Does it really raise the boiling point of water? System pressure raises the boiling point for sure. Anti freeze however I'm not so sure about. Only one way to find out for sure....
ethyl glycol will raise the boiling point- shouldnt be an issue in a properly operating cooling system tho.. and boiler make-up is usually softened and treated city water not D.I. water, however once through the steam cycle it becomes distilled water requiring steamline chemical treatment to prevent corrosion and oxygenation to the boiler tubes and steam lines.
That's what water wetter is for does the exact same thing . Lubes water pumps decreases water temp is an anti corrosive anti freeze retains heat I don't need that in san Diego and I don't need that in my flathead. Besides I run the correct rad cap that helps 100%
I always use destlated or RO water to my radiators toghter with antifreze The reason to not tap water in the radiator are the minerals and silcats that will fell out on from the water in temperturs over 60 degees C. It is call boiler sones in derict translation from swedish. If you have look in steam boiler that have untreted water you can see way you not should use tap water in the radiator I live in sweden and there is necesary to antifreze expet under sommer. The antifreze have rust inhabiters with is necary to.
I have in my Lincoln V12 flat heads engine distilled water with a bottle of water wetter and never had an issue so far with 1,500 miles on the car and the temperature of the engine with electric fan on is 160 degrees all day in Phoenix with 115 degrees out. Thanks Frenchy
Warranty tag on new radiator: warranty void if you don't use distilled water (mixed with antifreeze.)
I use distilled water in my hot rod. Our water has lots of minerals and I've been told by other guys you shouldn't use it. I also run some anti-freeze because it lubricates the systam. I don't need anti-freeze locally but when we drive to higher locals it can get cold. Won't get very cold for me though since I don't do cold and hot rod dosen't have a heater... or aC for that matter. It's a hot rod. Any way I use distilled water with no ill affects so far.
Around here several stores sell Deionized water for especially for rads. I know you shouldn't drink though. I think it's more important to change the coolant often than what you use.
What someone has been getting away with, one way or the other, is not factual advice. The water does matter, and is a concern in commercial/industrial heating systems, chillers, etc. Working on old cars I have seen engines of similar age, from the same manufacturer, with serious corrosion, and others with surprisingly little. That definitely implicates the water that was available where the car was used(and/or possibly how much methanol non-permanent anti-freeze the engines were exposed to). Water free of minerals cannot cause mineral deposits, but pure water more easily takes on ions from the metals it contacts. Manufacturers of truck and industrial engines recommended additives to minimize corrosion. The easiest long-term option for cars is anti-freeze mixture that is changed as needed, or an appropriate corrosion inhibitor. That will take care of even "problem" water. "Regular" anti-freeze is made from ethylene glycol. Ethylene glycol is corrosive. Anti-freeze contains corrosion inhibitors that keep the ethylene glycol from attacking the metals it contacts. Anti-freeze with depleted inhibitor is more damaging to metals than any kind of water. For that reason it is important to periodically change it, or replenish the depleted corrosion inhibitors.
Anti-freeze raises the boiling point of the coolant, but on the other hand, anti-freeze doesn't cool as well as plain water. In the end it seems to be more or less a wash in a properly working system. Nothing you put in the cooling system can lube the water pump bearings. Inside the pump there is a seal around the shaft, a space open to the atmosphere(the little hole in the pump), then on the other side of the space the water pump bearings. Any liquid that makes it past the seal leaks into the space and out the hole. Automotive water pumps have been made that way for well over 70 years. The seal is not an ordinary lip seal, but two hard materials rubbing against each other under spring loaded pressure. Depending on the pump those materials may be carbon composite, hardened steel, ceramic, carbide, or a powdered metal composite. The argument could be made that an additive might help lube the sealing surfaces, but those seals are designed so they don't need help. The seal typically lasts until looseness in the bearings cause the seal to fail.
My diesel New Holland farm tractor manual say's the same thing. I have only used distilled water along with antifreeze since new.
