Stop brake fluid dripping when doing major work

[Andrew]

I had to replace all the brake lines in my wife’s Freelander, and was complaining to a mechanic friend about not being able to stop the fluid dripping everywhere. He suggested a tip which worked a treat:

When you crack open the first union, put a drip pan underneath and then push the brake pedal to the floor. Wedge it in place with a piece of wood against the seat. This will seal off the master cylinder and you will be able to work away hardly any drippage.

Once finished, I topped up the master cylinder, cracked all the bleed nipples and went off for a cup of tea. By the time I came back, fluid had appeared at all the nipples and I bled the system very easily. Since then the car has done 20,000 miles with no problems. Has anyone else heard of this trick with the brake pedal?

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[grimsubaru]

The logic is sound for minimizing fluid consumption/draining. But doesn’t this almost guarantee that you will have lots of air in the system when you pull the brake back up? I could see using this if one has a vacuum pump.

[Andrew]

No, actually I let the brake pedal up when all the lines were in and bleeders closed, then opened them and went for that cup of tea. When I came back I just had to do a few pumps of the pedal to bleed each line.

I’ve since used the trick again when I rebuilt the Defender’s rear calipers. I didn’t even clamp the flexi hoses, just pushed the pedal to the floor and carried on. Again, hardly any bleeding required.

[Author]

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