Rtv sealant on gaskets?

BigTone

Member
Do you guys use rtv sealant on manifold, oil pan and valve cover gaskets? If so what color? I normally use it on anything concerning water but haven't on anything else. This tractor has it in the manifold, and valve cover... what do you guys think? I was thinking off doing them all..
 
RTV can easily be over used. Where original gaskets are not available or tough to make a skim of Blue is good. Permatex (or other) non-hardening #2 is a better solution on most gaskets except head gaskets. Using too much of any sealant squeezes out and gets into lubricants coolants and fuels. Jim
 
One things like the oil pan gasket I like to use Silicone gasket marker but I use a light coat to hold the gasket in place and let it dry for 10 minutes or so then a light coat on the gasket it self so as to seal real good. On the valve cover I use a light coat to hold it in place and let ti dry like I do the oil pan gasket but no light coat on the gasket before putting it on because one should take the valve cover back off after warming the engine up to re-torque the head blots.

But on the BA I built I used silicone gasket marker in place of a few gaskets and or made my own gaskets from cereal boxes since I was doing it as old school as I could and doing it like it was say the 30 or 40 when farmers had to get by because parts where hard to come by. I even reused the head gasket
 
I'm a fan of the grey RTV for oil side applications. Its used in GM engines like the L850/2.4L engine that goes in Malibus and Equinoxes and the like, for the bedplate that captures the lower main bearing shells and the oil pan.

As always, use new gaskets which have never touched oil, use brake cleaner on the metal surfaces with the test that a white paper towel stays white. I prefer to spread it to a thin layer with my fingers rather than squeezing out a 1/4" bead, both sides of the gasket, as too much over-mold can bead up, extrude into the engine as the clamp load tightens up and get into the oil side of the engine where it can do something potentially disastrous like plug a drilled gallery.
 
I installed a new water pump in the truck this Spring and it leaked. Looked in there to see where it was leaking at - all over! So took it off and lightly coated using red RTV, put together and tightened bolts. Let it sit for 24 hours. Went out next day and still leaked in one place. Torqued one bolt a hair more - problem solved.

That taught me to use better quality gaskets from now on!
 
It's hard to find, but I use HYLOMAR general purpose Blue gasket dressing. Look up their website. Companies like Rolls Royse, Boeing, Pratt & Whitney use it, as well as most Winston Cup and Formula 1 teams. Just wipe a thin coating onto gaskets, paper, composite, rubber, etc. I refuse to use cork gaskets, but HYLOMAR would make them leak-free a little while longer. I can't believe anyone thought the fragile decaying shredded bark of a tree would be a good gasket material!

I do use a thin later of blue, or gray, or red hi-temp RTV on the copper or aluminum sealing washers on the oil drain plus of my cars, trucks, tractors. I didn't do it once on my 7.3 PSD and it leaked a couple drops of oil every time I shut it off.
 
NO the only sealant i use is copper coat on a head gskt and you will NEVER see me us any guppy gooo on any part of a tractor . Guppy gooo is good for putting differential covers and rear end in trucks or cars . Did they use that junk when they put the piece together at the factory when NEW .
 
I don't use RTV on anything. I'll use spray on Hi-Tack on gaskets, bit never RTV. I know a lot of applications use it solely instead of a gasket, and that's OK, but that's why it was designed that way. I've seen many engines wadded up or almost toast from having the oil sump plugged full of RTV after the previous owner decided to change an oil pan, sidecover, or valve cover gasket and coat it with way too much RTV. The last DT358 I bought for parts had all spun bearings and a rod punched through the side after the oil sump plugged with red RTV.
 
Aluminum spray paint is better on head gaskets. Was discussed on the RPM forum years ago and more former dealer mechanics had better results with aluminum paint than any other sealer, or Guppy Goop, whatever the heck that is.

FORD hasn't used gaskets on rear axle covers for 30+ years. The 8.8" axle in my '87 F-150 just had Fords Gray sealant, no gasket, similar to Right Stuff. Also my '96 F-250'S 10-1/4" rear axle, no gasket, only a thin ribbon of robot applied sealant. Both trucks ordered out special, I did 100% of ALL maintenance, no chance a lazy dealer tech worked on either one.

Gaskets are available but hard to find. Dealer won't have them, but if I can find one I use a gasket with Hylomar.
 
stopped use the aluim. paint back in the mid 60's Yes i know they use the guppy goo on transmission and rear ends . I have done my fair share of automotive transmission and rear end rebuilds . what i really hate is when someone bring ya a job AFTER they worked on it and all of a sudden they have a problem and don't know why or where to look and you see Dr. Blue or Dr. Black ooooooozzzzzing out everywhere and on engines they bring it to you because it lost oil pressure and they don't know why and you drop the pan and you have a fist size glob packed in to the pick up screen and now all the bearings are toast and i mean ALL or you find it in the Hyd system . and like i said on the OLDER STUFF the only place you found any sealer was a little dab on the intake gskts in the corners on a F E block ford and when they used cork they would glue it on one side . I ran into a 1066 a couple Olivers that somebody used gskt cement on BOTh sideand on the 1066 in order to split it i had to drive gslt scrappers in between the range and speed trans. , that tractor could have went to the field with out any bolts holding it together . Then the real fun began trying to get the old gskt. off . Just not a fan of the RTV sealant . when i first started out wrenchen other then engine gskts we made all the rest on site , My company truck had four four foot wide rolls of gskt material One roll was cork , the rest were paper of different thickness , back then we carried all the Permatex sealants .
 
also the use of Aluim. paint was and OLD trick on steel shim and Copper head gskt. last time i put a steel shim head gskt in was on a B block Mo Par and that was EON's ago . I ran the steel on my F E ford EON's ago and used copper coat on it and with a 13.5 to 1 i had no problems with head gskt.
 
I do not use RTV unless it is in the corner where two surfaces meet up, I use indian head sealer one one side of gasket and one surface to glue it on.
 
Right Stuff! Like IHTimmy says most oems use it on about everything now, but NOT head gasket. Works very good you dont have to wait for it to set up, very small bead and torque it down your done. Any parts store will have it. I buy the tubes that go in a caulk gun.
 

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