Technical Cooling System Sealant You Might Want To Try

So you pulled an old car out of a shed somewhere and got the engine freed up and running. But it's got a small coolant leak and you're not in a position to tear into it too deeply quite yet. And you're skeptical of the $40 to $60 a bottle Miracle Liquid Head Gasket Repair stuff.

Well I was in a similar situation recently with an off-topic used truck I'd bought. It had a visible leak at the back of the cylinder head that I assume was the head gasket. If it got hot enough it would vent steam from the back of the hood, steam cleaned the firewall and would leave a puddle on the ground under the transmission and engine area.

It got to be a regular routine adding coolant to it for a couple of months. But at work we sell a GM Cooling System Sealant that was originally recommended for use in the Northstar engines that tended to be kind of weepy even after replacing the head gaskets. They're like big horse-pill looking things and a pack of 5 of them should be around $5 or less at most GM dealers. So when topping up my coolant at work I added 3 of them to the radiator.

After a few days I needed to top things up again. After maybe another week or so I added more water again along with the remaining 2 tablets. But then, after maybe another 4 or 5 days, I discovered that it didn't need any topping off. The level in the reservoir and the radiator were still right where I'd last filled them. I've been checking it regularly since but still haven't had to add any coolant for at least the last month. In other words, this stuff seems to be working.

But the strangest thing is the main ingredients in these sealant tabs. Stuff like powdered ginger root, ground almond shells and turmeric. I can't guarantee it will work for you but it's cheap enough to try. And with a little patience you might be pleasantly surprised.

GM Cooling System Seal Tabs #12378255
$4.16 at most GM dealers.

 

Writing it down,thanks.

 

I prefer cinnamon.

 

Do they have a GM part number on them? I have a "yard car" I want to try it on. At least if they don't work, I can always add the rest to a curry.

 

Moroso block sealer....... Smells like race car, and works!

 

Thanks. I ordered some from ebay

 

I thought the horse pills were originally intended to be used in the HT4100 motor because the sleeve seals were crappy

 

Look like the GM ones we used to use by the box for leaks in locomotive cooling systems. Been around and used for nearly 50 yrs that I know of. Yup, they will work great but over used will plug up things you might not want plugged up internally like small internal coolant passages, heater cores, etc.

Ed

 

Several years back they were added to each car on the production line. Two on every car.

 

I used to like putting a little nutmeg on my Jamocha Shake at Arbys... That's been a few years back.

Just corrected the part number in my original post... #12378255 List at $4.16.

I think GM has recommended them for several "weepers" over the years.

 

My Grandpa used to say back in the day they used Horse Shit in radiators to stop leaks.

Gary

 

I've used ground ginger root right out of mom's kitchen. Worked like a charm. =]

 

i had an '85 seville with that awful 4.1 and that was the factory fix for its leaky cylinder liners!

 

Here's one not mentioned yet. We all have it in our house and my Dad showed me how it worked back in 1964. Just plain old Black Pepper right off the Table. It was in my 53 Vicky with Offy heads and leaking up the Head bolt. Fixed it and drove it 2 more years before selling it to a Friend. A year latter he lost a Rod Bearing and had to tear it down. There was a crack in the block at the bolt hole and the Pepper was still doing it's job. Price was sure right and I've used it many times since.
The Wizzard

 

I've been watching this with a bit of interest; my advice? Forget all of this and correct the problems in your cooling system. This is a traditional Hot Rod site, not a "How to get by with your 'Beater' site". When I was younger, I used several methods to stop leaks that were caused by my own or others mistakes. I quickly learned that fixing the basic problems eliminated the need for this kind of crap.

 

I retired from an S10 plant that used to drop 2 tablets in every radiator before antifreeze fill and then start up...

 

I have used them in my shop for different things since they came out. Bars leak makes them for GM and you you can buy them in quart containers much cheaper. Cadillac used to insist we put them in anytime we made repairs involving the cooling system.

 

I'm with Tubman.

 

All these quick fixes may be fine, waterglass used to be the big fix for cracked block or heads. I remember the "pills" when I worked at a GM dealership. In the ARMY we used pepper for small aluminum radiator leaks, don't know if it was HQ approved, lol. I think it's like the stuff on TV where Phil swift puts that spray or tape on a waterleak. I'm still trying to understand why anyone would saw a perfectly good boat in half. Parachute jumping same deal. Why would you jump out of a perfectly good airplane? Lippy

 

Sorry you did say you MIGHT want to try. Not trying to be a total smart ass Clay, just a partial smart ass. Lippy

 

An old neighbor who passed a few years ago told me about a trick he leaned in Korea. After a communist welcoming party put about a dozen holes in his duece and a half radiator, an old hand told him to get a dozen eggs from the mess Sgt. Plugged it up enough to get back to the motor pool.

 

I agree eggs tend to plug me up also. I have heard that also, the egg whites. Lippy

 

I've heard people say, that in a pinch you can use egg whites

 

Yup, just Bar's Leaks. GM and other manufacturers drop them into the cooling system at the factory to prevent small nuisance leaks that could cause warranty claims. They started using them on Saturn engines that had problems with casting porosity.

 

Mmmmm...I see said the blind man....

 

"...As he picked up his hammer and saw."

 

Solder Seal made something called Block Saver, I don't know if its still around, but it worked well. I used something similar in my OT Nissan a few years back, got about 10,000 more miles out of it. That silver stuff in the bags that parts stores had at the counter worked well too.

 

cinnamon .

 

SBC's that the head bolts go into the water jacket all got them. Glad we went to a Dart block.

 

When i was a kid just after i left school i had a HQ Holden. rad started leaking one summer holiday. My girl of the time and my self got to an old gas station. After telling the guys my predicament an old boy lets me know it aint no biggie but they had no fang-dangled stop leak additives for sale but he would get it fixed for me in a jiffy.
Great so off i go pop the hood and start reassuring my bird its not the end of the world.
Pop around the front to where the old guy had just arrived to see him dropping an egg in my rad.
WTF along with some other choice words I may of mentioned as I slam the door and drive off in a fury at some old gezzer taking the piss. Thinking he's totally fucked the whole car now.

>.> never leaked again.