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I know there are these UV dye additives that can be added to oil or power steering fluid and other types of fluid. But I’m worried that all the UV dyes are the same color making them indistinguishable from each other if added to the different fluids of a vehicle. Ideally there would be a red UV dye and a yellow and green one. If that existed we could assign different UV dyes to the different fluids and test right away by color when a leak presents itself and know what was leaking very quickly.

Does such a UV dye coloration exist or are they all that fluorescent yellow color?

jxramos
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While yellow seems to be the prevalent color of dye, it isn't the only color available. A quick Google Search turned up this kit (NOTE: I have no affiliation with this company or product.):

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It has four different colors which can be used for different fluid leaks.

That said, different dye colors really aren't needed if you understand how to use them. Dye kits really aren't for detecting what's leaking, but more for figuring out what an individual leak is coming from. There are only so many different types of fluids a vehicle has. It is very easy to differentiate between them if you know what you're looking for and where the leak (general vicinity) is located. The two liquids which might be confused are power steering and automatic transmission fluid, because some manufacturers still use tranny fluid in the power steering. The difference here is the location of where a leak might occur as they usually aren't co-located. Engine oil and anti-freeze are the other two big fluids. They are very easy to tell apart, especially while dripping.

Bottom line is, dye kits are usually used when it is really hard to tell where the leak is occurring, not for figuring out what is leaking.

Pᴀᴜʟsᴛᴇʀ2
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As far as I know the only color used is the one that reflects ultraviolet lights making it easily visible under a black light. If there are multiple leaks, each leak can be traced to their source by using the proper procedure. Most importantly cleaning the engine before testing. There are solutions to clean the dye itself if necessary. With proper application the need for different colors probably would not be warranted. There definitely are different types of dyes. Some are oil based, water based and another compatable with refrigerant.

Jupiter
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