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Stop Heater Valve Leak


MicroMachinery

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Well, as soon as I posted a thread asking how to fix this, I thought to myself, "Why not just try it on your own?"

 

Well, I did. And this is how I did it on my 71 510. (Excuse the blurriness of some of the pictures. Despite their quality, I feel they still provide good reference to anybody performing this rebuild)

 

First thing I did, was drain the coolant. Easy enough, we've all done this.

 

After that, remove the hose on the engine side of the firewall, and also loosen the clamp holding the hose attached to the heater valve on the inside of the car(The valve is located to the right of the emergency brake)

 

Next, I had to remove the heater valve from the car. The hardest part about this was freeing up the screws, as they probably haven't been touched since the 71 rolled out of the factory. A little persuasion, and they backed out. There were 4 screws in all; 3 holding the heater valve in place, and 1 holding a bracket in place(I recommend loosening this one as well, as it will ease the removal of the heater valve).

 

With all 4 screws loosened and the linkage removed, push the valve forward and twist to free it from the hose leading to the heater core. Since you loosened not just the 3 mounting screws, but also the 4th bracket screw, the bracket should slide back while the tube goes through the firewall. As soon as the heater core end pops out of the hose, you can now pull it back and remove it from the vehicle.

 

Here's what mine looked like:

Heatervalvewrite-up006.jpg

 

Ok, let's get down to business. The first step to disassembling this thing is to CAREFULLY pry up on the 4 tabs holding the plunger in place. I say carefully, because if you break these off, you're gonna have to figure out another way to hold the plunger in place. I used a flat blade screwdriver and twisted each tab up. Be extra careful not to knick the brass plunger shaft, as this is the part which does the sealing.

Heatervalvewrite-up005.jpg

 

Once you get the tabs bent upwards you can remove the plunger. Here's what it should look like. Note the inner E-Clip.

Heatervalvewrite-up002.jpg

 

There are two E-clips that hold the plunger together, an outer and an inner. You must remove the inner first. After you remove that one, you can slide the plunger up the shaft and remove the outer. Here's a picture of the inner removed and the plunger slid back, giving access to the outer E-clip.

Heatervalvewrite-up003.jpg

 

You can now fully disassemble the plunger shaft, and get to those nasty 40-year old seals. Here's what the plunger looks like completely disassembled.

Heatervalvewrite-up001.jpg

 

There are actually 2 seals. One is obvious, and one is concealed. The obvious one goes between the larger brass washer and the plastic outer piece. The hidden one is inside of the plastic outer piece. To get to this one, you must remove the small plastic "O". Again, be careful here, as you only get one chance to not break it. I used a dental pick and slowly worked it up and out. Here's a pic.

Heatervalvewrite-up004.jpg

 

Inside, you'll find a hardened seal that isn't doing anybody any good. Remove it! You can replace it with an O-Ring(Napa pt#007). It's a good idea to put some silicone grease to help lubricate and seal. Re-install the small plastic "O"(The plastic one, not the seal), and slide the piece back onto the shaft the way that it came off. Now you can put your newer, larger O-Ring(Napa pt#115; remember to lubricate this one as well!) between the plastic piece and the washer. After that, put the plunger back onto the shaft, and the outer E-Clip, followed by the Inner E-Clip. As soon as you have the plunger all back together, install it back onto the valve. Bend the tabs back down, making sure that the larger O-Ring has seated down into the valve.

 

If all the seals have seated up, you're ready for some non-leakin', 510-heatin' action! All for under a dollar($.66 was what it cost me).

 

Hope it helps, I KNOW these things are problematic. I have 3 of em, and they all leak(or leaked). Happy Wrenching!

Edited by MicroMachinery
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Great write up! Thanks. I did a simillar one on NWDE several years ago. Nice to see you've got the sizes listed.

 

I used nitrile o-rings out fo a HF kit and they're still working. My tabs broke, so I roughed up the area and JB welded the body back to the bracket...being carefull not to get any epoxy inside. Used a clamp to hold the two together until it hardened. I think I used a fine, brass wire wheel brush on the dremel to clean off the oxidization.

