Hose Clamps
A hose clamp is a device used to secure and seal a hose onto a fitting. If you look under the hood of your vehicle, most likely you will not find any hose that is attached and sealed in another way. Hose clamps are widely used for sealing cooling, heating and braking systems parts and components.
Depending on their design, hose clamps can be divided into several types:
- Spring clamps
- Wire clamps
- T-bolt clamps
- Screw and band hose clamps
Signs of a bad hose clamp
Since the main function of hose clamps is to secure and seal hose-to-fitting connections, a leaking hose is the major symptom of a poor hose clamp.
Replacing a faulty hose clamp
A serious coolant or brake fluid leak caused by a failed hose clamp may put the health of your engine and even your own life at risk. While coolant leaks may only lead to engine overheating, a leaking brake hose can make your brakes fail when you’re at the wheel and cause an accident.
As a rule, hose clamps are quite cheap and easy to replace, however, thorough inspection of all other hoses and clamps is recommended even if just one clamp needs a replacement.
Driving a vehicle with a leaking cooling or braking system hose may cause premature wear of other related parts and components. Checking them for possible damage and in-time replacements are your reasonable assurance against serious problems on the road.
Make sure a new hose clamp is installed correctly
Replacing a hose clamp is not a tricky job, however, a thorough understanding of braking or cooling system operation is necessary. When replacing your vehicle’s coolant or brake fluid, or a hose, you must be certain sure that the system you have been working on does not contain any air bubbles. That’s why sometimes it’s better to hire a professional mechanic who has the experience and tools to have the job done properly.