windscreen washer jet FL
 

is it possible to remove one of these jets without damaging anything ?

whereas the jet on the drivers side gives a healthy spray , the one on the passenger side gives no more than an occasional weak dribble , barely reaching the screen ...this despite cleaning the holes with a suitable diameter needle

presumably the same pump feeds both so there must be a blockage in between the pump and the jet , maybe in the jet assembly itself ?

I had issues with the passenger side on side just prior to the MOT. Tried the needle method, but it didn't help. What I ended up doing was removing the tubing from the jet, and then using a small syringe, forced hot water back down the jets, which cured the problem. I suspect that over the years, gunge somehow accumulates at the base of the jets, blocking them. By forcing water through them the wrong way seems to clear them.

thanks ...sounds exactly the same , will try that !
wonder why it is the passenger side , maybe the pressure is a little less !

just about to have my annual flu jab so the syringe should be just about the correct diameter needle !

I think they get bunged up with limescale due to the heating elements.

Even though they only clip in, to get them off you do really need to remove the wipers then the whole scuttle panel so as to easily disconnect the wiring and pipes.

I have a spare (used) pair (long story!) that I soaked in kettle descaler for a while; lots of bubbles came off and they flowed much better afterwards.

You could disconnect the piping near the wiper motor, I think there's a joint there with a non-return valve, and syringe some descaler through from there?

Take them out and soak them in descaler for a week. Kilrock's the best. The only way, I'm afraid.

Zip

I use this stuff neat: https://uk.hg.eu/products/sanitary/h...ale-remover-1l
Though I buy it in 5L containers as we live in a VERY hard water area.
(And yes, we do have a working water softener!)

It could simply be the connection just before the passenger side jet has worked loose, this used to happen to mine a few times till I cable tied it on, easy to check+++

Should have clarified earlier. Don't use the needle. Just put the end of the syringe over the jet and force the water through.

well , cured ...sort of
having had no luck in cleaning up in situ I followed andrew's idea of taking off the wipers [ big job...probably never been off in 18 years ] and removing scuttle cover [ using angle grinder to cut off the centre bolt having cut away plastic ] ; easy to undo water tube from pump , also heater wires
after that , next door for high pressure air through jets and pipes which cleared whatever was blocking the system

why sort of ? one of the wires to the passenger side heater was broken off so presumably have to source an identical jet preferably with the wire back to the connector by the wiper motor
anyway , no MOT problem with this at least !

thanks all for your contributions

Same thing happened to me. I tried stripping the wire back a bit, doubling it over, and pushing it back into the back of the jet. Never had a problem since...

Zip

thanks for the tip ! will give it a go , but don't know what actuates the heaters or at what temperature or how I will notice if they actuate !

I've never understood the logic of heated washer jets anyway.
Assuming you have the correct mixture in your washer tank for the temperature why would just the jets freeze up?

I'm sure there are some (maybe rare) meteorological conditions where it helps..... :Confused:

Has someone tried spraying/injecting some de-scaling stuff in them?

Something like GroheClean or perhaps white spirit.

So it'll dissolve the scale into pieces that will be washed away next time washers activated.

I have a vague recollection of reading (or seeing a circuit diagram confirming) that they are on all the time (with ignition)!
I do remember measuring the resistance a while ago to check what current they would draw, hence wattage. It wasn't much.
(Just measured a non-Audi pair I have to hand, about 45ohms so around 3W each.)

Resurrecting a very old thread as my MOT is due and washer jets are a bit feeble......
Decided to try descaler first (HG stuff as noted above, neat) but in situ. Weather isn't conducive to dismantling! :tuttut:

First I just applied a few drops with a small brush, observed fizzing so repeated a few times over an hour or so.

Then I used a small syringe, loaded with a couple of ml of descaler, and pumped it gently in and out of each nozzle in turn. It obviously squirted out the other nozzle in each pair, along with fizzy bubbles.

Again repeated a few times until it ceased fizzing and they're now working well. Ideally need a bit of adjustment but are fine for MOT purposes. +++

As implied above, I think the heated nozzles dry out the nozzles excessively causing them to block.