That day my van's radiator hose blew 40 miles from home

I was out near Lancaster last Saturday running supplies when the hose let go and steam went everywhere. Duct taped the split tight enough to get me to the next town where a buddy had a proper clamp. Has anyone else used duct tape as a true emergency fix on a cooling system without cooking the engine?

3 comments

3 Comments

cole_flores4417d ago

Duct tape on a radiator hose is a gamble. You got lucky, but that tape will fail fast under pressure and heat. The real question is if the engine got hot enough to warp the head or blow a gasket. Next time carry a roll of proper rescue tape or at least a few feet of heater hose and a clamp. Duct tape works in a pinch but it's a ticking bomb on a cooling system.

john_fisher16d ago

Buddy of mine did that once, blew steam all over the interstate.

aaron_mitchell16d ago

You ever try that silicone self-fusing tape? I had a similar situation on my old truck, split hose on the way to a job site. Slapped a few layers of that stuff on there, let it bond for a minute, and it held for the whole trip thankfully. Not saying it's a permanent fix but it bought me enough time to get to the parts store without overheating again. The key is making sure the surface is clean and dry before you wrap it, otherwise it just slides right off.