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DOT4 to DOT 5 Silicon

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Lobo:
I’ve my old Kombi on axle stands, replacing the rear drum slave cylinders with new ones; and all brake lines drained down.

Q. What would be required to switch over to DOT 5 Silicon - eg is there a simple flushing product I can use - eg DOT 5 (S) itself? (I have no plans to change out the existing Master Cylinder, or indeed the front disc / caliper seals.)

Ta muchly in anticipation…

Trigger:
Link >>> http://www.sohc.co.uk/index.php/topic,18973.msg167267.html#msg167267

McCabe-Thiele (Ted):
I'm guessing your vehicle has no ABS so draining down old fluid & then flushing with 5.0 should be fine.
Start bleeding from the furthest  point to the nearest to the master cylinder. If you have a bleeding tool even better. Iirc the old fluid will be heavier than the 5.0.
Personally after using the vehicle for several journeys I would re-bleed a drop and check it for quality. Places like the master cylinder reservoir & brake balancer valves tend to retain some of the old fluid.

Lobo:
Thanks Trig / Ted… interesting. Tbh, I have been t’internetting the subject in the past couple of hours with the general advice being to not bother due the possibility of incompatible seals, or causing issues due the two fluids ‘clumping’ (my word) and promoting blockages.

So more confused than ever, and given that the Master + front brake seals won’t be renewed I pondering whether to just play safe and stick with DOT 4; carefully topping the Master Cylinder through the access hole in the cab floor under the carpet. Wot could go wrong 😂.
Still happy to hear comments, my mind not fully made up; in case you’re wondering ‘why’ it’s just that 3/5 of the vehicles are now DOT 5 Silicon - ie it’d be nice to standardise.

(Interestingly, due Silicon not being hydroscopic, any included water apparently pools more easily, and towards the bottom of the system - causing worse corrosion issues. So I read.)

Johnny4428:
Maybe the dot 5 will require more frequent changes. Interesting to drain it out into jar after a couple of years and see if there’s any water present.

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