I've used a Gano radiator filter for several years now with great
results. After about three years of Gano filter use, the Tiger radiator
sprung a leak so I took it out and to a repair shop. They verified Ganos
really do work as they said the radiator was perfectly clean and flowed
100%. The filters catch all the junk that would otherwise wedge in the
bottom of the radiator. Anyway, the shop repaired the leak, but after I
re-installed it, it sprung another leak a day later. The shop had warned
me this might happen as they said the radiator must be close to 15-20
years old and has too much corrosion to reliably repair. As a stop gap
until I can afford a new heavy duty cooling system, I tried a couple
cans of Bars Leak stop leak. It helped a bit (stopped the gusher to a
very slow drip) but didn't completely solve the problem. A few days
later I noticed the car really starting to run too hot. I checked the
Gano filter, and sure enough, the stop leak had almost completely
clogged the filter wire mesh. I cleaned it and the car again ran cool. A
week later the same thing happened. I took the filter out again last
Saturday and, sure enough, it was pretty well clogged again with the
stop leak. Since this is a short term fix, I kept the filter out and
re-filled the system. Sure enough, the Bars Leak almost immediately
completely stopped the leak, and on a good drive today in about 90
degree weather, the water temp never got over 190, usually hovering
between 170-180, and the radiator is leak free.
I'll re-use the Gano when I get my new radiator, but the moral is don't
use stop leak while you're using one as the filter defeats the purpose.
Steve Sage
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