Date: Thu, 10 May 2012 16:56:47 -0700
Reply-To: Rocket J Squirrel <camping.elliott@GMAIL.COM>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: Rocket J Squirrel <camping.elliott@GMAIL.COM>
Subject: Re: Oil Pressure Lamp? Denoument.
In-Reply-To: <BAY152-ds9055DAC57160FFA450979A0160@phx.gbl>
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The warning light does turn on brightly, normally, with the ignition on
before the engine has started.
Until I get evidence that says otherwise, I'm sticking to my hypothesis
that it was a waterlogged oil pressure switch which trickled enough
current to glimmer the LED. It don't take a lot of current to get an LED
to gleam. Now the switch and engine compartment are fully dry and the
lamp is back to behaving quite normally. The conductivity of the coolant
may have been sufficient "insulation breakdown" to do this.
But you could be right. Wanna wager? Maybe a pint of local microbrew?
--
Jack "Rocket j Squirrel" Elliott
Bend, Ore.
1984 Westfalia. A poor but proud people.
1971 "Ladybug"-brand utility trailer ca. 1972 from a defunct company in
San Clemente, Calif., now repurposed as The Westrailia.
On 05/10/2012 04:25 PM, Dennis Haynes wrote:
> Does the Warning light turn on brightly with the ignition on before the
> engine is started? If moisture can make a change in any electrical circuit
> you have an insulation breakdown that needs to be addressed. Stop fooling
> yourself.
>
> Dennis
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Vanagon Mailing List [mailto:vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com] On Behalf Of
> Richard Koerner
> Sent: Thursday, May 10, 2012 6:08 PM
> To: vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM
> Subject: Re: Oil Pressure Lamp? Denoument.
>
> I concur! Moderator David B. yesterday correctly diagnosed the faint dull
> red glow in my oil pressure LED as possible moisture in the circuit; turns
> out I had used a hose to gently wash off the engine compartment and must
> have got some on the sender. Once engine came up to temperature, the
> moisture evaporated away and so did my false indicator light.
>
> Rich
> San Diego
>
> --- On Thu, 5/10/12, Rocket J Squirrel<camping.elliott@GMAIL.COM> wrote:
>
> From: Rocket J Squirrel<camping.elliott@GMAIL.COM>
> Subject: Re: Oil Pressure Lamp? Denoument.
> To: vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM
> Date: Thursday, May 10, 2012, 2:45 PM
>
> Wet oil pressure switch?
>
> Yesterday we put new coolant into my 1.9. Using a "Libby Bong" one can get
> quite a gusher out of the bleeder in the engine compartment. Coolant washed
> over the oil pressure gauge sender and oil pressure switch which are moved
> above the left head when using tencentlife's adapter setup, which I am.
>
> Drove the van briefly yesterday, and there were no warning lamps, everything
> read okay. But this morning, I needed to move the van a couple hundred feet
> and the oil pressure lamp did not go out even though the oil pressure gauge
> read normally. But the lamp was not on at full power, either: it was only at
> half-brightness.
>
> I had to run a bunch of errands in Mrs Squirrel's car in the morning, but
> after lunch I brought the van back to the driveway, and the oil lamp was
> quite dim, but not out. Turned off the engine, connected a voltmeter to the
> switch's "hot" terminal and turned on the ignition w/o starting the engine.
> Read about 0.5V. Started the engine. Read 10.5 volts.
> Puzzled I check the dash lamp -- dark. Revved the engine to kick in the
> alternator and the voltage rose to about 11.5 or 12V and the lamp, of
> course, was dead dark.
>
> Took it for a long drive, no sign of spurious lamp lightage.
>
> It's my theory that the oil pressure switch was soaked with coolant and
> offered a sufficiently low enough resistance to allow current to flow
> through the lamp to cause it to partially light. Then it dried out.
>
> Even though a brief check with an ohmmeter showed that a 50/50 mix of
> G-05 coolant is about as conductive as distilled water, this is my story and
> I'm sticking to it.
>
> --
> Jack "Rocket j Squirrel" Elliott
> Bend, Ore.
> 1984 Westfalia. A poor but proud people.
> 1971 "Ladybug"-brand utility trailer ca. 1972 from a defunct company in San
> Clemente, Calif., now repurposed as The Westrailia.
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