Aluminium Pipe Sealing

[Guest boggie]

Hi All,

I am still trying to sort out my radiator / cooling system problems. I have got myself an expansion tank from a Golf and am planning to connect this to my radiator blow-off pipe and make it the highest part of the cooling system to eliminate the possibility of air locks. This will mean that as the water in the cooling system expands it will exit via the rad cap and expand into the tank, when it cools and contracts, coolant will be pulled back from the tank via the rad cap back into the radiator to maintain level in the system.

However as usual the Hood has thrown a curve ball, this time it is a problem of the blow off pipe seal. At the point where the blow-off pipe exits the radiator neck there is a poor seal (bad welding) so air will be drawn into the system.

My question is what can I do to seal this pipe without draining the system, removing the rad and getting it welded etc. Is there a product out there that I can seal the tube (eg liquid metal etc) ?

Cheers, Boggie

[Guest rizla]

as a few people in the club know i drive a old beat up fiesta,i dont spend money on it,in march/april at the detling show the rad blew so i used ARALDITE it has never leaked since

[Guest racman]

Hi

Try Leak and Fix by plastic padding, worked on everything I have tried.

[chris n]

Hi

You could also try a produce called Chemical Metal you mix it in the same way as the Plastic padding one but to me seams a bit more stronger to me. I used it on my rad when the bottom hose tube spit at the joint. Held for years till I swoped it for a Coolmans rad.

[Guest boggie]

Thanks guys,

Chemical metal - that's the stuff I used to seal a leaking sump on a rally car some time back, forgot all about it. Didn't realise it works on aluminium though.

Cheers, Boggie

[Guest kevin]

I have found that epoxy putty is good for jobs like this and it sets rock hard in minutes.

 

Kevin Howard

[Guest chris.childs]

Chemical Metal definatly works on aluminium, never used it on a rad though. However the worn aluminium gearbox casing I used it on is still going strong.