Just an update. I finally found the Permatex epoxy and it does stick the the HDPE, thanks to merril for the tip. The problem is that the leak is from a seam in a spot that is very hard to get to (bottom of the molded mounting rail). It looks like it will have to be sealed from the inside. Since the leaking spot is invisible to the eye, I am considering sealing with roofing tar, silicone or maybe radiator stop leak. Any preferences?
Thanks
I wouldn't use anything that could get back into the system. Especially stop-leak. Who knows what the other stuff would do.
Just take the tank out, fill with water and some food coloring, find the spot. If you have to drill it out a bit, do so, then fill the area with epoxy.
Epoxy does *not* bond to polyethylene. Permatex does not claim it does:
Look into 3M DP-8005:
On the back of the package it says it may not bond to this plastic but it seems that in practice it works well; I tried to scrape it off and could not and it has stopped the leak (put it on the inside last night). Another member of the group has also used it and it worked for him too.
If the Permatex stuff ends up falling off, I'll buy the other stuff although it costs nearly 4x as much. Also, wiper fluid is not a critical application anyway. The 3M product is made specifically for the job and I probably would have gone that way initially had I known. Thanks.
"May not bond"? Puh-leeze. What crooks. Like that aisle of junk they sell you to pour into your radiator/crankcase/transmission/fuel/etc to fix whatever serious problem is wrong. For a few bucks there are enough suckers who just wanna believe.
You might have a mechanical lock with the epoxy that might hold up for a while instead of a glued bond. Kind of like locking in a dental filling, even though amalgam doesn't stick to tooth. Or maybe you don't have polyethylene after all.
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