Date: Tue, 8 Sep 2015 18:14:28 -0300
Reply-To: Roy Nicholl <RNicholl@NBNET.NB.CA>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: Roy Nicholl <RNicholl@NBNET.NB.CA>
Subject: Re: Faint coolant smell
In-Reply-To: <CAG+p27u7GOPAuyQPLRiE12uJ79g8Y2RF5chXf9ZCf7C9hVKqLg@mail.gmail.com>
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Bill:
Already put dye in the coolant when I started looking for leaks.
Neil, Stuart:
I'd be hard pressed to guess if the smell is stronger in the rear or front of the cabin. The rear heater valve was replaced just before we acquired the van a year ago, but the heater is original. Another coincidence that the odour waited until I replaced the pump to surface? I'll pull the rear core first as it appears to be the easiest to access.
I have a liquid pressure gauge / tester designed for another application, however it only goes as low as 25 or 50 psi, which I am guessing is too much for the coolant system?
On 08-Sep-2015, at 15:32, William Monk wrote:
> Get a coolant UV die kit from the auto parts store. Take the guess work out
> of it.
>
> Bill
> On Sep 8, 2015 2:15 PM, "Stuart MacMillan" <stuartmacm@gmail.com> wrote:
>
>> Twice when I've had this problem it's been the rear heater core. They can
>> weep enough to smell, but not see until they blow. You need to slide out
>> the core. Just remove the screws holding the fan assembly to the floor and
>> raise it up a bit to get the clearance you need to slide the core out for
>> inspection. No need to disconnect anything except maybe the wiring plug.
>>
>> Stuart
>>
>> -----Original Message-----
>> From: Vanagon Mailing List [mailto:vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com] On Behalf Of
>> Roy Nicholl
>> Sent: Tuesday, September 08, 2015 9:59 AM
>> To: vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM
>> Subject: Faint coolant smell
>>
>> All,
>>
>> A couple of weeks ago, I replaced the water pump in the Hyena ('88 Westy
>> WBX). The past few days, I've thought I smelled a faint trace of coolant
>> in
>> the van itself. I checked the hoses, the radiator, the front and rear
>> heaters (best I could using a camera probe and mirrors without removing all
>> the plastic) and have found no leaks. I checked the bleeder on the
>> radiator, no leak. I have seen no noticeable drop in coolant level in the
>> reservoir.
>>
>> Any ideas on where I should explore next?
>>
>> I have also noted that my temperature gauge is now running a little lower
>> (from top half to bottom half of LED ... about a needles width). I plan
>> to
>> open both heater cores wide (they are partially shutdown at the moment),
>> park with the nose in the air, run it for a few moments, then open then
>> bleed the system again just to ensure I do not have an air bubble.
>>
>> Roy
>>
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