Heat Wrapped Headers
 

Does anyone else find they get a lot of steam from these when the heat wrap gets wet.

Drove my car for the the first time today since they've been fitted, and when I stopped (was only a 5 minute drive) it looked like a steam train!!!

Is this likely to happen every time they get wet/damp?
If so is there anything to spray on the wrap to stop it happening?

Try it with a leaking rocker gasket on to the wrapped uppipe as well :) I get smoke and steam for about 5 miles after its been parked up a while.

No only happens for the first week or so. The wrap probably hasnt dried out at all yet

Gary, yes, this happens whenever they get wet/damp. My first set of headers were sprayed, it didn't make any difference iirc.

I sprayed mine with HT exhaust paint and I've never had any problems, but then again, I don't drive through many flooded areas (did the other day :eek: ) and still have under tray fitted.

Either way, they do smell a bit when first fitted, so maybe it'll improve..?

Mine smelt really bad and smoked like it was on fire when stopped at the lights on the first drive after fitting. Settled down after a while, don't get any problems now, undertray fitted though so this probably helps keep them dry.

Gary - They will dry out and eventually not smell of wet sheep all the time. Then the wrapping will start to fall off :lol1:

same problem matey, But only when they wet...

Get it all the time stinks and steam pours out of the grille.

ceramic coating :D

A lot will depend on the type of wrap you use and I stick with the DEI 2". It is applied damp, not wet and has to be pulled tight with each 360 degree wrap. This extends its life but also helps to ensure it does not act like a sponge. Keep it tight.
I did try the paint available from the wrap manufacturer which they claimed kept out moisture. I wonder where they came up with that notion. Disingenuos springs to mind and a second profit stream I guess. My experience was that it made no difference as far as steam was concerned. Steam should not be particularly noticable after the first week or two but the paint made the wrap brittle and in time it flaked off so now I have some unused and useless aerosol tins of paint that have sat in the garage for several years.

heatwrap
 

have wrapped my headers twice, once with ebay wrap second time with dei wrap both times dried out and fell off

i have just got used to seeing bits of heatwrap flapping about under the car

how long is heat wrap expected to last on the car? or how long does it usually last?

I never get any smell/steam from mine (dei applied as per Harvey's instructions, only painted with UHT exhaust paint) and they've been on for nearly 3yrs. Look as good as the day it was used..:)

I can only assume you guys live near some very 'deep' roads/rivers..:lol1:

Do you run your under trays..?

Done properly with adequate ties, heat wrap should last for many thousand miles/several years and I find that the repairs I have to do to heat wrap are usually because of mechanical abrasion from running over objects like cones, lumps of wood, other road debris or optimistic off road driving at the farm or whatever where there is a bit of grounding.
Use it damp, keep it tight and apply plenty ties. I think you have to do a fair bit of wrapping to learn all the tricks. Straight sections are easy to get right but going round corners or doing collectors takes a bit of thought.