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Coolant leak

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riddon(at)sent.com
Guest

Posted: Tue Dec 20, 2011 12:54 am Post subject: Coolant leak

Having just changed all the rubber hoses on my tri gear, I seem to have developed a leak from somewhere. Coolant slowly dripping from the bottom of the radiator. I was wondering if anyone had any clever idea how to trace it?  Nothing obvious visually so all I can think of is draining everything down again and taking off the radiator then pressurising it under water to see if there are any bubbles. 



Richard Iddon G-RIXS

brian.davies(at)clara.co.
Guest

Posted: Tue Dec 20, 2011 2:10 am Post subject: Coolant leak

Hi Richard



If there is nothing obvious visually it is probably leaking from the lowest

connections- The two pipes that join on to the water radiator.  They are

hard to see and any leaks tend to appear at the bottom of the radiator.  You

could try tightening those clips first.  You can buy a leak detecting dye

from garages/motor parts suppliers.  The normal first check would be to

pressurise the system but that means fitting a modified cap in order to

apply pressure and that is a lot of work.  You could try dropping the

radiator so that you can view the rad connections from under duct.



Regards



Brian Davies



--

paul.the.aviator(at)gmail
Guest

Posted: Tue Dec 20, 2011 4:08 am Post subject: Coolant leak

Hi,



I used a fluorescence dye and a UV light and it worked really well.



Paul

  [quote][b]

Trevpond(at)aol.com
Guest

Posted: Tue Dec 20, 2011 5:00 am Post subject: Coolant leak

I had a similar problem when I replaced a radiator.  I noticed that  the input tube was longer than the 

 original, so used 2 clips - problem fixed!

  

 Trev

 G-LINN

  

  In a message dated 20/12/2011 12:08:24 GMT Standard Time,  paul.the.aviator(at)gmail.com writes:

  	  Quote: 	
		  Hi,



I used a fluorescence dye and a UV light and it worked    really well.



Paul

 	  Quote: 	
		  



tp://www.aeroelectric.com/">www.aeroelectric.com

/ href="http://www.buildersbooks.com/">www.buildersbooks.com

http://www.homebuilthelp.com/">www.homebuilthelp.com

p://www.matronics.com/contribution">http://www.matronics.com/contribution

ef="http://www.matronics.com/Navigator?Europa-List">http://www.matronics.com/Navigator?Europa-List

s.matronics.com/">http://forums.matronics.com

p://www.matronics.com/contribution">http://www.matronics.com/contribution



	
	


 [quote][b]

riddon(at)sent.com
Guest

Posted: Wed Dec 21, 2011 1:38 pm Post subject: Coolant leak

Hi Guys.



Thanks for the feedback. It seems it was one of the lower hose connections. I made the jubilee clips really tight and it seems to have stopped. And Ivor, next time I drain the system I will change the clips for the Rotax type spring clips but whilst it is dry, I don't want to disturb it again now. 



Richard. 



do not archive



On 20 Dec 2011, at 20:49, PHILLIPS I wrote:



 	  Quote: 	
		   Hi Richard

 Don't forget about the small drain hole on the bottom of the water pump, If the engine hasn't been

 run for a while you can get a small leak,  also not sure what type of clips you have but would recommend

 the spring clips that Rotax now use instead of jubilee ones

 regards

 Ivor

 

 On 20 December 2011 12:56, <Trevpond(at)aol.com> wrote:

 I had a similar problem when I replaced a radiator.  I noticed that the input tube was longer than the

 original, so used 2 clips - problem fixed!

  

 Trev

 G-LINN

  

 In a message dated 20/12/2011 12:08:24 GMT Standard Time, paul.the.aviator(at)gmail.com writes:

 Hi,

 

 I used a fluorescence dye and a UV light and it worked really well.

 

 Paul

paul.the.aviator(at)gmail
Guest

Posted: Wed Dec 21, 2011 2:48 pm Post subject: Coolant leak

Hi Richard,



It has been my experience that worm drive clips will ultimately leak due to the thermal expansion & contraction from summer to winter. I ended up using the spring clips similar to what Rotax use for the coolant hoses on the top of the engine.

 



Cheers,  Paul



  [quote][b]

terrys(at)cisco.com
Guest

Posted: Wed Dec 21, 2011 4:09 pm Post subject: Coolant leak

Hi,



Ditto, we had leakeage for years with the worm drive clamps.  As the inner metal fitting heats first (and expands) it crushes the hose against the clamp, which does not heat as quickly.  As it cools, the crushed hose now has space for coolant to leak from.  Later on, you notice the loose clamp and tighten it a little.  The next time you run the engine, the process repeats itself.  We finally switched to spring clamps and have not had the problem since.



Terry Seaver



--

grahamsingleton(at)btinte
Guest

Posted: Wed Dec 21, 2011 4:53 pm Post subject: Coolant leak

Terry

I think what happens is that the hose softens with heat then is compressed by the clip when it takes a permanent set, which lessens the clamping pressure. This happens repeatedly so we end up with 

loose clips.

The spring clips take up the slack as the hose softens and spreads so tension is retained. 

There is also more even clamping so that less pressure is needed.

HOWEVER, it's important to use the correct size  of clamp!

Graham

       From: Terry Seaver (terrys) <terrys(at)cisco.com>

 To: europa-list(at)matronics.com 

 Sent: Thursday, 22 December 2011, 0:05

 Subject: RE: Coolant leak

  



Hi,



Ditto, we had leakeage for years with the worm drive clamps.  As the inner metal fitting heats first (and expands) it crushes the hose against the clamp, which does not heat as quickly.  As  it cools, the crushed hose now has space for coolant to leak from.  Later on, you notice the loose clamp and tighten it a little.  The next time you run the engine, the process repeats itself.  We finally switched to spring clamps and have not had the problem since.



Terry Seaver



--

riddon(at)sent.com
Guest

Posted: Thu Dec 22, 2011 12:59 am Post subject: Coolant leak

Have folks replaced the worm drive clips on fuel lines with spring clips also?



Richard Iddon.

On 22 Dec 2011, at 00:05, Terry Seaver (terrys) wrote:



[quote] 

 Hi,

 

 Ditto, we had leakeage for years with the worm drive clamps.  As the inner metal fitting heats first (and expands) it crushes the hose against the clamp, which does not heat as quickly.  As it cools, the crushed hose now has space for coolant to leak from.  Later on, you notice the loose clamp and tighten it a little.  The next time you run the engine, the process repeats itself.  We finally switched to spring clamps and have not had the problem since.

 

 Terry Seaver

 

 

 

 --

paul.the.aviator(at)gmail
Guest

Posted: Thu Dec 22, 2011 12:27 pm Post subject: Coolant leak

Hi Richard,



I exchanged my worm drive clips for fuel injection hose clips in an effort to stop the fuel smell.  At the time it did not occur to me to use constant tension clips (CTC). 



 With that said, I used CTC's to solve a thermal expansion problem which is a little different to the issue I was having with my fuel hose.

 

Many people may disagree with me, but of the few things I wish I had done differently in my build it was to have used all metal fuel lines. They are lighter and last forever.



Paul

  [quote][b]

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