 

You've got the right attitude.....if it's already broke, you can't hurt it any more, so why not try it yourself!! :)

Edited by mklotz70
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  • 1 month later...

This is a helpful write up. I just rebuilt my heater valve using a 620 heater valve inards. What I did for replacement hoses as it seemed dealers don't carry no more was I got a hose from a 92- civic part # 79721-SR3-000. that hose has a close 90 degree bend for the passenger side and also used some of the remainder hose to do the bit of straight on the driver side for the valve. I used honda heater hose clamps as those are a clamp that is meant for heater hoses not like standard clamps as those can cut hoses. I also cleaned out the core inside and out and hardware and fan assembly. make sure to test the core to make sure it is not leaky also.

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  • 1 month later...

Just wanted to pop in and say I followed all of the directions and advice from this thread- heater valve rebuild (using new o-rings), the Honda civic hose, and the heater assembly rebuild on 510coop and everything works fantastic. Valve works great, no leaks, all is well. Dropped in a newer radiator and flushed everything out 3 times since I had the heater out anyway. Car runs a lot better now and I had no idea a 510 heater could work so well.

 

A suggestion, if you pull the heater assy out- make note of how it came out, because it is a PAIN to reinstall. I wouldn't want to do that again, but it was well worth the efforts to clean and repaint all the parts. Luckily I had an extra heater assembly so I rebuilt that before pulling the one in the car. Also, if you have the core out, flush it well- fill it up and plug the ends, shake, drain, repeat until clean. I had to do this several times.

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Just wanted to pop in and say I followed all of the directions and advice from this thread- heater valve rebuild (using new o-rings), the Honda civic hose, and the heater assembly rebuild on 510coop and everything works fantastic. Valve works great, no leaks, all is well. Dropped in a newer radiator and flushed everything out 3 times since I had the heater out anyway. Car runs a lot better now and I had no idea a 510 heater could work so well.

 

A suggestion, if you pull the heater assy out- make note of how it came out, because it is a PAIN to reinstall. I wouldn't want to do that again, but it was well worth the efforts to clean and repaint all the parts. Luckily I had an extra heater assembly so I rebuilt that before pulling the one in the car. Also, if you have the core out, flush it well- fill it up and plug the ends, shake, drain, repeat until clean. I had to do this several times.

that is good to hear. always nice to have heat and keep the windows clear. sucks that the valves are not available anymore but with a little elbow grease it is all good. the pain part is lying contorted to unhook everything to take out. car will run better as a leaking hose or core can introduce air into cooling system which can cause issues

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This is a helpful write up. I just rebuilt my heater valve using a 620 heater valve inards. What I did for replacement hoses as it seemed dealers don't carry no more was I got a hose from a 92- civic part # 79721-SR3-000. that hose has a close 90 degree bend for the passenger side and also used some of the remainder hose to do the bit of straight on the driver side for the valve. I used honda heater hose clamps as those are a clamp that is meant for heater hoses not like standard clamps as those can cut hoses. I also cleaned out the core inside and out and hardware and fan assembly. make sure to test the core to make sure it is not leaky also.

The thermostat bypass hose on a 455 cubic inch Buick V8, partnumber A70620 [either Gates rubber or Goodrich, can't remember] has the close radius bend you need, it's 3/4 nominal size. Part number A70646 goes from 3/4 to 1/2, so may be needed if one of the nipples is smaller, like the ones on my 411.

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  • 1 year later...

The 620's seems to be almost exactly if not EXACTLY the same. I took pictures (Will post later). Need to get o Rings and reassemble my Heater Core. Thanks!

 

EDIT: Gah cant find them on NAPA's site... if I take them in think they can match them?

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  • 2 weeks later...

Got them at ACE hardware just up the road from me. The numbers Micro posted are the same as industrial numbers so the numbers were the same and they are listed on box at store. i think it was about 78 cents total with tax.

 

Plus i took dissembled part to store to be safe ,but didn`t need to in the end.

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  • 5 months later...

Thank you for the write up.

 

I am in the process of doing this now with my B210 Heater Valve. For the Tabs it can initially be difficult to get a flat bladed screwdriver in under the Tabs, if so use a pair of angled tweezers to clear enough room for the screwdriver to fit. Make sure they are good steel tweezers though.

