I can't seem to think of a straight hose there..
you say "big long pipe joins the hose "
that makes me think of the black metal pipe on the left side of the engine.

the hose on the forward end of that pipe is an almost 90 degree turning
hose.
they rarely fail.
( oh ...just remembered - there is a small short straight hose  on the small
pipe coming from the oil cooler to the t-stat housing, maybe you mean that
one ..it's different diameters on each end ...need the correct 2.1 hose
there...
and they do go out sometimes, and are still available new.  )

the thermostat housings though ..
the plastic ones can just warp and melt sometimes.
If you do end up taking it off the engine ..be careful as the two allen
screws that hold it to the head can get awfully rusted into the head.

about 2/3 of a gallon will spill when you undo the t-stat housing.
something like that.

( in all the vans I work on these days ..it is never that,  say in a
collection of 10 parts..
like the 2.1 t-stat housing and hoses are ...that it's one bad part and the
other 9 or fine ..
it's that the whole area is about 20 years old and needs complete rebuilding
and restoration )
 - but maybe this is just one hose.

and mostly ..vanagon hoses are just fantastic ! there are a few that get
extra heat and wear some ..
but the majority of them, like main coolant hoses ... ..some of the best
made hoses on any car ever built anywhere.
have fun !
Scott
www.turbovans.com

----- Original Message -----
From: "Steven Johnson" <sjohnso2000@GMAIL.COM>
To: <vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM>
Sent: Monday, July 26, 2010 12:24 PM
Subject: Coolant hose leak between long pipe & bottom of T Stack

> Hi all, Well, I got an situation here.  Found a puddle on my catch all
> cardboard on the floor of the garage.  I eyeballed the line of
> sight/gravity
> always tries to suck straight down and could clearly see that where the
> big long pipe joins the hose and goes to the bottom of the T-stack had
> a leak.   So I want to replace this hose but I need to know how much
> coolant I should expect to leak out so I know what size catch basin to
> use.  It's a 91 camper BTW....
>
> I'll probably go down to NAPA for a replacement to get this done
> quickly and order the correct hose in the meantime.   This is a basic
> straight hose so I don't anticipate too much trouble but I'd really
> like to know how much coolant I'm going to have to catch.
>
> Thanks!
>
> Steven