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Fixing wiper issue with snow

32 here now,might get up to 45 later on...been very warm here this month up until this past week,when we got out first inch of snow with sleet,ice,and freezing rain and lots of accidents the past few days..

I was lucky,my driveway was covered with 1" of icy sleet,but it got just above 35 the day it fell and it was just enough to melt it all..
I haven't had to put the plow on my truck yet--its the 5th latest snowfall ever,and the month was almost 10 degrees above normal..no snow predicted for at least the next 7-10 days..
I hope the trend continues,but it looks like it'll be "normal" cold from now on here...I can deal with cold,I just dont want to see another 8 or 9 feet of snow in 30 days time EVER again !..:yikes:.
 
Dragging this back up, hope some have the inclination to read this far lol. Non-AC setup so you don't have to re-read everything. Had problems with snow building up under the wipers.

Dug into my dash the past couple of days, and noticed that the formerly small gap between the windshield/defrost ducting and the main part of the heater box has grown quite a bit. Right around a 1/4"

I was working on something else so didn't look real closely, but it doesn't look like there is adjustment in this setup that would allow either the upper duct to move down (plastic "rivets" to the top side of the dash?) nor for the heater box to move up to meet it.

I know some sort of real duct tape would likely work, but curious how else this could be resolved. GM didn't use anything to seal it, so the gap I have is obviously not normal. I want to think converting an AC cab to non-AC may have done it, since I had to make a plate, but I would think enough of the firewall studs would be in the same place as to not allow that much movement.

Although my heater core may be bad as well, this gap is obviously not helping matters.
 
Duct tape the gap, if the heater core isn't leaking you can flush just the core if it ain't too gummed up. flush both directions a few times, makes a big difference.
As others have said, if it's snowing hard you are gonna get some buildup. On one of your older posts you were talking about temp of the window. It's will always be cold to the touch. The defroster doesn't have a chance against 20 degrees and 50+ mph wind. If you don't actually have ice/snow stick to the outside of the glass, then the defrost is doing its job.
 
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I thought the cowl vent area was supposed to vent hot air from the engine compartment to melt snow under the wipers.
 
It's not sticking to the window, but it does pile up. I tend to think that in my climate, it's not unreasonable to expect the snow to melt by the time the wiper reaches the park position. I drove my car in similar conditions, and had none of this sort of problem. Obviously it's got decades of tech on the truck, but I would think something could be done.

I don't want to use duct tape because my experience is that eventually it will dry out and start to fall apart. I'm guessing whatever I see used in buildings is a heavier-duty product. I'd not be averse to using something like that, just not sure what it is.

At least on the 81+ trucks, I don't think the cowl is open to any underhood heat. Cowl seal http://www.lmctruck.com/icatalog/csb/full.aspx?Page=37 is going to keep the majority of the heat from transferring.
 
If you want some "duct tape" that won't dry out and rot, there are some good options.
This stuff is a little tricky to work with, but its fairly permanent unless you spill some kind of acid on it.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00DY9IXFI/ref=psdc_256163011_t1_B00A7I5L86

I have used a lot of it for various things. Just remember its aluminum foil, so sharp object can tear or puncture it.

If you are looking for something even more permanent, you can step up to this level.....

https://www.amazon.com/Silver-Tempe...99746742&sr=8-3&keywords=stainless+steel+tape

Expensive, and will cut the heck out of you if you handle it wrong. But pretty much will outlast the rest of the truck.
 
I'd hope that once I do this, cutting into it won't be an issue as I'll never look at it again! Thanks for the links, that first one should do fine. "Quick" fix (holy cow that is pricey tape lol) but I don't see any other solution that will work as easily or well.

Dang, if the heater core is junk, have to pull all everything out anyway. :(
 
Dredging this one up, as I took a pic.

When I pulled the heater core, I inspected the setup. I didn't see any way the mating of the heater box and defrost duct is adjustable. The holes for the box mounting studs are apparently in the same place whether AC or non. No adjustment where the duct mounts to the dash either.

I checked the parts manual, apparently only one duct was used for all applications.

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and i tape the vents with blue painters tape to keep windshield wipers working
 
This tape sticks to anything,even damp concrete and stays put permanently..
I've used it on dozens of things,my quonset building to seal the gap between the foundation and arches,my truck's rotted roof,the "patch" I had to put on my bathroom shower wall to seal the sheet aluminum to the ceramic tiles,and patch up tears in a truck cap made of aluminum..

Home Depot has it for about 10 bucks a roll,I found it in a different aisle than all the other "duct tapes" though,it took some hunting..
It is similar to the "Peel & Seal" roofing patch tape..nashua waterproofing tape.jpg
 
Also a trick I read years ago that works to help snow from building up on the cowl under the wipers,is to put something under the rear of the hood,so when its closed it doesn't seal up tight against the cowl--the article authour used match books,but I think some rubber wedges would be a better idea..
I've laid sticks under the center cowl area of my hood about 3/8" diameter about a foot apart in a heavy snowfall and it holds the hood up enough to let the engine's fan blow hot air onto the cowl area..this probably won't work on a truck with electric fans though,at least not as well,you'll only be getting road draft ,not much help from the fan..

If its really coming down fast & hard with a high wind nothing much will keep snow from packing under the wipers though..
 
I bought this tape as recommended by Fordum: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00DY9IXFI/ref=psdc_256163011_t1_B00A7I5L86

Only now got around to installing it, but I've not been able to use the truck much and the heater core failed almost a year back, so now was a good time to clean it all up, and use the tape. Tape sticks good, just wish the problem didnt exist in the first place. It shouldnt. That gap is far beyond reasonable.

Edit: tape and new heater core didn't help the snow build up problem lol
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