Thought it might be nice to have a general thread dedicated to mechanical repairs whether grow room related or not so we can all share advice.
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Iām currently working on rebuilding a side shifter on a old forklift and repairing a fuel shut off solenoid issue on a tractor caused by a bad relay, Iām waiting for parts on the side shifter because nothing is available for heavy equipment within a hour of me. Considering a 3 hour round trip for a relay tomorrow because I need the tractor going sooner then later.
The only thing I dislike more then troubleshooting is having to go on a treasure hunt for a part or wait for it via snail mail.
I donāt even like doing mechanical repairs but Iām good at it and canāt stand something not working right or at all and refuse to watch it get repaired half ass or not at all by other people.
Paying somebody else to do something I can do is out of the question so Iām left with no choice but to cuss and scream my way threw each job 
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Imho 80-90% of a repair is located in the diagnosis, and is the more difficult part of fixing stuff, past that its parts replacement.
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Iām trying to figure out where all my oil is going in my 06 mazda 5. no blue smoke, but no drips either.
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Yep turns out the relay works but there is no power going to it so Iām going to have to inspect safety switches tomorrow to see what is cutting power to the relay. There is one on the clutch, hst pedal and seat but the one on the seat was bypassed and the tractor has always started with out pressing the clutch in which makes me think that one was also. Last time it started I touched the hst pedal it died and now wonāt start. Jump the relay and it starts so now power to the relay. It seems somehow a bad safety switch on the clutch pedal or hst pedal is causing this.
Will be jumping switches one at a time till I here the fuel solenoid click and then I will have found the problem.
Edit now that I have smoked several joints I remember somebody else at work had sunk the right side of tractor into the mud shortly before these problems started, Iām starting to think the hst pedal solenoid is going to be packed with dirt and stuck when I look tomorrow.
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My sympathies on delays & delays & driving extra, as well as cringing when others touch my car/etc. maybe get extras if affordable. A few generic (12v?) relays & terminal kit + wire.
A quick & dirty way is to chop out a wiring loom from a car at picknpull
@Jdem075 - if youāre 100% sure no burning (emissions tester) and canāt find a leakā¦ try a UVdye test- an additive to oil, run engine, inspect with special uv light & glasses 
or find a shop with the stuff & a lift & ask to be shown exactly everything leaking. Can be a bittersweet victory 
if you got an old VW
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Iām trying to diagnose an overheating issue Iāve been having on my 06 Pontiac montana since Monday.
The cooling fans kick on right before it hits max temp. I can feel pressure in the hoses while the car is on, so I assume the water pump is good, but the top hose doesnāt get as hot as the bottom one, coolant doesnāt seem to be circulating. Clogged radiator?
When the engine temp is high I turned the heat on but itās only pushing cold air. Possibly a clogged heater core?
Is there is a valve that opens to flow coolant into the heater core when I turn the heat on? Or is it just wide open all the time? If itās wide open I might try to bypass it and see if that gets the coolant moving.
Thoughts? Diagnostic tips? Any help is appreciated 
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Unlikely, youād still get heat to the heater core
Yes, usually, aka āheater control valveā, nowadays electric or vacuum, olden days just a lever/cable.
I suspect you got a stuck thermostat(closed), but can only guess from here.
The fans coming on is good, at least. Usually turning A/C on will force fans on(HI if lucky).
From cold start, turn on heat to max(fan on low), see if it warms up on a gentle drive or idling. A blanket over the grill & hood will accelerate engine warm up if needed. 
Unlikely clogged rad. or heater, imo. Either way theyāre all a PITA & bypassing the heater in winter just sounds nuts to me. 
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I was just thinking that. If the thermostat was open the top rad hose would be way hotter. Right now when the engine overheats the upper hose isnāt really hot at all, but the thermostat is hot af.
Thank you @cannabissequoia
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It was a faulty ground wire on the back edge of the engine behind everything else and so caked with gunk I missed it until I smoked couple fat ones while starring at the wiring diagrams.
One single effin wire and and now everything works perfect.
The one with the red arrow was the issue but there are 4 other ground wires besides what are shown here , 2 being on the motor so who would have figured there was a 5th hiding under the fuel tank on the upper back edge of the engine.
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I work as a full time VW Audi foreign car mechanic at this time. I have over 20 years in VW repair. Not designed well anymore. Designed to rob people via the dealership. VW for sure is a different company now. Not nice people in the design center. They hate mechanics.Any advice i can give feel free to ask. I work on all foreign cars. Stay away from Subaru thatās all I got to say.
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feel the hoses into and out of the heater core. If there is heat on one hose and cold on the other therer is a clog. The antifreeze they use in those GMs is junk and needs changed every few years. Sounds to me like no water pump but you said you feel pressure so itās weird.
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@SkunkHunt101 I ended up bleeding out some air and adding around 150ml of coolant. Seems to have done the trick, car isnāt overheating and Iām getting heat in the cab again. Both rad and heater core hoses get nice and hot now.
The running temp now is slightly lower than before though, so it could be the thermostat needs replacing. Iām trying to avoid having to put a new one in, cause the way the system is designed the in/out hoses for the heater core are higher than the engine, I donāt think Iād be able to bleed all the air out of there when filling the coolant back up. Plus where they put the stat housing looks like a bitch to get too
If I do replace it Iāll probably move everything out the way and have my wife get in there with her small hands 
Yeah the coolant in these GMs is shit. You think I wouldāve learned my lesson with the last 2 GM vehicles I bought, lol. Hereās a pic from when I took off the rad cap.
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I got our way sooner by way of nervous breakdown 
(unrelated ). But I feel your pain. My buddy came back from Germany talking about measuring baud rate of brake lights 
back in 06
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This is the number Iāve been getting PO410, its been coming on for 5yrs. and the mechanics around here say itās an emissions thingā¦If I lived in Chicago I would have to get it fixed to pass the emissions test. Now I live in the country and we donāt do emissions test around hereā¦btw, Iāve been to Florida and back towing a camper and have had no problemsā¦Is this PO410 number an important fix?
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Look it up online - itās a āDTCā aka diagnostic trouble codeā¦ been so long but Iām guessing itās an oxygen sensor just from old memories 
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Anyone have tips for mouse odors ?
Wifeās car was at the dealership for months waiting on warranty transmission parts. It came home with a family of mice in the center console box. Ford wasnāt too keen on helping us out with that after paying for half a year of rentals and a new TCM on a 10 year old shitbox.
I pulled out the center console & spare tire, vacuumed, washed the carpets, wiped everything down, changed the air filters, sprayed natureās miracle and ran some ozone a few times. Still smells kinda mousey.
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Need to know the make and model and year of the vehicle as well as engine size to give you a proper diagnosis without being there
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Get up inside where the rain gutter is they usually nest there. It is difficult for the rodents to enter the actual car interior without a window being open. Usually they are inside the fresh air intake area with a nest near the windshield wiper motor area under the cowl. I would look there first. Usually a screen there to keep pests out of the fresh air vent but they can chew thru plasic models.
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They nest not only in one area of the car when they are in they are in.
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