Date:         Thu, 22 Feb 2007 16:24:16 -0800
Reply-To:     Courtney Hook <courtneyhook@SHAW.CA>
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From:         Courtney Hook <courtneyhook@SHAW.CA>
Subject:      Re: Bar's Leak (Was: My 2 cents on head leaks and rubber studs)
Content-type: text/plain; format=flowed; charset=iso-8859-1; reply-type=original

Bar's Leak has a new product out, (at least new here to me anyway) that is
called appropriately "Head Gasket Repair". They claim it is a glass like
material that seals leaks, and the antifreeze MUST be removed before it's
use. Worth checking out. My brother is about to try it in his old Suzuki
Swift as a last chance before he shoots it. :-)
Courtney

----- Original Message -----
From: "Dennis Haynes" <dhaynes@OPTONLINE.NET>
To: <vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM>
Sent: Tuesday, February 20, 2007 8:57 PM
Subject: Re: Bar's Leak (Was: My 2 cents on head leaks and rubber studs)


> Carefully, Appropriatley used, Bars leak, pwedered sealants, pepper, eggs,
> etc, will work on many small leaks. Bars leak can be nasty due to the size
> and quantity of the pellets. If the raqiator and heater cores are getting
> restricted due to other neglect, these sealants will finish the job.
>
> My method is to use the small pill sized containers of sealant. Usually a
> silver or brown colored powder. Place it in the tank when the engine is
> cold, then strt it and run until just before the thrmostat opens. Then
> shut it down and let it sit for a few hours. If the gaskets are getting
> pushed open from corroision or the rubber is hard and cracking, this fix
> wonlt work, but for the small eaks from the sealant between the gasket and
> head failing or the rubber shrinking slighlty from cols weather, the
> sealants can often work for many years.
>
> Dennis
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: Geza Polony
> Date: Friday, February 16, 2007 1:08 pm
> Subject: Bar's Leak (Was: My 2 cents on head leaks and rubber studs)
> To: vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM
>
>> OK, purists: read no further.
>>
>> Bar's Leak either (a) does nothing or (b) clogs up your
>> radiator, heater
>> core, etc.
>>
>> However, I've had good luck with Bar's Leak over many years, and am
>> considering running it in my 1.9. All right, jump all over me,
>> but here's my
>> reasoning. It costs ten bucks and, in my experience, works.
>>
>> What I'm planning to do, when I finally get around to replacing
>> my water
>> pump, is run the Bar's Leak Head Gasket repair in the system
>> without the
>> radiator connected, ie. pinch off the hoses after putting the BL
>> in. You
>> have to drain out all the coolant to use this stuff, otherwise muchos
>> problemos. It's supposed to sit in there a while, then you drain
>> and refill
>> with antifreeze.
>>
>> Intuitively, you would think that BL clogs up "those tiny little
>> passages"here and there, as if you're pouring in tile adhesive.
>> However, intuition
>> also tells us the earth is flat. If it really clogged up the
>> pores, BL would
>> have been out of business years ago, and the major automakers
>> would not be
>> putting it, or versions of it, in all their new cars.
>>
>> Anybody tried what I'm talking about--and dare to come out of
>> the closet
>> about it?
>>
>> I'm saying this because these leaking heads are such a prevalent
>> problem on
>> the WBX's, and feel that if it's just a seal, who cares what the
>> seal is
>> made of, as long as it--well, it seals.
>>
>> Nicht?
>>