----

Had the switch pressure tested and it is sealed up fine.

 

Thanks again, the $35.00 saved is paying for the heater core repair.

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  • 9 months later...
  • 1 year later...

Well, as soon as I posted a thread asking how to fix this, I thought to myself, "Why not just try it on your own?"

 

Well, I did. And this is how I did it on my 71 510. (Excuse the blurriness of some of the pictures. Despite their quality, I feel they still provide good reference to anybody performing this rebuild)

 

First thing I did, was drain the coolant. Easy enough, we've all done this.

 

After that, remove the hose on the engine side of the firewall, and also loosen the clamp holding the hose attached to the heater valve on the inside of the car(The valve is located to the right of the emergency brake)

 

Next, I had to remove the heater valve from the car. The hardest part about this was freeing up the screws, as they probably haven't been touched since the 71 rolled out of the factory. A little persuasion, and they backed out. There were 4 screws in all; 3 holding the heater valve in place, and 1 holding a bracket in place(I recommend loosening this one as well, as it will ease the removal of the heater valve).

 

With all 4 screws loosened and the linkage removed, push the valve forward and twist to free it from the hose leading to the heater core. Since you loosened not just the 3 mounting screws, but also the 4th bracket screw, the bracket should slide back while the tube goes through the firewall. As soon as the heater core end pops out of the hose, you can now pull it back and remove it from the vehicle.

 

Here's what mine looked like:

Heatervalvewrite-up006.jpg

 

Ok, let's get down to business. The first step to disassembling this thing is to CAREFULLY pry up on the 4 tabs holding the plunger in place. I say carefully, because if you break these off, you're gonna have to figure out another way to hold the plunger in place. I used a flat blade screwdriver and twisted each tab up. Be extra careful not to knick the brass plunger shaft, as this is the part which does the sealing.

Heatervalvewrite-up005.jpg

 

Once you get the tabs bent upwards you can remove the plunger. Here's what it should look like. Note the inner E-Clip.

Heatervalvewrite-up002.jpg

 

There are two E-clips that hold the plunger together, an outer and an inner. You must remove the inner first. After you remove that one, you can slide the plunger up the shaft and remove the outer. Here's a picture of the inner removed and the plunger slid back, giving access to the outer E-clip.

Heatervalvewrite-up003.jpg

 

You can now fully disassemble the plunger shaft, and get to those nasty 40-year old seals. Here's what the plunger looks like completely disassembled.

Heatervalvewrite-up001.jpg

 

There are actually 2 seals. One is obvious, and one is concealed. The obvious one goes between the larger brass washer and the plastic outer piece. The hidden one is inside of the plastic outer piece. To get to this one, you must remove the small plastic "O". Again, be careful here, as you only get one chance to not break it. I used a dental pick and slowly worked it up and out. Here's a pic.

Heatervalvewrite-up004.jpg

 

Inside, you'll find a hardened seal that isn't doing anybody any good. Remove it! You can replace it with an O-Ring(Napa pt#007). It's a good idea to put some silicone grease to help lubricate and seal. Re-install the small plastic "O"(The plastic one, not the seal), and slide the piece back onto the shaft the way that it came off. Now you can put your newer, larger O-Ring(Napa pt#115; remember to lubricate this one as well!) between the plastic piece and the washer. After that, put the plunger back onto the shaft, and the outer E-Clip, followed by the Inner E-Clip. As soon as you have the plunger all back together, install it back onto the valve. Bend the tabs back down, making sure that the larger O-Ring has seated down into the valve.

 

If all the seals have seated up, you're ready for some non-leakin', 510-heatin' action! All for under a dollar($.66 was what it cost me).

 

Hope it helps, I KNOW these things are problematic. I have 3 of em, and they all leak(or leaked). Happy Wrenching!

Great write up and worth the try for anyone with a leaking valve.

 

Like one poster already said what can happen it's already broke.

 

 

  And I ran a similar setup to the poster that used a faucet from the hardware store. It can be done on a 620 up out of the way and works fine you just have to manually adjust the flow of hot antifreeze thru the core a few times a year. I'm glad I found one at the juck yard to rebuild years ago. This is worth a bump.

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