# air horn freezing?



## SKYNYRD (Jan 13, 2009)

i have a hadley air horn on my truck. works fine on the coldest of days. it works fine as long as it's not snowing. if it's snowing more often than not it will only let out a very tiny "toot" almost sounds like a squeek it's so soft. at first i thought just the snow clogged trumpets were to blame but sometimes even after the trumpets are cleared it still wont work right. could something be freezing inside the horn? any suggestions on how to fix this? it's one of the units with the seperate compressor so there's no need to hook it into a truck's air system. any suggestions are very welcome, thanks in advance :salute:


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## hydro_37 (Sep 10, 2006)

Spray it real good with Fluid Film.


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## JD Dave (Mar 20, 2007)

Most truck places sell socks for the front of the horn to stop snow from going in. You need to measure the diameter of your horns and get the right size sock. The socks can be plastic or stainless.


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## SKYNYRD (Jan 13, 2009)

hydro_37;764145 said:


> Spray it real good with Fluid Film.





JD Dave;764154 said:



> Most truck places sell socks for the front of the horn to stop snow from going in. You need to measure the diameter of your horns and get the right size sock. The socks can be plastic or stainless.


spray the inside of the horns with the FF right? i still have some of my free sample left. next time the horn is working i'll do it 

thanks for the sock info!


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## BigDave12768 (Nov 17, 2006)

Your problem is that you dont have them angled right. they are suppose to be on lower in the front so they drain out. If you blow them before you park them once a day when its cold it will help with pushing moisture out. But that is common issue with air horns. Thats why alot of people put under hood now. The motor warms them up


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## SKYNYRD (Jan 13, 2009)

BigDave12768;764217 said:


> Your problem is that you dont have them angled right. they are suppose to be on lower in the front so they drain out. If you blow them before you park them once a day when its cold it will help with pushing moisture out. But that is common issue with air horns. Thats why alot of people put under hood now. The motor warms them up


thanks for the tip! i'm sorry i didn't post my question sooner. at least i know what's wrong now and how to fix it. thanks again to everyone :salute:


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## CityGuy (Dec 19, 2008)

Is there a spot to put so isopropal in the air tank? Add a splash if there is. This should take care of the moisture.


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## SKYNYRD (Jan 13, 2009)

Hamelfire;764276 said:


> Is there a spot to put so isopropal in the air tank? Add a splash if there is. This should take care of the moisture.


never heard of that stuff. where could i get it? i don't have any truck stops near me. i can get inside the tank by removing the pressure gauge


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## CityGuy (Dec 19, 2008)

Local gas station should have. Its a little red bottle usually you put it in a gas tank. Don't use a lot just a cap full or so. Might be under brand name Heat or Heet


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## SKYNYRD (Jan 13, 2009)

Hamelfire;764291 said:


> Local gas station should have. Its a little red bottle usually you put it in a gas tank. Don't use a lot just a cap full or so. Might be under brand name Heat or Heet


ah so it's like a form of dry gas then. thanks for the tip! really appreciatte it


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## BigDave12768 (Nov 17, 2006)

SKYNYRD;764285 said:


> never heard of that stuff. where could i get it? i don't have any truck stops near me. i can get inside the tank by removing the pressure gauge


That wouldnt help at all. Your freezing up on the roof. If you want the most simple way to fix it. Drill a tiny hole in the cover that goes over horn. Take a top of WD -40 can or that liquid wrench stufff. Buy a can of that preston De-ice stuff for windshield. Change the tops. Use the straw end and spray into to horn. That will take care of ice that s blocking air from coming in. Should only take about 15 seconds to brek it up. then blow horns to clear it out. Also that moisture is going to cause hons to rot out.

He is just talking about dry gas. One other thing I think WD-40 disperses water but not sure it can break down ice


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## SKYNYRD (Jan 13, 2009)

BigDave12768;764307 said:


> That wouldnt help at all. Your freezing up on the roof. If you want the most simple way to fix it. Drill a tiny hole in the cover that goes over horn. Take a top of WD -40 can or that liquid wrench stufff. Buy a can of that preston De-ice stuff for windshield. Change the tops. Use the straw end and spray into to horn. That will take care of ice that s blocking air from coming in. Should only take about 15 seconds to brek it up. then blow horns to clear it out. Also that moisture is going to cause hons to rot out.
> 
> He is just talking about dry gas. One other thing I think WD-40 disperses water but not sure it can break down ice


if i'm not mistaking i believe there's only 2 scres holding that cover on. maybe in the next warm day i'll take it off and spray it down with fluid film. for all i know maybe the gasket is dry rotted and that's causing amoistur leak. i'm just so glad i decided to post about it on her. thanks for you input!


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## CityGuy (Dec 19, 2008)

What the isopropl will do is absorb any moisture in the air tank and air lines. It will also "eat" the ice in the lines and horn. We did this on all our trucks that did not run the air lines through the air dryer. You may consider running a line to the air tank from the dryer if you have one.


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## JD Dave (Mar 20, 2007)

BigDave12768;764217 said:


> Your problem is that you dont have them angled right. they are suppose to be on lower in the front so they drain out. If you blow them before you park them once a day when its cold it will help with pushing moisture out. But that is common issue with air horns. Thats why alot of people put under hood now. The motor warms them up


Your right I guess my new trucks come from the factory with the airhorns installed wrong. When it's snowing heavy my airhorns will stop working in minutes and then after staying in the shop overnight they start working again. I'm actually going to chang out the horns for the more expensive ones that come with stainless socks like my tandem tractor, that way they will always work no matter how hard it's snowing. BTW I see lots of big trucks with air horns under the hood.


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## BigDave12768 (Nov 17, 2006)

JD Dave;764390 said:


> Your right I guess my new trucks come from the factory with the airhorns installed wrong. When it's snowing heavy my airhorns will stop working in minutes and then after staying in the shop overnight they start working again. I'm actually going to chang out the horns for the more expensive ones that come with stainless socks like my tandem tractor, that way they will always work no matter how hard it's snowing. BTW I see lots of big trucks with air horns under the hood.


They probably do. the directions clearly state when installing them to have them at an downward angle to drain out moisture. Do you have a Hadley truck? BTW I see plenty under the hood also

Hmm i wonder what the *FIRST LINE OF INSTRUCTIONS SAYS*

*1. For best results mount horn in an unobstructed opening for sound to carry
straight ahead. If possible mount with a slight downward angle to allow
moisture to drain from horn.*

Hmm I am trying to think who I knew who had problems with this


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## BigDave12768 (Nov 17, 2006)

Oh yeahI remember how to fix issue. Mount the Holding tank in your truck so even if it does freeze it will dethaw quickly inside the truck. Most installer put under back seat.

Oh and the under hood ones I am talking about are those self contained units.


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## hydro_37 (Sep 10, 2006)

BigDave12768;764475 said:


> Oh yeahI remember how to fix issue. Mount the Holding tank in your truck so even if it does freeze it will dethaw quickly inside the truck. Most installer put under back seat.Quote]
> 
> WOW....and I thought some other people typed badly
> Maybe a grammar class is needed J/K
> ...


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## SKYNYRD (Jan 13, 2009)

thanks for all the advice everyone!


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