How to Temporarily Fix Minor Radiator Leaks

[AB]

Fixing minor leaks in you radiator. American telling the story but similar products here in OZ.

[cyanobacteria]

Fixing minor leaks in you radiator. American telling the story but similar products here in OZ.

Sure beats a handful of pepper.

[Chris72GQ]

another thing, when you r out in the bush, if you have eggs on you, crack an egg into the radiator,dont ask me how it works but it does.

[beansathome]

another thing, when you r out in the bush, if you have eggs on you, crack an egg into the radiator,dont ask me how it works but it does.

so many people have said the egg and pepper trick but i am yet 2 see that in action. i would love 2 see if it actualy works .

[Chris72GQ]

i have seen it done many years ago by my grandfather on a trip to a relatives station, i was about 10 and back then it was a good 12 - 14 hr trip if the roads had been graded in the previous 3 months,
grandfather pulled over, popped the bonnet, and waited about 1/2 hr before cracking an egg into radiator, started it up for about 5 mins to check it had done the job and topped up water and off we went
about 5 hrs later as we pulled up to the station, the radiator gave way.
it is only a temporary fix and not designed to last forever but got us the 300 odd km's to the station on a day when it was 46c in the shade

[Bigrig]

i have seen it done many years ago by my grandfather on a trip to a relatives station, i was about 10 and back then it was a good 12 - 14 hr trip if the roads had been graded in the previous 3 months,
grandfather pulled over, popped the bonnet, and waited about 1/2 hr before cracking an egg into radiator, started it up for about 5 mins to check it had done the job and topped up water and off we went
about 5 hrs later as we pulled up to the station, the radiator gave way.
it is only a temporary fix and not designed to last forever but got us the 300 odd km's to the station on a day when it was 46c in the shade

Same goes for me, would love to see it - have heard about it plenty of times, and honestly hope I never have to do it, but it would be just a little bit cool to tell the story ... my only question though, where do you get a chicken out in the middle of nowhere!!! lolol

[simongnz]

I've had to use the cracked pepper in a radiator before after some mongrel pulled himself under my car by the fan to disable the alarm before breaking into it. The cracked pepper fixed the radiator for months before I got around to fixing it properly (I was a poor student at the time).

[Dhuck]

When I was a mechanic in a sprint car team we used eggs and pepper. They both worked a treat. How I don't know. The only downfall was if we were racing local we did not have either with us.

[damaverick]

I can also attest to eggs and pepper doing the trick. A tube/container of pepper is probably easier to carry with you than a few eggs though as it is less fragile off road.

How it works is simple - the engine heats up the coolant to a high temperature once the engine is warmed up. This cooks the eggs in your coolant. The coolant will obviously try to find it's way out of the hole where the leak is but the cooked eggs will have blocked that hole. Same deal with the pepper.

Just remember it's only a temp fix and should be fixed properly ASAP as you will probably have air locks in the cooling system after sustaining a leak which can cook the engine over time.

[Bulbous]

Teaspoon of mustard powder also works, but I've heard it lasts a bit longer than the egg. Didn't know about the pepper