BARS Liquid Aluminum Into Heater Core

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OK, I am ready to get torched for this idea but here it goes...

I have a 2005 Chevy Colorado (5cyl) with 150k plus miles, that I am 99.9% sure has a heater core leak. I am thinking of disconnecting the coolant hoses from the core input and output. Then I would route some coolant mixed with just a bit of BARs Liquid Aluminum only into and out of the heater core. I realize I have to find a way to pressurize and heat the mixture. IF I am successful sealing the breach in the heater core, I will then flush it out with water to remove any of the excess BARS. I realize this is a long shot, but if I use just minimal amounts of sealant and flush it out well right after, I won't risk exposing the rest of the system to the sealant. If the sealant ruins the heater core, I'm no worse off because it is trashed to begin with.

I really respect the knowledge on this forum and know that the only way to FIX this is to replace that core. That said, for a non-professional, a heater core replacement is a tedious and time consuming job. The vehicle is not worth the cost to have this done professionally.

Any chance this idea would work? Any advice or perhaps a different product then the BARS Liquid Aluminum? Knowing that the stop leak stuff is cancerous to the whole system, is this a valid way to isolate it only to the damaged heater core?

Any comments or suggestions would be appreciated - even those ripping me for even considering this!
 
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Maybe use the GM stop leak pellets? As I understand it, it's basically ground up ginger, that swells when exposed to air. The Bars leak pellets and powder are basically the same. I used the bars leak pellets to shore up the L.I.M. gasket leak in the buick until I could get the parts to fix it. Added, ran half an hour, drained the coolant to remove unused sealer, refilled with distilled water, and ran just fine until the repair.
 
Hey it's a Colorado. Its barely half a truck! Kidding, I like the truck, but not quite as sturdy as a full size so no delusions that she'll run to 300k!
 
I would be replacing the core. But if you must put stuff in get the gm/ac delco pellets as was previously mentioned from the dealer. Just use as directed.
 
Originally Posted By: Chris142
bypass the heater untill you can fix it right.

I tend to agree. My truck had a leaky core and it was bypassed for years until my dad got around to fixing it.
 
Originally Posted By: jcbcts
Hey it's a Colorado. Its barely half a truck! Kidding, I like the truck, but not quite as sturdy as a full size so no delusions that she'll run to 300k!


It's a miracle it has 150K on it if it still has the original cylinder head.
 
Put the stop leak in the radiator and drive it . The stop leak will work or not then go from there.
 
Have you considered K-Seal?

I generally believe if it's worth fixing its worth fixing the right way.

That being said it's not always economical to do so. Just please remember this is a patch not a fix and your putting off doing something now at the cost of a more expensive fix later down the road if it doesn't work out.
 
Originally Posted By: CT8
Put the stop leak in the radiator and drive it . The stop leak will work or not then go from there.


Agreed, but just start with small amounts (1/4 dose?) until you get the desired effect.

There is no need to worry about this stuff circulating in your system. It'll be fine.
 
Well, I executed this crazy idea last evening. I bought 3 feet of extra hose same diameter as the input hose for the heater core (hose closer to the driver side on my colorado). I disconnected both heater core hoses and connected the new hose to the input. Then I blew out all the old coolant. Inside on the stove I heated up 1/2 gallon of distilled water and added 1/3 jar of the Bars Liquid Aluminum. Brought that just up to the boiling point and poured it into a large thermos. Connected a funnel to the 3 ft hose and poured in the hot water/bars mixture until it started coming out the other side of the heater core. Then I plugged up the open hole with a wine cork and hooked a small air compressor up to the hose (the nozzle fit perfectly into the hose). I used hose clamps to secure the hose on both sides. Then I ran the compressor up to 20PSI - I had to use my hand (protected with heavy gloves of course) to hold the cork in place. I held this for about 3mins and then let out the pressure. I repeated once more as I had enough left over mixture. I then removed the cork and blew out all of the mixture I could. Next I ran about 1 gallon of distilled water through to purge out all the excess stop leak, leaving the core full of distilled water when finished. Hooked the core hoses back up and it seems to have worked! No leak coming from the HVAC drain after running her up to TEMP for 15 mins and then taking her for a 10 minute drive!


Only time will tell if this "fix" will last! If anyone else tries this - BE CAREFUL AND WEAR PROTECTION over your skin and safety glasses! There are several ways to scald yourself doing this! My objective was to patch the heater core without exposing the rest of the system to any stop-leak product. If it doesn't last, I will be back to where I started...facing tear down of the dash to replace the heater core. Supplies cost me 10 bucks so to me it was worth a shot.

I appreciated everyone's advice. The Bar's stuff would probably be OK to just dump into the radiator, but there is SO much conflicting information about the damage Stop Leak products do, I didn't want to take the chance.
 
