Re: How To: Replace the Washer Reservoir / Tank / Bottle (with pics)
Originally Posted by onehundred80
My windshield washer light comes on and sometimes goes off, but mostly it stays on. There is plenty of fluid in the tank.
Before I rip it all apart should I buy the sensor before hand or can the sensor be fixed, is it a loose wire maybe?
Anyone had similar problems and solved it without buying a sensor?
Thanks for the ideas. 
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I fixed it.
The story.
When I picked up the car the former owner told me the WW light was going on and off. I understood from him that the tank had plenty of fluid in it. On the way back home this was exactly what I saw, on, off, on, off.... By the time I got home it was on all the time.
Determined to solve what I imagined to be a sensor issue, I took the tank out and washed and tested the sensor. I washed the sensor because it felt slimy. It checked out OK, but the fluid in the tank was found to have a slime in it, like you find in stagnant water. The fluid did not appear to be WW fluid, probably plain water, I guess that's OK in Florida.
With the sensor plugged in and in my hand and the ignition on, I flipped the float up and down. After a slight delay the light went on and off. This delay I assume is to stop the light flashing when the fluid is almost low enough to turn the light on and the sloshing around of the fluid would turn the light on and of.
I re-assembled the cleaned out tank and turned on the ignition, the light was on, I filled the tank and the light went out.
I think the light was flashing when I first got the car because the slime had slightly jammed the float and caused it to stay up or down longer that the delay time. I think the fluid at the time was just at the tipping point of registering a low fluid condition, and when I used up some of the fluid the float stayed down and turned the light on permanently.
I hope that solves the issue because getting the tank out is awkward to say the least.
Do not use plain water in the WW tank, slime builds up and will jamb up the washer nozzles and may cause a repeat of my problem.
I followed LugNuts how to in this PDF.
CLICK
Edit
I have been using the car for a month now and the light has remained out.
Last edited by onehundred80; 02-01-2016 at 10:27 AM.