hey everyone. I've got my engine all sealed up after working on it and was putting coolant in it through the thermostat hole when I noticed coolant seeping out at a pretty good rate from the heater tube with the o-ring. It's a new tube with new o-ring and new water pump. How in the world do I get that to stop?! I tried searching on here with not much luck. I pulled the tube out a couple of times and my new coolant gushes out which is a waste. I'm stumped. Do I pull it out and put silicone around the o-ring or can I silicone around the tube on the water pump? Any ideas or personal experience would be appreciated. Thanks

 

Did you clean the tube and also the space there the tube is inserted? Also, did you lubricate the O-ring before installing it? If not, it might be torn which is why it is leaking.

Most local auto parts stores sell O-rings individually.

 

A buddy of mine was the one who put it in but I don't think he did lube it up. Yes everything was clean and new. I'll give that a try and just eat the cost of more coolant. Is putting any sealant ni with a new o-ring a good idea or should it seal just fine once lubed?

 

I would not advise sealant. Just lightly lube the O-ring with Vaseline and you should be OK.

 

roger roger! I'll do that tonight and report back either with good news or to seek more advice.

 

You may want to make sure it is all the way in. There is a ridge that it sits in. As stated make sure you lube it well. You may also want to check for corrosion inside the pump. You can take a test tube brush and run it in a few times to clean out any scale that may have built up.

 

I had the same problem with a new water pump and new tube and O-ring, I lubed it on the first install and ended up with seepage so I used silicone instead of lube to solve the problem, that was 6 mos. ago. I had it off again when I did my timing chains last week and avoided knocking it around during the install so it did not leak the 2nd time around either.

 

x2 on this advise.

 

Well, I went at it again last night, got a new o-ring, put some oil on it and slid it in. Felt like it slid into a slot where it should be. Opened up the thermostat housing again and poured more coolant in there and no leaks as of yet! Hopefully it stays that way. I can't wait to get it running again (hopefully it'll run), its been 2 months since I started the plenum and other work. A few hours a week doesn't help the process

 

Remember to install new upper & lower O-Rings for the injectors and lubricate them as well.

Good luck!