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Too Much RTV... how to remove?

9K views 25 replies 16 participants last post by  REVSWIN 
#1 ·
when we rebuilt my engine last time.... it seems as though we used a little too much RTV between the oil pan and the skirt. Unbolted that bitch and it is NOT coming off. No way no how nuh uh.

I tried to get a putty knife in there, but its not having it at all.

So how would you recommend attacking this task? I was able to get the block and skirt seperated by unbolting the oil pickup tube.. but I'm gonna need to get that oil pan off before I get it back together.

Recommendations?
 
#4 ·
Nothing's gonna get it off. RTV is chemical resistant as far as I know. As has been mentioned, a razor blade would be your best bit. A putty knife is pretty dull. Or a hammer and a flatblade, though that may require purchasing a new pan.
 
#5 ·
I'm sure the stuff is resistant to all petroleum solvents, but maybe not to stong acids. You could try battery acid (sulfuric), or go to a hardware store and get Muriatic acid (hydrochloric). One of those might do the job, the only down side is I'm not sure how well the metal will stand up to either one, especially the sulfiric. But if it loosened it up quickly enough, it could work out.

Just make sure you have a couple of big boxes of baking soda and some water near by. Good luck.
 
#6 ·
brads03zx3 said:
Nothing's gonna get it off. RTV is chemical resistant as far as I know. As has been mentioned, a razor blade would be your best bit. A putty knife is pretty dull. Or a hammer and a flatblade, though that may require purchasing a new pan.

I've tried a utility knife as well. Several of them They aren't penetrating.
 
#12 ·
I used copper rtv on my oil pan last time and to get it out I had to get a series of small screwdrivers and get them through and push down on all of them at the same time, that way you're putting relatively even pressure on the pan instead of denting the flanged mounting points.
 
#13 ·
there are utility knives made super strong for cutting carpet and linolium and all kinds of things.

I perfer one of these beasts, with a titanium blade aftermarket (heavy duty means thicker, edge looks gold)
http://www.stanleytools.com/default.../2"+InstantChange™+Retractable+Knife

if you dont have a stanley 10-788, you got the wrong razorknife.

otherwise sillicone melts somewhere around 350-400 degrees.
its got good heat resistance, but it eventually burns off well south of a basic propane torch.
unfortunately, that means lots of fire in your oilpan.
 
#17 ·
^^What do you think the purpose of the RTV is, goofball. hehehe
Ya, it may scuff it some, but it's nothing the RTV will not seal up.

Dead blow, screwdriver and work from the corners. Get 2 on the same side broke loose and you should be able to pull it apart.


btw good stuff to use for reassemble is the Permatex Grey.
 
#18 ·
Is the mating surface aluminum? Usually RTV sealant is rubbery and it takes a little bit of pulling to make it come off. Sounds like you put Gorilla Glue instead! If it's really not come off, then it sounds like you're gonna need a new pan and have at the old one with a rubber mallet or similar. Mine came off that way when I had a new pan to put on.

Stupid suggestions Todd, but the RTV sealant should be soft enough for plastic and stuff to go through it right? Can you find something like those plastic cutters you get with birthday cakes and whatnot?
 
#19 ·
I just got off the phone with Permatex. I asked them if they had or could recommend any stripper or solvent that would work well. they said they currently don't have one, but in a few months they will.
So I did a Google search for silicon strippers. Found this:
http://www.genchemcorp.com/electrochemicals/gensolve.shtml

Might be worth looking into. Depending on it's price and shelf life, might be a good thing to have around the shop.
 
#21 ·
I'm going to bump this because I am in the middle of removing two pans. One on my car and my original one from my blown PWSC engine. These are a MAJOR PITA because of the fact it is so cold outside. I am going to do some prying, maybe even use a heat gun if I can find it.

If anybody else has some new tips and tricks please post up!
 
#22 ·
Definitely use a dead blow working the corners of the pan, and you can use a flat head screwdriver through the oil drain for extra prying leverage to break the seal.
 
#25 ·
Try non-flammable brake cleaner, but you have to figure out a way to get the gasket nice and soaked.

The chlorinated solvent in the cleaner should swell it good enough to let you break loose, then remove away the residues.

Flammable ones are not chlorinated and I don't think they swell silicone as well.
 
#26 ·
I was able to remove both of them yesterday. Took about 1.5-2 hours to remove both.

I used a razor blade to go around the outside and break up as much sealant I could. Then a tried prying a little with a pry tool. I started hitting them with a heavy rubber mallet and that started to "loosen" them up a bit. Kept prying, and then shoved a putty knife in to break up the sealant.

Took me about 30 mins to remove the one on my enigine sitting in my garage. It took a little over an hour to remove the one on my car.
 
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