Should water pump be replaced if gasket is leaking?

[JamesLond]

I thought the pump was leaking from the weep hole, but after closer inspection, there's coolant seeping out at the bottom where it mates to the engine. I don't know the history of this pump nor if it's OEM.

 

[mattbta]

Well, you've got to take the pump off to change the gaskets and it's a wear item with reasonable cost. Makes sense to replace, as long as whatever is on there is properly torqued and still leaking.

 

[Joseph Garcia]

I have a very slight leakage in the same spot. I'm just monitoring it at this point, and I will change out the entire assembly, if the leak gets worse.

 

[JamesLond]

I have a very slight leakage in the same spot. I'm just monitoring it at this point, and I will change out the entire assembly, if the leak gets worse.

How many miles you got?

 

[swathdiver]

If yours were mind I'd change it out and keep the old as a spare or to give away to someone in need.

 

[rockola1971]

For me....If im taking it off and its got some years on it then Im replacing so I dont have to mess with it again for another 10 years+ or never. They are cheap enough.

 

[SnowDrifter]

I mean, ideally yes.

But these things are so damn easy to do... You could honestly get away with just a gasket swap. Takes longer waiting for the thing to warm up to check the t-stat than it does to actually do the job.

Get the good rubber-impregnated-metal ones from fel-pro. Prep the surfaces well, dab of o-ring grease on install, and torque to first 11ftlbs, then 22ftlbs. Don't use RTV. The only exception to that is if the surfaces are super pitted, in which case, you'd use paper gaskets with a very thin coat of RTV. But again... only IF needed.

 

[MassHoe04]

Another vote for Fel-Pro. They are my first choice for any gasket replacement. I followed their instructions verbatim, cleaning both surfaces extra good and suing the Fel-Pro gasket dry with nothing added. I did a Fel-Pro gasket on the water pump, valve covers and timing cover for my 05 Jeep. Bare gaskets. Perfect seals!

I didn't do o-ring or silicone-based grease as @SnowDrifter does, but I am willing to bet he has more experience than I do. Since it is silicone-based, it would not harm the silicone seal on the gasket, so that sounds OK to me. Does it keep the seal from cracking or drying out?

 

[Blackcar]

If I read this right, it is seeping which before replacing in my own vehicles would try powder stop leak tablets first and put them in and run it for a long time (when I was going to run errands to circulate well) and if it didn't stop seeping change out pump. Also, you might want to check or replace pressure cap on tank.

 

[SnowDrifter]

Another vote for Fel-Pro. They are my first choice for any gasket replacement. I followed their instructions verbatim, cleaning both surfaces extra good and suing the Fel-Pro gasket dry with nothing added. I did a Fel-Pro gasket on the water pump, valve covers and timing cover for my 05 Jeep. Bare gaskets. Perfect seals!

I didn't do o-ring or silicone-based grease as @SnowDrifter does, but I am willing to bet he has more experience than I do. Since it is silicone-based, it would not harm the silicone seal on the gasket, so that sounds OK to me. Does it keep the seal from cracking or drying out?

automotive gaskets are typically made from nitrile, fwiw.

Not trying to be pedantic when I say that. You can find the odd silicone based gasket if you look hard, or silicone radiator hose kits. The significance being: you wouldn't want to use a silicone grease on a silicone item. Remember our... early education when they were warning us not to use silicone under certain situations under the covers? Same gig here. BUT, nitrile is compatible with silicone oils/greases.


I use it because I've found it lessens the likelihood of a gasket tearing on install. Lets it move and shift around and settle in. Not really important on a water pump. But some gaskets really need to be able to shift and move around on install and you can crease them if you're not careful. Does nothing for gasket life though. It's just a habit I've picked up. Ensure stress load is in Z direction for the gasket, not X,Y.

Put a dab of silicone on it, wipe it off. If it feels greasy, wipe it again. It truly does NOT take much. It's there to help it slide and settle into place, not gunk things up or act as a sealing agent.

Stricly speaking, you could use some antifreeze concentrate (slipprier than 50/50) and get the same result. But I just hate getting glycol on my hands.

 

[SnowDrifter]

If I read this right, it is seeping which before replacing in my own vehicles would try powder stop leak tablets first and put them in and run it for a long time (when I was going to run errands to circulate well) and if it didn't stop seeping change out pump. Also, you might want to check or replace pressure cap on tank.

nawwwww man

why put schmoo in your system? The pump-to-block gaskets are 9 bucks on amazon, a gallon of premix coolant runs $15 (or concentrate plus 99 cents of distilled water and you have 2 gallons for the same price) and it's a 15 minute job. The risk/reward here for dumping a clogging agent in your cooling system does NOT exist.

Fix it right. Not worth coming back weeks/months/a year down the road wondering why your rig overheats because the heater core / radiator / thermostat is clogged. Oh and that stuff is abrasive to water pump seals.

 

[MassHoe04]

automotive gaskets are typically made from nitrile, fwiw.

Not trying to be pedantic when I say that. You can find the odd silicone based gasket if you look hard, or silicone radiator hose kits. The significance being: you wouldn't want to use a silicone grease on a silicone item. Remember our... early education when they were warning us not to use silicone under certain situations under the covers? Same gig here. BUT, nitrile is compatible with silicone oils/greases.


