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Cylinder leakage testers are useful tools for a home or professional mechanic, used to diagnose certain problems with an internal combustion engine including bad valves, rings, leaking head gaskets and other malfunctions. By introducing compressed air into the cylinder of an engine then measuring how much leaks out, a leakage tester or a leak-down tester can help determine if any of the engine’s sealed components have been compromised.

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This tool generally supplements a compression test kit which gauges to what degree the engine is pressurised. The cylinder tester does not indicate the pressure level the engine, it only tells you the percentage of introduced air that is leaking out. If there is a big leak, the tool also does not tell you exactly the cause. You need a standard shop air compressor to use with leak-down tester in order to introduce compressed air into the system.

The tools have dual gauges set in chrome bezels attached to a pressure-regulated manifold. Kilopascals (kPa) are the units of measurement. Other kit components include flexible hoses, quick couplers for connecting the hoses to the compressor and threaded adapters of various size for accommodating engines of different size.

An air compressor hose is connected to the input end with a coupler. On the bottom of the manifold is an adjustable dial that lets you artificially set the pressure coming in. A second hose connects to the engine by being guided into a spark plug hole. This hose connects to the output end of the tester manifold. The first gauge indicates the level of pressure that you set, while the second gauge shows you pressure after any escaping air is accounted for. So if the first gauge is arbitrarily set to 100, and the second gauge reads 85, you know that 15 percent of the compressed air is leaking.

You still have to diagnose and solve the problem once you have pressure tested the engine. Rarely, if ever, are engines perfectly pressurised. In most instances, a loss of up to 20 percent is nothing to worry about. Anything more than that, however, means there is a major problem with a seal, valve, ring or some other component.

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