RW> The crankshaft exits the block and oil pan there, and that gap is sealed
RW> by the rear seal, which keeps oil from escaping the oil pan. If the bolts
RW> that hold the pan to the engine block in that area work loose, that could
RW> be a source of a leak. It is also subject to blowby pressure, thus why I
RW> mentioned giving those bolts a torque check.

I'll check them on my next oil change for the Durango.  The truck has this
long plastic shield type thing on the bottom of the car that tends to collect
various drips and things, so it is not easy to tell the source all the time. 
Each time I drain the oil, some of it gets on that plastic shield and then
drips off of it for weeks.

RW> There should be one that is held in place with a hose clamp. That is the
RW> first place I'd look, then give those rust spots on the hard lines a good
RW> look. The rust may make that hard line porus enough to spring a small
RW> leak.

Yes, it is either in the clamp area, the line, or the steering area.  The pump
itself looks clean.

RW> The worst case animal for that is valve cover gaskets. But todays engines
RW> are sealed pretty good at the engine factory and valve cover gasket leaks
RW> aren't found as often as they used to be.

My old 80 Malibu used to leak a small amount of oil on the value cover
gaskets.  Nice light burning oil smell - but nothing major.  It wasn't enough
to go through with a repair.

RW> My house is all-electric. Whatever we do, we insulate, insulate and seal
RW> doors and windows. This fall, between the hot summer and cold winter
RW> months, I intend to go around and check all of the door and window seals,
RW> again. During the spring and early summer months, the AC thermostat is
RW> set
RW> at 86F at 11pm and we open the bedroom and kitchen windows at night to
RW> cool off the house with a cross-flow of cool outside air. I've never
RW> heard
RW> the AC come on until the thermostat setting switches to 84F around 11am
RW> and I'll shut it off if the outside temp is lower than that. Around 3pm,
RW> the thermostat drops to 82F and I'll close the windows and rely on the AC
RW> to keep us cool until bedtime at midnite.

Is that when you have dry heat or humid heat?  We have mostly humid heat
around here.  I have it set to 75 when we are here during the day, and 73 at
night. It goes up to 80 when we are at work.  

I have been blasting the A/C in my car this summer.  I come home and my face
is to cold that my sunglasses fog up instantly after getting out of the car.

RW> Growing up in humid summer months in Illinois, all we had was a 7" window
RW> fan in each room...all that ever accomplished was to keep me awake to
RW> suffer the humidity even longer. I eventually learned about A/C systems
RW> when I went to work in a dairy when I was 16...

Good choice.. :)

RW> I used to install TV/Radio antennas when I was in highschool and a few
RW> years after, part time. I was never afraid of a tall roof or tower until
RW> the day a co-worker fell from a 100ft tower and died. All that did though
RW> was make me more aware of the dangers of tower climbing. I still climbed
RW> towers and installed antennas though.
RW> 
RW> I saw an interesting TV install at my dad's 3 story house when he and mom
RW> first moved into it. There was a 3rd story room that you could see 360
RW> degrees for mile upon mile. In the peaked center of that room was a TV
RW> rotor, that had a mast going outside and a TV antenna mounted to it. I
RW> wasn't too surprised by that until I realized that the only way up there
RW> to install the antenna and a hole vent cover was to use an extension
RW> ladder from the 2nd story roof. That roof was as angled as the 3rd story
RW> roof, making an extension ladder as unsteady as all get out. I didn't
RW> envy
RW> the installer that job and never volunteered to go up there to fix it
RW> when
RW> it broke.

I'll ride my HD between two trucks on the major innerstate, but never been a
fan of getting on the roof.  

I did get on the roof of my house growing up as a kid so I could install my
first weather station.  The difference was there was a back porch that had a
flat roof, so if I started to slide down - I could use that as a safety-net.

RW> If there is roof access through an attic window, I'd do that job. If I
RW> have to use a tall ladder, at my age I won't do it anymore. But I would
RW> have 30 years ago.

Me too.  I would do it if I could get to the roof from the attic.  Still
wouldn't be lovin' it, but would do it.

- Mark

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