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To Bars Leak or Not To Bars Leak That is My Question

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waltesefalcon

waltesefalcon

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Ok so I got a call the other day from an old girlfriend who has recently become single and has moved back to Lawton. Nothing romantic she just wanted some help with her car, the heater wasn't working. So I went over and took a look at her 99 Ford escort that she is currently driving. The radiator was low, and has a small leak on each side where the plastic tanks meet the core. She doesn't have the money for a new radiator, she needs the car daily so I can't pull it and take it to the radiator shop. So I guess I am trying to decide if I should put some Barsleak in her car and be done with it. Neither leak is very bad, she had only lost about half a gallon in the six months she has been back in town and got the car. I haven't used Barsleak in a long time, well I guess sense I last dated her nearly 20 years ago, and don't know how I feel about using it again.
 
I have only had limited experience with Bars Leak. My ex had a fairly major leak in the rad of her '96 Cherokee so she got some... Well she actually got a big bottle that stated that it was for use in semi truck tractors. Jeep only ran 9 miles after she did that before the engine gave up. I put a bottle in my car 2 weeks ago to prevent having to tear the engine down to fix a leaking head gasket. It was copper colored and said it was designed for the V6 GM engine. My car has run sweet since then.
 
I have used the old fashioned stuff (basically ground up walnut shells) in the past, but I have no experience with the newer stuff they have. It fixed the head gasket leak?
 
Barsleak is bad for and not intended for radiator leaks! (their marketing guys probably put "radiator" on the list just to make sales but I doubt that the engineering guys will ever speak to them again!!).
Barsleak is GREAT for head gasket leaks or cracked heads. It is a chemical that is liquid normally but hardens when exposed to CO2 (carbon dioxide) which is precisely what it sees with a head gasket leak but there is insufficient CO2 in normal air to harden it.
DON'T USE IT IN RADIATOR LEAKS! JB Weld is FAR better there.
BillM

-- and NEVER use "Alumiseal" if you ever want to drive the car again!--
 
waltesefalcon said:
I have used the old fashioned stuff (basically ground up walnut shells) in the past, but I have no experience with the newer stuff they have. It fixed the head gasket leak?
Click to expand...

Sealed it up tight. No white feather out the tail pipe. No heater problems either.
 
Regular JB weld won't seal plastic tanks. There is too much flex and it doesn't adhere well. There is a special plastic tank sealer avalible but I don't remember from who. There are different types of bars leak sealer. The sodium silicate ones (clearish/copper) don't respond well to rad leaks as previously mentioned. Plastic tanks are hard to seal and it's best if replaced. Is the tank cracked or leaking at the seam? You may be able to clamp it a bit tighter.

Funny how some folks swear by something others hate. Alumiseal is the only thing I've ever found that worked and have never had any problems with it. I've sold and used it for decades. Matter of fact, I've never seen ANY leak seal harm an engine. I believe in most cases damage has already been done or the system wasn't refiled properly and future overheating problems are always blamed on the sealer.

Black pepper works well too but isn't a permanent fix. Any poweder or pellet type of sealer should be poured in slowly.
 
Actually, last time I used the stuff, it was "mix it in a container first", I think.
Bar's Leak does work...of course, you're talking Flatheads with BIG tubes.
KW Metallic or that Ceramic Seal is chemical....hardens when it hits the air.
Run it (and I put a radiator pressure tester on after pouring it in), shut down, drain, and if head or head gasket suspected, pull the plugs.
I leave the pressure tester on for 20 minutes to half hour, before draining, to make sure the stuff works into whatever is leaking.

With any leak stopper (remember heater core plugging Zerex stop-leak anti-freeze?) ALWAYS wise to bypass the core until it sets up.

Dave
 
A used radiator from a wrecking yard - $50 - is probably the cheapest fix.

waltesefalcon said:
Ok so I got a call the other day from an old girlfriend who has recently become single and has moved back to Lawton. Nothing romantic she just wanted some help with her car, the heater wasn't working. So I went over and took a look at her 99 Ford escort that she is currently driving. The radiator was low, and has a small leak on each side where the plastic tanks meet the core. She doesn't have the money for a new radiator, she needs the car daily so I can't pull it and take it to the radiator shop. So I guess I am trying to decide if I should put some Barsleak in her car and be done with it. Neither leak is very bad, she had only lost about half a gallon in the six months she has been back in town and got the car. I haven't used Barsleak in a long time, well I guess sense I last dated her nearly 20 years ago, and don't know how I feel about using it again.
Click to expand...
 
I've thought of getting one from a junk yard. This is just me being selfish, but I really don't want to use a solution that requires me tromping through a junk yard for an hour or so when I could be doing real work and getting paid for it.
 
https://barsproducts.com/catalog/view/32-pelletized-heavy-duty-stop-leak-plt11

I've got a '93 Saturn that's on it's 3rd Modine replacement radiator. All 3 have failed at the plastic around the petcock in a way that's not fixable from the outside. I don't usually go for canned fixes but... Two months ago I used the stuff in the link above and it's no longer leaking. Runs fine, temp if fine, heater works... I'll report back if it suddenly lets go, but I'm not worried about it. (knocks wood)
 
The plastic and aluminum radiators were not made to fix when they first came out. Now days, than can be repaired, but that's slim. The plastic tops and bottoms get old and brittle and do not expand and contract at the rate of the aluminum when they get older and then the movement breaks the seal. Not really repairable with sealers and catastrophic when they let loose. No easy way out here, new $$, used is cheaper but someone else's problem.
 
Thanks Bill, that will probably be the way she winds up going. For right now I put some Barsleak in it and it has quit leaking. As long as that gets her through the rest of the month then she can afford a radiator.
 
My son, who has a automotive repair business also has a radiator shop on site. Even though he has the proper tools and facilities to replace the plastic tanks, he recommends to the customer to replace the whole radiator, as the cost to replace the tanks on an old core isn't much less than a whole new one, due to the increased labor charge. PJ
 
Heck Paul around here the radiator for her Ford is actually cheaper than the labor to replace the tanks. The radiator runs around $70, and the Radiator shop wanted $90 to replace the old tanks.
 
waltesefalcon said:
Heck Paul around here the radiator for her Ford is actually cheaper than the labor to replace the tanks. The radiator runs around $70, and the Radiator shop wanted $90 to replace the old tanks.
Click to expand...

Yeah, that's what I was getting at, when they go bad, trash them and get a new one. Cheaper in the long run, as you have a new core also, not just new tanks.
But now about Bars Leak. We used it for years in our construction equipment as a preventative after the first year or 1000 hrs of service and never had any problems with it. PJ
 
Late here, but trying to fix one of those aluminum and plastic wonders is folly. Replace it and be done. If the stop-leak buys her a month, no issue!
 
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