I use it because I've found it lessens the likelihood of a gasket tearing on install. Lets it move and shift around and settle in. Not really important on a water pump. But some gaskets really need to be able to shift and move around on install and you can crease them if you're not careful. Does nothing for gasket life though. It's just a habit I've picked up. Ensure stress load is in Z direction for the gasket, not X,Y.

Put a dab of silicone on it, wipe it off. If it feels greasy, wipe it again. It truly does NOT take much. It's there to help it slide and settle into place, not gunk things up or act as a sealing agent.

Stricly speaking, you could use some antifreeze concentrate (slipprier than 50/50) and get the same result. But I just hate getting glycol on my hands.

Thanks for the explanation and reasoning behind doing it that way @SnowDrifter .

Agreed. Probably not an issue on a water pump, with the gasket being fairly small and having a good number of bolts to line things up real good. Not likely to be any real movement of the gasket during assembly. Oil pan might be a different story. I get it... Just part of your SOP routines at this point.

 

[SnowDrifter]

I get it... Just part of your SOP routines at this point.

Yup exactly

Depending on what I take apart:

Every gasket or spinning bit gets a torque wrench. Actually most things see a torque wrench. Just one of those 'things' I developed a habit of long ago.

Every gasket surface gets a touch of o-ring grease

Every static item gets a dab of anti-seize

Every moving bit (ball joint, caliper slide, etc) gets some grease

And any grimy looking thread gets the 'ol tap and die treatment so torque specs are actually accurate

And the only place RTV lives on my rig is on the 4 corners under the engine where the oil pan meets the block + front/rear cover. And one spot on the front diff where spec is gasket maker. Anywhere else is just surface prep.



My system may not be the best or the easiest. But it's consistent. I don't have any frozen bolts or weird half-assed stuff on my rig. If I thread in a bolt, I know that it's tight because it's clamping, not because it's bound up. If I need to take apart something, I know it'll come off. If I have a leak, I know it's because of a gasket failure and not because some RTV between the gasket and mating surface failed. And I couldn't tell you the last time I picked up a gasket scraper - because no work I do actually needs it down the road. Rig might have 170k on it, but working on it feels factory-fresh. Little work now saves a lot of work later.

 

[Joseph Garcia]

How many miles you got?

147,000

 

[dougo]

Yup exactly

Depending on what I take apart:

Every gasket or spinning bit gets a torque wrench. Actually most things see a torque wrench. Just one of those 'things' I developed a habit of long ago.

Every gasket surface gets a touch of o-ring grease

Every static item gets a dab of anti-seize

Every moving bit (ball joint, caliper slide, etc) gets some grease

And any grimy looking thread gets the 'ol tap and die treatment so torque specs are actually accurate

And the only place RTV lives on my rig is on the 4 corners under the engine where the oil pan meets the block + front/rear cover. And one spot on the front diff where spec is gasket maker. Anywhere else is just surface prep.



My system may not be the best or the easiest. But it's consistent. I don't have any frozen bolts or weird half-assed stuff on my rig. If I thread in a bolt, I know that it's tight because it's clamping, not because it's bound up. If I need to take apart something, I know it'll come off. If I have a leak, I know it's because of a gasket failure and not because some RTV between the gasket and mating surface failed. And I couldn't tell you the last time I picked up a gasket scraper - because no work I do actually needs it down the road. Rig might have 170k on it, but working on it feels factory-fresh. Little work now saves a lot of work later.

Great advice do you have more wisdom to share ?

 

[JamesLond]

The old gaskets were definitely bad as the rubber was torn and not even attached on both of them.

Wanted to report that the pump is leaking after gasket replacement, but there's more to it.

To diagnose the leak this time, I removed the serp belt, belt tensioner, and cooling fan (probably not necessary, but the pump has to go anyways). With all this out of the way, I could clearly see coolant dribbling out the weep hole, running down the pump vane, dripping to the back of the crankshaft pulley, and then pooling on the block face and then dripping to the ground.

It's nuts but with the tensioner on, the dribble from the weep hole wasn't really visible at all. I actually still think it was leaking from the gaskets, but with the new ones in, the leak was more concentrated to the weep hole.

Regardless I'd say it's worthwhile to change the gaskets but be 100% sure it's not the weep hole.

 

[SnowDrifter]

The old gaskets were definitely bad as the rubber was torn and not even attached on both of them.

Wanted to report that the pump is leaking after gasket replacement, but there's more to it.

To diagnose the leak this time, I removed the serp belt, belt tensioner, and cooling fan (probably not necessary, but the pump has to go anyways). With all this out of the way, I could clearly see coolant dribbling out the weep hole, running down the pump vane, dripping to the back of the crankshaft pulley, and then pooling on the block face and then dripping to the ground.

It's nuts but with the tensioner on, the dribble from the weep hole wasn't really visible at all. I actually still think it was leaking from the gaskets, but with the new ones in, the leak was more concentrated to the weep hole.

Regardless I'd say it's worthwhile to change the gaskets but be 100% sure it's not the weep hole.

Bummer! Glad to hear it's all resolved though