expensive Air Lift system $88 from Amazon. It works fine, and for the home mechanic will probably outlive the owner.

If your cooling system will hold a vacuum, you can use pretty much any small compressor. The sub $100 ones from Harbor Freight will work, it will just take longer. I run my old Craftsman/Devilbis at wide open pressure and about 8 cfm.

You can't use these things to "burp" the cooling system. It pulls the coolant back into the reservoir and then spews it out into the trunk or the side of the car. Need to almost completely empty the system before you start. And if you're draining the system, you need to drain the parts behind the engine, then pull the big hoses off, jack up the front of the car, and let the coolant in the radiators run downhill to drain out. There are no short cuts. Jack stands are your friend.

I'm doing heavy work on my engine, when it's done, I'm gonna pull the front radiators out and either replace them or have them boiled out at a radiator shop. Previous owner used tap water, and my old engine was full of calcium.