Leak detector kits

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Originally Posted By: tom slick
are you looking at the fluor. dye and black light kits?


Exactly......I was under the impression that they will work for normal lubes as well as coolant. I have seen them in JC Whitney, Autozone ect.
 
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They work just fine, but have limited real world usage. Usually a can of degreaser is all that you need to trace fluid leaks.
 
They are cheap enough that they are worth a try. As AcuraTech mentioned, cleaning everything really well and watching for leaks should be the first attempt.
Another way to look for leaks is a clean spot where everything around is dirty. Coolant leaks will often show up this way.
 
Since you should clean the suspected areas first anyway, that is probably all you need to do. Then, a little flour or talcum dust can help trace a leak.
But the kits work OK.
 
Every once in awhile a dye kit will save your butt. Usually they aren't needed.................until you need it. I had one oil leak that turned out to be caused by a bad block casting (porosity) that almost killed a paycheck. I would have never found it without that UV dye. If you do use UV dye, get a little AA/AAA flashlight with a UV LED. It is a great timesaver and fits everywhere larger lights don't.
 
I have a coolant leak on my Dad's Caravan that never shows any coolant leaking anywhere.

I will try harder to track it down this weekend. If unsuccessful I might buy a leak kit. I do notice that the system is not pressurizing, so the rad cap is one of the first things I am looking at. It was replaced a year ago though.

Thanks for the input.
 
I don't think you need UV dye in coolant. I find that the black light lights up coolant the same as a fluid with UV dye in it. This cause me all kinds angst once when I was looking for a possible a/c compressor leak, and the clutch was sitting under the water pump weep hole.
 
You can pressurize the cooling system thru the overflow tube. Easiest done with compressed air and a pressure regulator set to about 13psi. Very useful for detecting cooling system leaks.
 
Originally Posted By: George7941
You can pressurize the cooling system thru the overflow tube. Easiest done with compressed air and a pressure regulator set to about 13psi. Very useful for detecting cooling system leaks.


Yes this is what I have done before. I had a little black light for pet accidents. It up and vanished. I notice the system is not coming up to pressure as well. The cap is one years old. I will try the cap off another vehicle.

I think I will pressurize it and see if I can find a leak before I worry about chasing things down with a black light.
 
I used the dye to find a water pump leak before. I also used a $8 actinic bulb (for marine aquariums) and installed it in a $6 portable fluorescent light fixture. It's brighter than those LED pens. A black light would work fine too
 
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