Water/condensation in H4 headlights

[kat]

Like my Bronco don't leak enough now my sealed headlight is foggy and has some water laying in the bottom. How do I get rid of it?? I know in plastic headlights I have drilled a small hole in the bottom but never messed with glass before.
And why are they leaking?? They are only a couple months old..I can't see a noticeable crack

 

[SteveL]

When I sank my 72 my Hella h-4s filled 1/2way up with water. I thought about putting goldfish in em

 

[jckkys]

I've used a diamond bit in a Dremel. It takes a while but a hole in bottom will force more water out every time the air inside heats up. Most so called sealed beam headlight makers produce a percentage that aren't really sealed. It would be nice if the leak was always on the bottom.

 

[DirtDonk]

If it's enough to puddle at the bottom, remove the lamp and dump it out. While it's out, run a bead of sealer of some kind around the perimeter where the (presumably) glass lens is glued to the (presumably) metal reflector.

If you have the time, while the sealer cures set it out in the sun to let the last bit of moisture evaporate. If for some reason you need it back in place quickly, re-connect the bulb without the rubber boot in place and turn the lights on. This high heat will evaporate the rest pretty quickly.

All this assumes a "standard" H4 lamp setup with a clipped-in bulb and a large rubber boot to seal out moisture. Any other design might vary the procedures, but the concepts remain the same.
If it's truly a "sealed beam" version of the H4 like the old Cibié Bobi lights were, the only way to get rid of the water is to find the hold it got in from, drain it out slowly the same way, then turn the lamps on to generate the heat to evaporate the rest. Then seal it up after the fact.

Good luck. Hopefully it's not a cheap set that hardly has any glue on the lens. If so though, the bead of silicone sealer will act as a backup glue to the original.
Hopefully..

Paul

 

[DirtDonk]

I meant to add that in lieu of all that, do what jckkys said and get the right drill and make a permanent hole in the bottom as a drain.

Paul

 

[EPB72]

Like my Bronco don't leak enough now my sealed headlight is foggy and has some water laying in the bottom. How do I get rid of it?? I know in plastic headlights I have drilled a small hole in the bottom but never messed with glass before.
And why are they leaking?? They are only a couple months old..I can't see a noticeable crack

I'd contact whoever you purchased from and see if they will warranty them ..they should being only a couple months old...:;D

 

[kat]

If it's enough to puddle at the bottom, remove the lamp and dump it out. While it's out, run a bead of sealer of some kind around the perimeter where the (presumably) glass lens is glued to the (presumably) metal reflector.

If you have the time, while the sealer cures set it out in the sun to let the last bit of moisture evaporate. If for some reason you need it back in place quickly, re-connect the bulb without the rubber boot in place and turn the lights on. This high heat will evaporate the rest pretty quickly.

All this assumes a "standard" H4 lamp setup with a clipped-in bulb and a large rubber boot to seal out moisture. Any other design might vary the procedures, but the concepts remain the same.
If it's truly a "sealed beam" version of the H4 like the old Cibié Bobi lights were, the only way to get rid of the water is to find the hold it got in from, drain it out slowly the same way, then turn the lamps on to generate the heat to evaporate the rest. Then seal it up after the fact.

Good luck. Hopefully it's not a cheap set that hardly has any glue on the lens. If so though, the bead of silicone sealer will act as a backup glue to the original.
Hopefully..

Paul

Good idea about running a bead of silicon on the outside ring where it connects. I haven't taken it out yet but would a hole work just as good on the metal side versus the glass side??

 

[DirtDonk]

I would think so, as far as the drainage is concerned. But I don't know how the shiny stuff reacts to a drill. I just wonder if it might start flaking off at the hole.

Another option might be to punch a hole in the rubber boot instead. It's behind the lamp in a more protected area (theoretically anyway) and though any moisture would still have to get past the blub/housing interface, once it does it would then have a nice outlet in the boot.
The glass seems the most straightforward place, but then it also seems the most vulnerable to future water intrusion.
On the flip side of that though, is the fact that it would also be the most natural drain too.

Hard to say. But definitely wait for someone that might have tried to modify a reflector/housing before. Or that knows more about that shiny surface treatment.

Paul

 

[Broncobowsher]

Leave the bulb out for a few days in a dry place
Next inspect for vents and sealing. Most good lights today have a piece of gore Tex fabric glued over the hole.