Tips or ideas on resealing the headlights..

For all those who did BHLM or a retrofit, what are some of the ways you resealed your headlamps without getting any condensation inside? Mine were fine up until the first time I washed the truck.

I used the resealing glue supplied from The Retrofit Source but maybe I didn't use enough? Should I seal them with silicone (heard that it makes it permanently sealed though?), 3M window weld, etc? I really do not want to have to pull these back out again. The lamps I used for my retrofit were the eBay black housings, but I am going to bake apart my OEM ones this time and use those instead. There is actually standing water in the bottom of mine right now.

PLEASE HELP!!

 

I used 3M Window Weld when I did my headlight mod a couple years ago. I opened them up again to do my retrofit and they've stayed 100% dry the entire time.

 

Did you use a good amount of it or any tips on application?

 

Once I got the lens away from the headlight, I re-baked the housing and tried to get as much of the old sealant out as I could. Then I just layed the ribbon sealant in (the 3M stuff is a black ribbon), rebaked the housing, stuck the lens on, put alligator clips on it, reinstalled the screws and let it sit for a few hours until it was completely cured.

 

Use that window weld and put a lot. Then put a lot of pressure on lights to seal correctly. And don't forget the corners. Your going to have to reopen to get all that water out. Last thing to do is take your truck in a dark place and shine light on back of headlight. The bulbs may not have a tight enough seal and might need some attention

 

I agree with this, but wanted to add that when your adding a lot of pressure on the lights to seal them be sure that the headlight is fresh out of the oven so it has an easier time to form. Also some clamps help a lot

 

Oh yeah, which retrofit did you do? The H1s are a PITA to seal around the bulb. Your problem might not be the lens, it could be the back.

 

I used the same housings you did when I did my retro. I siliconed the outer edge really well after I put them back together (with the 3M sealant on the inside). I took my time and made sure to push the silicone into the groove between the housings (you can actually see it fill the gaps through the lens, but not when they are installed back on the truck). Take your time and go slow. I haven't had any problems with mine after I used the silicone.

 

I have the D2S kit from TRS. The projectors seem pretty well sealed just not the housings. I'll check again for sure though.

Thanks for the help guys, going to tear into this a bit over the weekend.

 

It's possible that your headlights are actually sealed. Check the rubber gaskets around the parking lights and blinker. If they are cracked, moisture can be getting in that way. Also, if you happened to have install the headlights when there way a lot of moisture in the air, it could have gotten in that way.

I installed a new set about a month back and my driver side was fine. My passenger side was like yours. I installed mine at night right after a rain so I think that is when I got moisture in them.

I took them off, got all the water out with a hair dryer (long tedious process, took about an hour) and reinstalled them during the day and haven't had water since then. It has also rained a couple times

 

When I did my BHLM in black, I didn't remove any of the factory sealant at all, when I put them back together I just ran a continuous strand of 3M 1/8 inch bead sealant in the channel, put the headlight together without the screws, baked them for 10 minutes at 350 with the oven off. Wore gloves and pushed them together and then applied the screws quickly while everything was Hot. No issues at all.

 

When I did mine,i didnt remove any of the original sealant, I just placed the lights together, heated them up, pushed them together... then i let them cool completely, then reheated them again to let everything melt together and set... no fog yet knock on wood!

 

I used exisitng gray butyl, added the black stuff from TRS.. then sealed it with hot glue gun.

 

I think I am going to take a combination of everything listed and combine it all into one huge conglomerate of sealing power.

Some good information here!!!

 

Well got the headlights done, but at the same time the passenger is already fogging a bit. I completely sealed them with a good bead of silicone around it and even let them cure overnight and then some. This is really aggravating. I pulled one of the breather holes for a while in hopes that it will clear it out and be good from there. The rubber boot on the back is on securely too. I am about to be at the point of raging.

 

pull them out, put in tub, watch for air bubbles

it's the only way

 

This just has bad idea written all over it.

 

Hey JRod, what brand of housing do you use from Ebay. Was it GForce USA or Spec D. They suck ass. They come sealed and i put extra seal on them, sealed the lamps, and drilled holes in the bottom of the motherfuckers because they kept fogging up and fiiling up with water but only on the passenger side. I feel your pain. I did the BHLM before with great results and only replaced them because the lens got so scratched the restoration kit couldn't bring them back.

 

run a hair dryer through the back to dry it, then put some silicone around all the edges again.

 

I used a shit ton and never had any condensation in my headlights.