Originally Posted By: skyactiv
Originally Posted By: jcbcts
Hey it's a Colorado. Its barely half a truck! Kidding, I like the truck, but not quite as sturdy as a full size so no delusions that she'll run to 300k!


It's a miracle it has 150K on it if it still has the original cylinder head.


All right Skyactiv - I meant to follow up with you on this but was focused on trying to fix my heater core. What did you mean that its a Miracle I have 150k on the cylinder head? Are these engines prone to head failures? What specifically would I be looking for as signs?
 
Bars Leak pellets and goop is the same as the stuff GM used as a factory fill for their leaky engines. The stuff is like blood. It only clots when exposed to air. You can leave it in solution safely. The worst it does is make the coolant look terrible.
I clogged the htr core with the powdered aluminum, so I can't recommend it.
 
Originally Posted By: jcbcts
Well, I executed this crazy idea last evening. I bought 3 feet of extra hose same diameter as the input hose for the heater core (hose closer to the driver side on my colorado). I disconnected both heater core hoses and connected the new hose to the input. Then I blew out all the old coolant. Inside on the stove I heated up 1/2 gallon of distilled water and added 1/3 jar of the Bars Liquid Aluminum. Brought that just up to the boiling point and poured it into a large thermos. Connected a funnel to the 3 ft hose and poured in the hot water/bars mixture until it started coming out the other side of the heater core. Then I plugged up the open hole with a wine cork and hooked a small air compressor up to the hose (the nozzle fit perfectly into the hose). I used hose clamps to secure the hose on both sides. Then I ran the compressor up to 20PSI - I had to use my hand (protected with heavy gloves of course) to hold the cork in place. I held this for about 3mins and then let out the pressure. I repeated once more as I had enough left over mixture. I then removed the cork and blew out all of the mixture I could. Next I ran about 1 gallon of distilled water through to purge out all the excess stop leak, leaving the core full of distilled water when finished. Hooked the core hoses back up and it seems to have worked! No leak coming from the HVAC drain after running her up to TEMP for 15 mins and then taking her for a 10 minute drive!


Only time will tell if this "fix" will last! If anyone else tries this - BE CAREFUL AND WEAR PROTECTION over your skin and safety glasses! There are several ways to scald yourself doing this! My objective was to patch the heater core without exposing the rest of the system to any stop-leak product. If it doesn't last, I will be back to where I started...facing tear down of the dash to replace the heater core. Supplies cost me 10 bucks so to me it was worth a shot.

I appreciated everyone's advice. The Bar's stuff would probably be OK to just dump into the radiator, but there is SO much conflicting information about the damage Stop Leak products do, I didn't want to take the chance.


If this fix ever fails, please do post back. It's pretty cool that you got it to seal that way. The liquid aluminum works really well, but I've also had it partially plug a radiator before. Would be nice to be able to seal just the leak and not contaminate the entire cooling system!
 
Ran back across my old post here. Believe it or not - 2 1/2 years later this "fix" is still holding. No leaks from the heater core since. Truck is now at 175k miles on it. Sorry so long before reporting back...I would have remembered if it failed but it hasn't!
 
Originally Posted by jcbcts
OK, I am ready to get torched for this idea but here it goes...

I have a 2005 Chevy Colorado (5cyl) with 150k plus miles, that I am 99.9% sure has a heater core leak. I am thinking of disconnecting the coolant hoses from the core input and output. Then I would route some coolant mixed with just a bit of BARs Liquid Aluminum only into and out of the heater core. I realize I have to find a way to pressurize and heat the mixture. IF I am successful sealing the breach in the heater core, I will then flush it out with water to remove any of the excess BARS. I realize this is a long shot, but if I use just minimal amounts of sealant and flush it out well right after, I won't risk exposing the rest of the system to the sealant. If the sealant ruins the heater core, I'm no worse off because it is trashed to begin with.

Any comments or suggestions would be appreciated - even those ripping me for even considering this!


I've never had anything good come of using magic sealant additives in coolant or any other automatic fluid, but I'm glad it worked out for you!

Should you bite the bullet and replace the failed heater core. Looks like a full day's work for a DIY person (5 hours listed shop time for an experienced tech.
https://www.355nation.net/threads/how-to-dash-removal-heater-core.32674/
 
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I did about the same thing 6-7 years ago on my F150, so far it's held up very well.

I totally forgot about it until I read this.
 
The thing about leaks is, this is just the first one. Odds are there are multiple sites about to leak and the stop leak goop is supposed to stay in the system to plug them as they happen.

I wouldn't mess with it, throw a new heater core in instead. They're only $35 or so, plus a few $ if you put new hoses on which you probably should. That's hardly a big investment, easily worth doing (DIY) if it doesn't have one foot in the grave already.
 
Glad it worked for you....heater cores usually aren't easy to replace and can be expensive due to labor cost
 
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