heater valve

[Logan]

My heater valve does not work, it is always open.  Rudy said he could sell me one, but that I could fix it myself with parts from NAPA.  When I took it out, it appears that rotating the switch on the outside, does not close the valve, but I can manually close it by pressing the inner spring-loaded switch up.  I'm not sure what the problem is or what parts NAPA would supply, but when I went there today, they only came up with what looks like one gasket, I really don't know where it would go or how to replace it.  It also seems like I need more parts to make mine work correctly.  Has anyone rebuilt one of these and knows the NAPA rebuild number, and how to go about rebuilding it?  It's a 53K if that makes a difference.

[joefrazer]

The only part that leaks on the 51-5 valve is the seat...thats the part they showed you...and rebuilding them is not easy. I would just live with manually pushing the valve closed and look for a replacement unit. If you find a good used one, put it in a bucket of warm water for an hour or so before installing to allow the seal to swell. This will prevent leaks later on.

[Logan]

It's not leaking (as far as I know), it just won't go closed--always stays in the open position.  Maybe I will end up paying for the one from Rudy.

[mbflemingkf]

Lance Walker in NC rebuilt mine for $65 I believe.  I found his name & address on Kaiser Bill's web site.  I rebuilt one many years ago and agree with joefrazer...its a lot of time consuming and risky work.  The last thing you want is anti-freeze pouring inside your passenger side floorboard.  Been there...done that!!!

[Logan]

Okay, so I think I've pretty much decided not to rebuild my own.  Thanks for the tips.

[ben-tex]

We had a tech tip article on the repair in the Quarterly some years ago. My valve on my 54 I had at the time was shot and so I got Tom to repair it with one of the kits so he could write up an article. He said it was not very difficult just required careful attention to the tabs which have to be bent to get the valve apart. At the time the kit was less than $10 and the valve was still working when I sold the car years later.

[Logan]

It's not leaking though, so the $10 kit would do me no good--that's only a diaphragm kit.  My problem is that the shaft will not raise the diaphragm in the tube to block the water when the cam is turned.  I spoke with Jim Tucker http://www.heatercontrolvalve.com/ this morning and he explained that the gas-filled thermal plate that causes the shaft to rise  is leaking.  He can repair it, but a NOS one from Rudy Philips was actually cheaper.

[HJ-ETEX]

You want to repair your existing heater valve if you can because while the valves on other cars of that era look the same (because they were made by the same manufacturer), you will find they don't really interchange and sometimes the differences are subtle enough that when you are at a swap meet you need your valve with you to compare.

[Logan]

I'll definitely keep my old valve for future reference, and in case I ever need to get it rebuilt.  In fact I keep all of my old parts I take off, even hooks and clips--all for reference or future use.

[jmxkf1]

There is a valve for AMC cars which will mount on the outside of the firewall, eliminating potential leakage damage possibility, and works with Kaiser.   I bought one but haven't installed it yet.   I know it works well because others in the El Dorado region have them on their cars.   Call Bob Meehan in Redding and he should be able to send you pictures of his '54 firewall so you can see how the valve mounts.  I don't know his email address.   If you want contact info for the AMC valve let me know.    Jim

[Logan]

Thanks, I have one coming from Rudy Philips, which should work, but thanks for the info--useful information.