[urq] Any good parts to have 'on hand'for quick fix to heater hosefailures? WX

[Buchholz, Steven]

I became paranoid on this myself when I had the plastic heater valve on
my '78 Fox explode on me one evening ... ever try closing off *three*
heater lines?  I ended up getting one of those thin stamped aluminum
caps from a 'murkin car A/C system to seal for the third line!

My emergency repair kit comes from a Prestone "Flush-n-Fill" kit.  The
kit includes several different sized in line fittings that are supposed
to allow you to attach a garden hose for flushing the system ... don't
think I've ever actually used one for this, but the kits are very cheap.
Rather than capping the "stumps" you just plug a fitting between the two
ends ... I figure it doesn't matter that much if the hose is arranged in
a way to restrict flow ... 

My emergency kit also includes a selection of different sized hose
clamps ... it is amazing how many different ways these can be used ... I
used one to work around a problem with a broken throttle cable one night
... 

Steve B
San Jose, CA (USA)
> 
> I'd like to have some kind of rubber end caps ready incase any of my
heater
> hoses go (WX) when I'm a few hundred miles from home.  FIrst there is
the one
> elbow that goes from the metal pipe to the heater control valve which
the
> dealer says is NLA.  I have the 2 new hoses to and from the heater but
that
> looks like a 10hour job which I'll never do.  Bottom line - I could
have 22
> year old hoses here.
> 
> Did anyone buy some rubber end caps or plugs that might fit in the
short
> rubber hose that comes out of the thermostat housing?  Maybe a
similiar plug
> or pipe clamping device for the other end(rear of block).  You
southern US
> folks don't need heaters - anyone abandon their in  a elegent way?