To Seal or not To Seal
 

I'm getting ready to replace my water pump. The pump seems okay, but the surrounding hoses are shot so I figured I'd go ahead and replace the pump while I'm in there. Anyway, the Hayne's manual says to use gasket sealer, while the instructions on the water pump box(Laso brand pump purchased from Fastlane - :DGlowing endorsement here for both Fastlane and Partsshop)
warn against using gasket sealer.
Any thoughts on this?

What kind of gasket is provided with the pump ?

If it is some fancy dancy gasket with some kind of peel off protective film.... then maybe that is fine...

But if it is a normal gasket which you can touch with your fingers and is not sticky... there is no way I would install it on my car without sealer. I use Aviation Gasket cement on my water pump gaskets...and I let them tack up before installing... messy and sticky... just what a sealer is supposed to be....LOL.. be sure to have alcohol on hand for cleaning it off you or clothes... no...just be sure it does not get on clothes...

I put a thin layer of sealer on all four surfaces...

Just be sure on any gasket install that all surfaces are clean enough to eat off of...

I agree, use some Permatex Aviation Sealer. It comes in a small can and is a brownish color. "Paint" both sides of the gasket and apply it to the water pump first then introduce the pump to the block.

When I replaced mine about 6 months ago, I didn't use anything. The gasket was just the one that came with the pump...nothing special about it.

No leaks....so far.

Chris
'85 300SD

Now that I've got into the project a bit I can see there is a difference to what the two sources are referring. The Hayne's manual is actually referring to the gasket between the water pump housing and the engine block, while the instructions that came with the water pump are referring to the gasket between the pump and housing.
Since I'm having to scrape off the housing gasket, I can assume it was installed with sealer. The pump gasket came off easily, so I'm guessing it had no sealer. I'm going to install gaskets the way I think they were done before.
Thanks for the replies. I'll let you know if there are any leaks.