25 replies to this topic

[olly33]

I have the unusual shape washer bottle in my engine bay that fits next to the servo.
The problem I have is water leaking from the back of the bottle, where it slides onto the body bracket.Can anybody recommend a fix,without possibly replacing it altogether?
I have tried to melt a cable tie into the split,which has helped but not completely.

[Doodling]

I've fixed them in the past but have melted a milk bottle, There thicker plastic. Its just a case of holding it at the right hight.

[dklawson]

I am not familiar with the water bottle you are describing so please take my suggestion with a grain of salt.

 

All the plastic water bottles I am familiar with are polyethylene while cable ties are typically nylon.  You could try melting a bit of polyethylene into the crack using a soldering iron instead of using a cable tie.  Over here polyethylene is commonly used for things like detergent bottles, milk jugs, etc.  

 

Another possibility (if this water bottle uses a hose connection via the filler/top) is to remove the bottle and fully clean and dry it inside.  Once the bottle is bone dry you could spray several layers of liquid vinyl onto the inside to form a bladder inside the bottle.  It won't last forever as nothing sticks well to polyethylene, but it will work for a while and the bladder would prevent water from getting out of the crack.

 

However, the best solution I can imagine is getting a used bottle from a scrap yard.

[ShaunaFTW]

Someone in work told me a few weeks back you can get a silicone that seals even in water, I'm not sure if it's true or what it's called though . Apparently they used it to block up a crack in a cold water plastic cistern in an attic so would be similar to fixing a washer bottle!

[tiger99]

Your idea was sound (not much different to welding a body shell, except plastic instead of metal), but the cable tie was probably the wrong kind of plastic, and they did not fuse together properly.

 

If the bottle is rare or valuable, I would suggest trying some of the people who repair plastic bumpers etc. Try googling for one in your locality. They will be able to tell what type of plastic it is, and weld accordingly. One thing I do know about the process is that for welding they use hot nitrogen gas, to avoid oxidation, so if you wanted to replicate the process crudely at home, you would pass the nitrogen through a length of tube, kept at red heat by a blowtorch. Maybe wind a tight coil of small bore steel tube and mount it in front of your gas blowlamp, with a thin flexible tube feeding the gas in, and the other end directing it to where the heat is wanted. You can buy things like that of course, but hardly worth thinking about for a one-off. Argon would be just as useful as nitrogen. Or, the other way it is done is with what is an electric soldering iron, more or less, but the tip temperature and material are different. I don't have too many details.

 

If it is not particularly rare or valuable, throw it away and get a new or good used one, because wasting time and money on things that can be replaced easily is fairly pointless.

 

But try googling for "plastic welding". Something there may inspire you to successfully fix it.

 

But please do let us know how you get on, especially if you manage to repair it successfully.

[Gremlin]

Olly I don't suppose you bought that washer bottle off eBay a while ago for about £11?

[Tamworthbay]

Another option if its not a rare item is epoxy resin/ glue. Just clean well then rough up with 150 grit or similar. Then use the epoxy (araldite will do if you have,nothing else). You can also use thin tissue to help bridge the crack and work the epoxy into that.

[dklawson]

I am trying to picture this evening... it must be the post-dinner, check the board time of day.  6 posts in less than 5 minutes!

[Tamworthbay]

I am trying to picture this evening... it must be the post-dinner, check the board time of day.  6 posts in less than 5 minutes!

you are keeping the worlds minis running. Keep up the good work!

[olly33]

Cheers all, I just used cable tie as I thought it would be the best thing I had lying about. Did not think of the different plastics, will give a milk bottle a try!

Gremlin, no bud, and just missed another I could of picked up off the bay cheap.

[tb205gti]

I have the same issue on mine, the previous owner tried using silicone sealant - but it doesn't work.

 

I just make sure the washer fluid sits lower than the crack ;) It' not a daily driver anyways.

[Wise Old Elf]

http://www.ebay.co.u...=item233775b6b4

 

 

New one on Ebay (not mine).

[olly33]

Its this washer bottle!

[alex-95]

you could try ct1, sticks very well, and under water too. http://www.ebay.co.u...=item4ad21e1f74

[petey81]

I repaired mine as was leaking at the bracket. Used heat and some plastic to mold it.

Edited by petey81, 16 March 2014 - 07:22 PM.