bmx045 Posted July 18, 2011 Share Posted July 18, 2011 So I baked and split my headlights the other day, painted the chrome blah blah, baked for a little over a minute, siliconed the SH1T outta the seam, resealed them, all cips are back together, placed a bead of silicone along the outer seams. I'm seeing moisture/fog/beads inside the headlights, these thing are so sealed, I can't fathom why or how water could get in there. Is it possible that they are too sealed? It's somewhat foggy at times in there. Could there not be enough ventilation causing a greenhouse effect? The other day it started and I took the high beam bulbs out over night and the fog was gone by morning. any ideas? The weather has been quite humid here too.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Catalyst Posted July 19, 2011 Share Posted July 19, 2011 I've opened mine up 3 times now and never used silicone to reseal them. All the problems I have heard from this come from people using silicone, so probably, although I have no idea why. Sorry. "This is an adventure." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bmx045 Posted July 19, 2011 Author Share Posted July 19, 2011 Then I'd have to venture to the oversealed, no ventilation idea. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iNVAR Posted July 19, 2011 Share Posted July 19, 2011 Then I'd have to venture to the oversealed, no ventilation idea. I agree. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bmx045 Posted July 19, 2011 Author Share Posted July 19, 2011 Indeed sir.... Indeed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iNVAR Posted July 19, 2011 Share Posted July 19, 2011 Yes, quite... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bmx045 Posted July 19, 2011 Author Share Posted July 19, 2011 I thought there was a vent hole already somewhere on the housing Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flat4 Posted July 19, 2011 Share Posted July 19, 2011 Maybe if you leave your dust covers off your low beams it'll provide some ventilation and won't fog up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bignickgt Posted July 19, 2011 Share Posted July 19, 2011 Great! I just did this mod yesterday.............................................................................................................................. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bmx045 Posted July 19, 2011 Author Share Posted July 19, 2011 Great! I just did this mod yesterday.............................................................................................................................. Just pull the high beam bulbs out to see if it resolves the fogging, if so, you need a vent hole...somewhere. You may not even have a problem. I dont want to take my dust covers off because i dont want to expose my ballast connection to the harness, seems rather delicate. I will find a solution good sir. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flat4 Posted July 19, 2011 Share Posted July 19, 2011 I've been running HIDs in the low beams without dust covers for over a year now without a single problem... Just sayin'. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bmx045 Posted July 19, 2011 Author Share Posted July 19, 2011 I've been running HIDs in the low beams without dust covers for over a year now without a single problem... Just sayin'. Are there vent holes that the dust covers block? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brownmutthid Posted July 19, 2011 Share Posted July 19, 2011 They sound like they are sealed well...but also silicone is one of the worst things to use to reseal headlights. Outgassing could result in a foggy lens. So word of caution to anyone opening up headlights...do not use silicone...for anything. But if you feel the need to add extra sealant, which I highly recommend, use butyl rubber. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bmx045 Posted July 19, 2011 Author Share Posted July 19, 2011 It's definitely moisture though, I guess, a better word of caution would be- "if you're going to use silicone, provide ample ventilation for the lense". Thanks for the tip Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Code Posted July 19, 2011 Share Posted July 19, 2011 I had moisture issues in a set that I did. I ended up pulling them and rebaking them to get the moisture out, 3 years and the problem has not returned. I did not use silicone on them. "Striving to better, oft we mar what's well." - Bill Shakespeare - car modder Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brownmutthid Posted July 19, 2011 Share Posted July 19, 2011 Here is 2 pics that show how I reseal headlights...first one shows butyl rubber in the channel with the old sealant...second pic show how they should be clamped after being heated. This method works great. If you need to re-open in the future it is no harder than the first time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bmx045 Posted July 19, 2011 Author Share Posted July 19, 2011 I wonder if using silica packets would help Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brownmutthid Posted July 19, 2011 Share Posted July 19, 2011 Forgot to mention that....I also put in (2) 5 gram cotton dessicant packets too... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bmx045 Posted July 19, 2011 Author Share Posted July 19, 2011 thanks for the pics, how did you get the factory stuff off so well? look so clean! I like that sealant you used.... I reheated the housings in order to pull all the stock stuff off as best I could, because I figured reheating and resealing without adding sealant would be recipe for a leak.... :-\ edit: If this is moisture or gas from the silicone, then would silica even help? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brownmutthid Posted July 19, 2011 Share Posted July 19, 2011 thanks for the pics, how did you get the factory stuff off so well? look so clean! I like that sealant you used.... edit: If this is moisture or gas from the silicone, then would silica even help? I do keep the factory sealant in place...I just put that over top of it. When I clamp it down it will squeeze out between the two halves and then I just use the cold butyl rubber to release the excess from the outside. Pic of the sealant...actually used for installing windows. Doesn't harden but it does stay firm. Silica does not help with the outgassing...thats why I never stopped nor even started using it. I even use butyl rubber to hold the shrouds in place. Good stuff. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TRSCobra Posted July 19, 2011 Share Posted July 19, 2011 I sealed mine with flowable silicone over 2 years ago and I've never had any fogging. And i live in washington state, where it rains almost everyday... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bmx045 Posted July 19, 2011 Author Share Posted July 19, 2011 I used the permatex sh1t that you get at autozone, I've got a significant quantity of silica packets, "sorbent" and will see how that works. don't ask me how I acquired them Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dingbang Posted July 19, 2011 Share Posted July 19, 2011 I used high temp RTV and had no issues with fogging whatsoever. Do you happen to be trying to seal that back up on a very humid day outside? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bmx045 Posted July 19, 2011 Author Share Posted July 19, 2011 coincidentally, the reason i did this whole blackout project was because it was foggy inside my headlights! so I guess we could say it started happening before I did all this. My lenses aren't cracked or anything. It's been very humid here recently, the fog has gotten so bad in some spots that it's bleeding inside, bleeding drops of watah. After removing the high beam bulbs I let the car sit over night, the pass light is foggless now, but the driver's side is still foggy throughout the lense (all the way up to the amber reflecta. I've got 4 silica packets about 1" by 1" in size, I'll stick them in there- they are designed to soak up moisture, hopefully it will expedite the drying process. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bmx045 Posted July 20, 2011 Author Share Posted July 20, 2011 put 2 silica packets in and the water drops and fogginess is gone, I don't even want to put the high beam bulbs back in ugh... anyone know how well silica packets work, do you think they'll work well enough for an enclosed and sealed housing? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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