Freeze Plug on Perkins

[JTHAW]

Going to replace freeze plug in the middle of my block, on my 20 yr old M30 3 cylinder perama perkins....I can just get to it after removing cable linkages...it's seeping just slightly...
Just going to punch 1 side and pull on the opposite lip to pull off....or...drill a hole and yank out...anything else I should know?, any little tricks? Going to Napa to get a replacement and use Loctite on the new one...simply punch new one in with an appropriate socket...
am I missing anything? Informed replies appreciated...

[Emmalina]

I have a 35yr old perkins and the core plugs or freeze plugs as you call them are fine. Unless you have them badly coroded i.e. leaking or the block has frozen and pushed them out already I am curious to know why you want to change them/it ?

[paulajayne]

Originally Posted by Emmalina

I have a 35yr old perkins and the core plugs or freeze plugs as you call them are fine. Unless you have them badly coroded i.e. leaking or the block has frozen and pushed them out already I am curious to know why you want to change them/it ?

From the first post "it's seeping just slightly"

[Boatyarddog]

Originally Posted by JTHAW

Going to replace freeze plug in the middle of my block, on my 20 yr old M30 3 cylinder perama perkins....I can just get to it after removing cable linkages...it's seeping just slightly...
Just going to punch 1 side and pull on the opposite lip to pull off....or...drill a hole and yank out...anything else I should know?, any little tricks? Going to Napa to get a replacement and use Loctite on the new one...simply punch new one in with an appropriate socket...
am I missing anything? Informed replies appreciated...

Not as easy as it seems, if your using a bronze replacement plug, banging these things with a socket and hammer can distort them and they leak
Rent or borrow a installer, they come with proper sized cups with a raised edge to fit the concave side of the plug.
Also get an extra one in case you screw up the first one.
Coat the inside of the block hole with some #2 non hardening permatex gasket sealer.
If you've got room to use leverage to push on the installer plug it will work quite nicely.
Good luck.
https://www.google.com/search?q=free...82311130115948

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[a64pilot]

You can also buy a rubber, expandable plug should some reason you can't get the metal one back in. I've only experience with mild steel, cad plated plugs myself, not bronze ones
I tapped them in with a hammer and socket, sort of like changing U joints


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[JTHAW]

gentleman, many thanks for your replies!

[Nicholson58]

Originally Posted by JTHAW

Going to replace freeze plug in the middle of my block, on my 20 yr old M30 3 cylinder perama perkins....I can just get to it after removing cable linkages...it's seeping just slightly...
Just going to punch 1 side and pull on the opposite lip to pull off....or...drill a hole and yank out...anything else I should know?, any little tricks? Going to Napa to get a replacement and use Loctite on the new one...simply punch new one in with an appropriate socket...
am I missing anything? Informed replies appreciated...

If you have trouble, the car parts places have a mechanical replacement that is slip fit with a center bolt to expand it. No hammering required. Shown is one with rubber and one all metal.

[JTHAW]

the expandable rubber one looks great, easy to install I would think...are there ,...any...disadvantages to this???....why bother with the metal plug?
the rubber one would be a much easier install......much!!!
It is going on a fresh water coolant channel in the middle of the block....about the size of a quarter...
That rubber one looks easy .....I am really setting onto going with the rubber...please tell me why I shouldn't..tropic cruising, no winters, no winter layup....ever

[sailon46]

On my 100 Yanmar the freeze plug underneath the turbo elbow started seeping and since I was in Curacao far from parts houses for Yanmars I used permatex 3000 psi impervious to antifreeze and oil and sealed it. First drained the antifreeze so no wetness during application cured for 24 hours. Then sailed to St Croix 450 miles across the Carribe no leaks no probs. When I get to St Martin Ill visit my Mechanic and fix it good. In case you want to do it later.
Ernie: on the Mary Jane

[BruceS]

An old mechanic once told me bronze ones suffer from different expansion rates as the block gets hot & cold... better to use the steel ones.
Just belt a screw driver through the plug & lever it out. (no filings)
I've always known them as welch plugs?

[a64pilot]

They are really casting plugs, allow the air to escape I believe when the block is cast, they are not there to prevent damage in a freeze, just got that name somehow.
The rubber one shouldn't be considered permanent, it may take ten years, but eventually that rubber will deteriorate, other than that, I know of no downside, I have used one in the past.

[Nicholson58]

I have used the all metal expandable plugs where it was impossible to hammer in a normal metal plug. It was still in there years later when I sold the ole' bucket. I think having a couple of each in your inventory could be good planning.

[techmans]

If you're going for the rubber expandable one make absolutely sure that the bore as well as the plug are clean and dry. If not , it will pop out.
I used one as a replacement for a corroded one in a car of mine and it kept popping out until I found out why; I had installed it in the wet bore. After dry install it held for the life of the vehicle.

[Lepke]

If you're using the rubber plug as permanent, carry a spare. They don't last on diesels or car engines that run at higher temperatures. Freeze plugs are normally changed at a quality overhaul. Sometimes they live up to their name. They are not that hard to change.

[topmast]

A quick jab in the center with a screw driver ,then lever it out. Careful not to damage the edges of the hole.New steel easy to pop in clean dry hole (socket and hammer) Hole was where the sand came out after the block was cast. Available is a rubber plug with a built in block heater;kinda handy up north or any where in east US now that climate change is upon us.