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Thermostat housing sealant?

GTPRiley

GTPRiley

New member
Hey guys I changed my thermostat to a 180 recently and since then I cant get my thermostat housing to seal up and its leaking slightly, what should I do to get it sealed up... Thanks guys!
 


GTPRiley said:
Hey guys I changed my thermostat to a 180 recently and since then I cant get my thermostat housing to seal up and its leaking slightly, what should I do to get it sealed up... Thanks guys!
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did you replace the rubber gasket??? otherwise try silicone sealent....hi temp of course
 
Thats the thing its a brand new gasket, and at first it wouldnt seal at all. I flipped it and it sealed better, can I get a high temp silicone sealant from Lowes?
 
Yeah, the gasket is only one way. If you even got it in backwards it may be damaged and that's why it isn't sealing. It's somewhat "bowl" shaped so it will fit down into the LIM and the housing will seal on top of it. This provides the seal so coolant won't get out, and also so that coolant can't get around a closed thermostat.
 
From my experiance with a couple Series 2 3800 and doing coolant flushes yearly i learned something. Over time it seems the rubber seal on the Thermostat which is designed to seal the housing too eventully won't seal good. My solution? Simple, use a LIGHT coat of gray permetex RTV (water pump/t-stat housing) around the housing and it will cure it. And thats with using a new rubber seal too. I always replace the seal everytime too. Don't put RTV on the T-stat seal, just the housing only.

Good luck...
 


Alrighty, Ill just get some High heat silicone stuff tomorrow from Lowes or something that should seal it up. I hate the smell of Antifreeze burning, its horrible lol.
 
GTPRiley said:
Alrighty, Ill just get some High heat silicone stuff tomorrow from Lowes or something that should seal it up. I hate the smell of Antifreeze burning, its horrible lol.
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Do not go to Lowes for automotive parts. You need to go to the autoparts store and pick up the red RTV. It is designed for seals like that. Use it sparingly and you should be good.
 
yea, that RTV is the exact stuff ya need, i just couldn't remember the name yesterday when i posted.... but i've got a tube in the garage right now, too bad you don't live closer....lol
 
Iron Indian said:
From my experiance with a couple Series 2 3800 and doing coolant flushes yearly i learned something. Over time it seems the rubber seal on the Thermostat which is designed to seal the housing too eventully won't seal good. My solution? Simple, use a LIGHT coat of gray permetex RTV (water pump/t-stat housing) around the housing and it will cure it. And thats with using a new rubber seal too. I always replace the seal everytime too. Don't put RTV on the T-stat seal, just the housing only.

Good luck...
Click to expand...
That's what I used too, works great.
 


Ok I didnt get the Gray but I got the red stuff and its High Temp... Hopefully it will seal up Im sick of it leaking, makes the driveway look horrible and it smells even worse...
 
i got the red too...should be just what the doctor ordered, although consider picking up a new gasket first, that way all bases are covered
 
I got the gasket at the same time as I got the RTV so it should work out lol, I swear if this doesnt stop leaking lol
 
ITS FIXED!!! No more leak, No more smell. No more Smoke... RTV is the ****! Thanks everyone for helping me out.... WHOO!!!
 


I can't believe you guys have trouble getting it to seal. I bet your gasket surfaces are dirty. I wipe it down and scrape the housing side every time I change one out. Did my fourth change today, and still no issues sealing.
 
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