rverdoold Posted June 27, 2008 Share Posted June 27, 2008 My radiator is leaking. unfortunately not cooling part itself but the passenger side plastic side of it from where the water goes into the cooling part. There is a crack in the plastic. Is there anyway i can fix this, by putting something (epoxy resin or similar) over it. I am going to replace it but being at least 1500 km from home i need a quick and simple fix. From tomorrow i will start driving a depresurized cooling system by opening the bypass ventil in the cap (is this bad??) Any onther hints are welcome (i need to drive abour 2000 km with it before i am home Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ericem Posted June 27, 2008 Share Posted June 27, 2008 Possibly melt it together with a soldering iron. JB weld can work as well, just clean it as best as you can with a degreaser aka alcohol before applying any epoxy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EVOthis Posted June 27, 2008 Share Posted June 27, 2008 +1^ my buddy used JB weld on his for a couple days and it held fine until he got the money to replace the radiator..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RavenTBK Posted June 28, 2008 Share Posted June 28, 2008 I've got a JB Weld radiator repair from 6 years ago still holding good on my Bronco. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rooster2 Posted June 28, 2008 Share Posted June 28, 2008 Agree with others, JB weld is an excellent product to fix the radiator. The trick is to get the surface super clean with rubbing alcohol, and super dry. Even scrubbing with a tooth brush is recommended. Use JB weld, and let it set up (harden) over night, before driving the car again. Letting it harden for 24 hours before use is even better. I have used it to seal a leak on tubing on the high pressure side of a car's air conditioning system. It held for a good two years plus, until the car was sold. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OB99W Posted June 28, 2008 Share Posted June 28, 2008 [...]From tomorrow i will start driving a depresurized cooling system by opening the bypass ventil in the cap (is this bad??)[...] The pressure cap is designed to elevate the boiling point of the coolant. For example, if pure water boils at 212F/100C degrees, pressurizing 13 psi raises it to about 246F/120C degrees.http://www.broadleyjames.com/FAQ-text/102-faq.html Keep in mind that the coolant isn't at a uniform temperature, since the engine has hot spots -- even if the average temperature is below 212F/100C, there can be localized boiling, typically at the heads. If that happens, it's obviously not good. If the leak doesn't get completely fixed, or it breaks again, don't top off with plain water. Ethylene glycol based coolant raises water's boiling point. A 50/50 mix brings it up to about 265F/129C, while 70% concentration raises it further, to about 276F/135C. Therefore, if you absolutely must reduce the pressure, adding more antifreeze/coolant might help offset the lowered boiling point. (However, ethylene glycol doesn't transfer heat as well as water, so I'd limit the concentration to 60-65%.) One more thing you might do is wire both radiator fans to run all the time. If they don't cycle off and on, the average temperature of the coolant should be held lower, making it less likely that boiling will occur. Best of luck -- let's hope you don't overheat! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buick350X Posted June 28, 2008 Share Posted June 28, 2008 Just run with the rad cap lose so it doesn't build pressure, you won't lose any water and it really won't care one way or the other. Y don't want it running at full PSI in there with a JB weld patch for a while. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rverdoold Posted June 28, 2008 Author Share Posted June 28, 2008 Thanks for all the replies. I am usually not passing the 3k rpm so the waterpresure will not be extremely high. It is not that hot here only 22 celcius. When the cap is opened the presured water will go in the overflow tank i supose. I have never heard of JB weld, what does it do and how does it look like? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OB99W Posted June 28, 2008 Share Posted June 28, 2008 Just run with the rad cap lose so it doesn't build pressure, you won't lose any water and it really won't care one way or the other.[...]Of course; stupid engineers, what do they know? There's obviously no need to raise the coolant boiling point by pressurizing the system. Just think of all the money wasted on cars built that way, when they could just have had radiators with "overflow" tanks. By all means, a 2000 km (over 1200 miles) trip with an unpressurized cooling system is a good idea. Oh, yeah, for anyone who is sarcasm-challenged: :rolleyes: ! Years ago cars were built without pressurized systems. They also didn't have modern sophisticated engines that require them. I'm not saying the trip can't be done, just that it's risky, and there are measures that could be taken to minimize the risk. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buick350X Posted June 28, 2008 Share Posted June 28, 2008 You azz face, just till the JB weld was well cured and he got home. I never said drive around forever like that now did I. Your just a special kind of ahole huh??? ---------- rver RPM has nothing to do with how much pressure is in the rad. Its heat that does that. Leave the cap lose till your sure the JB welded is fully cured before you put full rad PSI on your patch job. And yep any water will just flow to the catch can. JBweld is good stuff not not till fully cured and 24hrs ins't enough. Stuff does work great. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rverdoold Posted June 28, 2008 Author Share Posted June 28, 2008 The top hose is always the return (as in most engines i think) The crack is in the top and the first 7 to 9 lines are dry. No water is sucked out from the overflowtank though. Until now i have drove 600 miles (of which 400 in 1 go) without any overheating or problems, just filled it up with water before i started driving. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rooster2 Posted June 28, 2008 Share Posted June 28, 2008 I have never heard of JB weld, what does it do and how does it look like? JB weld is sold at car parts stores. It is sold in a circular plastic package. The product is about the same diameter as a hot dog, but only half as long. It is a gray epoxy putty with a black colored core. Use a knife, cut a chunk off, then knead the putty with your fingers to mix thoroughly. Apply to a very clean surface. Job is finished. All you have to do is let dry to harden it up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RavenTBK Posted June 29, 2008 Share Posted June 29, 2008 http://www.jbweld.com ^^ Thats what it is, and what it looks like. Oh, and duh. Just noticed the original poster is in *.NL. Doubtful they've got it over there, although I'm sure there is something comparable. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cameron 1 Posted June 29, 2008 Share Posted June 29, 2008 crack an egg or two in it that works great i did it to mine over a year ago and it still works great:grin: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OB99W Posted June 29, 2008 Share Posted June 29, 2008 You azz face, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ad_hominem_attack just till the JB weld was well cured and he got home.You didn't say that. I never said drive around forever like that now did I.No, what you said was "Just run with the rad cap lose so it doesn't build pressure, you won't lose any water and it really won't care one way or the other." Your just a special kind of ahole huh???I'll let my previous posts on USMB represent what type of person I am. We'll see how yours reflect who you are. As to the actual topic: I'll admit to sometimes giving advice that tends toward the cautionary side, and when I see the kind that runs the other way, I speak up. Apparently so far rverdoold has had an uneventful trip, and I hope the concern I expressed turns out to be unwarranted. However, even if the car makes the entire trip without incident, I'll stick with my position that running with an unpressurized cooling system is risky. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rverdoold Posted June 29, 2008 Author Share Posted June 29, 2008 Is it possible to separately replace the plastic side of the radiator or should it be replaced completely (what a waste of material since the rest is fine). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OB99W Posted June 29, 2008 Share Posted June 29, 2008 Plastic tanks are sealed and attached to the core via gasket and crimping. (Metal copper/brass ones are soldered.) If the core is in good condition, a tank can be replaced by a radiator shop. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OB99W Posted June 29, 2008 Share Posted June 29, 2008 General cooling system info (not Subaru-specific), including radiator tank replacement: http://www.motor.com/magazine/pdfs/081999_11.pdf I don't know the availability of such repairs in Europe. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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