Did Bars leaks plug up a cracked Castech cylinder head

[mattt]

Anyone used Bars leaks to plug up a cracked Castech cylinder head? Just wondering if it really only works on leaking head gaskets, or if it has any success in dealing with a cracked Castech cylinder head. I know it is only a temp solution.

 

[Big Mama]

The problem with bars leak is it’s not selective it goes into any opening not sure if it fixes a cracked head. Those heads are plentiful new or used.

 

[mattt]

Yes I know it is less than ideal as it plugs anything and everything. I'm just interested in hearing if it could successfully deal with a crack this is going to be regularly expanding and contracting with heat. I used it last month in buying some time until I can tear down my 5.3 and fix the losing coolant problem correctly. Since I dumped it in, the coolant loss problem has gone to zero. I find it hard to believe that Bars Leaks could take care of a cracked head, but I do see it being able to deal with a leaking head gasket.

Since this is my daily driver, I can't tear into it until I have things in place for a quick repair. Knowing whether I have cracked heads or just a leaking head gasket is pivotal. Replacing heads or refreshing my existing heads and replacing head gaskets is not an inexpensive job when done right.

 

[Scottydoggs]

i would try blue devil. ive used it, theres no tar, clear liquid. it will stop working if you flush the coolant back out. learned that when i drained the system to do other work, refilled with coolant, started to eat it again. smh

my old engine in my regal, it used to eat like 2 cups of coolant a day, no leaks. so i knew it was eating it some how. had hi miles didnt really care and tried it out. it stopped eating coolant immediately. id say its worth the money.

got mine off advance auto on line, used a discount code to get a few bucks off. iirc you're gonna need the large bottle for a v8. picked up local 30 minutes later.

 

[Big Mama]

I guess if the crack is as small as the gap in a head gasket I don’t see why not I’ve never used the above mentioned product it sounds like it thickens the coolant enough so it’s too thick for the crack either way anything you can remove later is a plus

 

[Scottydoggs]

I guess if the crack is as small as the gap in a head gasket I don’t see why not I’ve never used the above mentioned product it sounds like it thickens the coolant enough so it’s too thick for the crack either way anything you can remove later is a plus

its thin liquid, and coolant stays the same as always.

i think i had a cracked block maybe, my heads and gaskets looked ok after i blew that engine up, i tore it down some. hoping to find a bad head gasket or head. found nothing. but the chipped piston i already knew happened lol

bout 220 he starts to pour it in.

 

[Tonyrodz]

its thin liquid, and coolant stays the same as always.

i think i had a cracked block maybe, my heads and gaskets looked ok after i blew that engine up, i tore it down some. hoping to find a bad head gasket or head. found nothing. but the chipped piston i already knew happened lol

bout 220 he starts to pour it in.

Blue Devil is great stuff, but a little expensive.

 

[drakon543]

regular over the counter black pepper works wonders too lol. had a lumina euro sport 3.1 with well over 200k and i let a girl i was dating drive it around. she overheated it like 3 times in a week. the first time i asked her to stop driving it until i got a chance to look at it. plumes of white smoke and it was barely running. 1 dose of black pepper a month and i corrected the original problem she kept driving that car every day for like 5 months.

 

[mattt]

I'm sure Blue Devil is the sheet, but I'm looking to see if anyone used Bars Leaks and it plugged a cracked cylinder head? I find it hard to imagine that it could. I'm actually shocked that it worked in my Tahoe. Makes me think I am just dealing with a degraded head gasket that was leaking, and not the cracked head I was expecting. YMMV....

 

[LanceLyons]

I am fixing to give Bars Stop Leak a try on a 4.8 liter 2001 tahoe with castech heads. We are having a leak of coolant but cant find where its at.. nothing on the ground.

will let you know.