With the temp difference between the two sides, yes I'd replace the t-stat along with the rad cap.....sorry should have posted more than the socket size of the bolt for the t-stat.

 

You should take a look at the owner's manual. The interval for coolant changes on the 94 accord is every 4 years or 48K miles.

I think that you should also consider the cost of repairing the system and the cost of damage due to overheating.

A new thermostat and radiator cap is ~ $35 from the dealership. Coolant is not that expensive either.

The cost of replacing the cylinder head gasket will be much more than doing some maintenance on your car.

 

i drove it today with the new radiator cap and the only difference is that it doesnt boil into the resevoir. it does still boil though i can even feel it in the upper hose boiling.

I also took temperature readings while i was checking everything and the output housing on the upper hose from the engine was about 223 and the hose itself went from 200 at the nozzle to around 170-180 on the radiator end of it.

The lower hose was 100-110 where it connects to the radiator and the rest of it was around 75-85 and increased near the t-stat housing to around 170 and the housing was 210. the lower line also feels like there is no fluid in it.

 

Here are my suggestions. Replace thermostat then replace the coolant.

It sounds like the thermostat is stuck closed or there is a clog in the radiator.

When you drain the radiator, remove both hoses from the engine and run water into the top hose. See if it comes out through the bottom hose. Have a bucket to collect the flow from the bottom hose.

 

alright i will probably do it tonight or tomorrow night. its been rainy and miserable here for the past few days. il post my results after i do it.

 

OVERHEATING SOLVED!

It wasnt the thermostat. i removed it and boiled it and it worked just fine so i put the new one in and the radiator was flowing fine when i flushed it.

The problem was that the way it was sitting on a steep hill for a month with a bad radiator cap must have created a very large air pocket in the lines and it wasnt circulating just like when you have to purge a water pump or such. i found this out as i filled the radiator to the honda service manuals directions which was to open the bleeder valve and fill the radiator from the cap stem and fill till solid coolant comes out of the valve with no bubbles. so i did that and filled slightly more to fill the upper hose as well and then ran the engine for about 20 minutes with the cap off and it bubbled once in a while but it was so windy and cold out it really wasnt able to get up to temp. so i took the car out and checked it when i got home and everything was as it should be the lower hose felt just right and full of fluid and pumping. and the fan clicked on while it was running as well so even more proof that all is well.

all that and a simple air bleeding and coolannt filling was all i needed. thanks everyone for all the help. hopefully this experience can help others with the same problem that may also be resolved the same way.

now time to fix all the OTHER problems!

 

Thanks for letting us know. It's easy for us to take things for granted, like you're working on a relatively level garage or something.