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Honda ST1100 Section => Brakes & Clutch ST1100 => Topic started by: Gnomad42 on November 17, 2017, 11:43:25 PM

Title: Water in the clutch hydraulics
Post by: Gnomad42 on November 17, 2017, 11:43:25 PM
On inspecting a suspected blown seal on the clutch slave cylinder, I found a mess.
- Crystals in the cylinder,
- corrosion on the piston, and
- water in the DOT4.

I have no idea how it got into the system, but I got a surprise when the fluid leaked out and the clutch stopped working!

Anyone else had this happen?
Gnomad42
 :dred11
P.S> why can't I post a picture of the slave cylinder?
Title: Re: Water in the clutch hydraulics
Post by: Gadget on November 18, 2017, 08:53:30 AM
The water gets there because brake/ clutch fluids is hygroscopic.

Hygroscopic means it absorbs moisture from the air.

Initially it mixes with the fluid, but as it gets more concentrated, the water eventually pools.

If there are leaks in the seal on the master cylinder cover, the moisture is sucked in. Any air above the fluid dries out, which shrinks its volume, so more air is sucked in.

That's why it's important to change brake and clutch fluid at regular intervals.

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Title: Re: Water in the clutch hydraulics
Post by: Gnomad42 on November 18, 2017, 08:55:36 AM
The water gets there because brake/ clutch fluids is hygroscopic.

Hygroscopic means it absorbs moisture from the air.

Initially it mixes with the fluid, but as it gets more concentrated, the water eventually pools.

If there are leaks in the seal on the master cylinder cover, the moisture is sucked in. Any air above the fluid dries out, which shrinks its volume, so more air is sucked in.

That's why it's important to change brake and clutch fluid at regular intervals.

Sent from my SM-G930F using Tapatalk
Thanks Gadget. Good explanation & Great to know.

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