PLEASE HELP! Welding water jacket repair.

[Grannygo]

The water jacket in our 1999 5.9 Cummings diesel engine has a 6 inch crack. I want to stop drill the crack and weld it. I have heard that you must disconnect the battery cables and ground close to weld area. Does anyone know if this is sufficient to protect our electronics or is there something else that Winnebago suggests?

[BFlinn181]

:welcome:

Disconnecting the battery cables should be enough. If you can, you could also disconnect the ECU and transmission controller.

Sounds like the infamous '53' engine block flaw. If you Google the Cummins 5.9 53 repair you'll find many How to's on repairing a crack in the block by drilling and welding as you suggest.

[Mike and Cha]

I don't know what material it is made out of, but years ago I had a crack on the exhaust manifold on my Sea Ray boat. Spent a day taking it out and took to a welding shop that didn't specialize in this type of repair. Took it home , re-installed it, the crack held just fine, but the welding caused the material to have numerous small pinholes in it and it was now like a sprinkler. Went and bought a new one, and the boat shop mechanic told me there is a way to weld exhaust manifolds/ water jackets but if you don't know how it will ruin it like mine did. Just telling you in case you are not a welder by trade, you may want to check before welding.

[Grannygo]

Originally Posted by BFlinn181

:welcome:

Disconnecting the battery cables should be enough. If you can, you could also disconnect the ECU and transmission controller.

Sounds like the infamous '53' engine block flaw. If you Google the Cummins 5.9 53 repair you'll find many How to's on repairing a crack in the block by drilling and welding as you suggest.

I didn't realize that there was a flaw in that engine. I will go check Google now. Thanks for the information.

[Grannygo]

Originally Posted by Mike and Cha

I don't know what material it is made out of, but years ago I had a crack on the exhaust manifold on my Sea Ray boat. Spent a day taking it out and took to a welding shop that didn't specialize in this type of repair. Took it home , re-installed it, the crack held just fine, but the welding caused the material to have numerous small pinholes in it and it was now like a sprinkler. Went and bought a new one, and the boat shop mechanic told me there is a way to weld exhaust manifolds/ water jackets but if you don't know how it will ruin it like mine did. Just telling you in case you are not a welder by trade, you may want to check before welding.

That is good information to know about the special welding techniques for this problem. I am lucky that I do have a welder who is experienced in working on these type of engines.

[BFlinn181]

Originally Posted by Grannygo

I didn't realize that there was a flaw in that engine. I will go check Google now. Thanks for the information.

The flaw is in some engine blocks that were cast in Brazil, I believe. The thickness of the casting caused blocks with the number 53 cast into the block to suffer from cracking and leaking coolant. Not all 53 blocks have failed.

In this link, welding is not recommended, a 'lock n stitch' repair is.

Cummins 53 Block Casting Information

[Grannygo]

Have been reading until my eyes are blurry! Sure wish I would have found this info in my research last year when we were buying our baby. Now we don't know what to do. Larry worked on airplane engines for years, so naturally assumed welding should fix this problem. He could complete all prep work and a

[Grannygo]

Originally Posted by Grannygo

Have been reading until my eyes are blurry! Sure wish I would have found this info in my research last year when we were buying our baby. Now we don't know what to do. Larry worked on airplane engines for years, so naturally assumed welding should fix this problem. He could complete all prep work and a

(Oops, didn't mean to post yet) Anyway, has anyone ever used the locknstitch process on their Cummins 5.9 53 engine? What about replacing it? Would it have to be the same engine?