People talking about new Ford diesels, $250,000 John Deere garbarge, and DI water! In the movie "Red Dawn", they pissed in the radiator!
Use what it says on the bottle of coolant you are using, it is additive specific. I use it on my aluminum radiator.
Very accurate statement.... Here are some numbers to back it up.... The ability of something to move heat is called the specific heat capacity. Using pure water as the standard (in chemistry, almost everything is referenced to water), a 50/50 mix of water and anti-freeze has a specific heat capacity of .75BTU/lb as compared to water at 1.0BTU/lb.....or in more simple terms.....75%. A 50/50 mix will also have a higher boiling temp of around 225 deg....and freezing point of -30. What is interesting....more glycol does not lower the freezing point....70% glycol gives you a freezing point of around -60, but 100% glycol freezes around 10 deg....go figure.... You can adjust your mix depending on where you live....if freezing is not an issue, then a 30/70 mix would give you a 5 deg freezing point and a boiling temp of 220...and your heat capacity maybe somewhere up around 80-85%. Contrary to many claims...."Wetting" agents do not improve the heat transfer. Running water too fast through your system does not reduce cooling....
I am a steam boiler and corrosion chemist. Let me share some facts. Boilers cycle up with constant refilling, radiators don't, unless you have a leak that you top up hourly. Scaling is one process. Usually involves Calcium & Magnesium -easily removed by water softeners. Can involve Silica, not removed by softening. Deposition is a separate process. Iron is your biggest concern here. Corrosion is an electrical process. "antifreeze" should contain Glycol - for raised boiling point/freezing point. Corrosion Inhbitor - phosphate/phosphonate layer that disallows electron exchange. Scale inhibitor - polymers that keep scale ions in solution. PH - pH7 is nearly perfect for corrosion. PH 8-9.5 are better for lowered corrosion, but your cooling system is probably not built for that. "Pure" water has no pH buffering, so pH can swing wildly, and swinging acidic will eat all your alloys first, then your steel. Again, any decent 'anti freeze' will provide this buffering. In summary, if you plan to run your motor/water pump/ radiator for more than 5 years, use water with no Calcium, Magnesium, Silica or Iron, and use the CORRECT ratio of water/inhibitor.
I have a nice clean plastic 5 gallon container. I fill it with a 50:50 mix of distilled water and antifreeze so I am always ready to go with a coolant change or top-off. Has anyone in recorded memory lost an engine to corrosion (that was not already corroded when you got it)? This might be a non-issue.
My heavy chevy gets nothing but heavy water. It has superior neutron absorbing properties for those long nuclear winters.
I'm not sure I understand your question. Does corrosion only matter when it occurs while you own the part? As a mechanic, and when doing auto restoration, I saw LOTS of corrosion damaged blocks, heads, radiators, and secondary pieces, especially aluminum pieces. I personally have GM aluminum 215 V-8 heads and Buick 300 heads that are corroded beyond use. In serious cases of corrosion where no replacement parts are available the repair can be to remove a large section back to solid metal, weld it all back in, then re-machine and shape as needed. Depending on the part that isn't always an economic alternative, but when you have a very rare set of Moser DOHC 4-valve heads for a SB Chevy, a rust-damaged Bentley block, or a corroded aluminum Rolls PIII V-12 block(only about 730 were made and most parts don't interchange anyway), if you want it to live again you work with what you have.
I like Evian. It tastes better. Not very traditional, but nobody can tell the difference once it's in the radiator.
what was it that Chrysler said to use to fight corrosion on the open deck alloy slant six blocks? I'd heard that the reason 99% of the aluminum blocks you find (if you can find one) have ruined deck surfaces is that the second/third owners of the few alloy block cars didn't know about the special coolant requirements. It was either distilled or deionized, but whatever it was, would probably still be the right stuff today... somebody's gotta know what the factory put in them.. -rick
Permit me to restate more clearly: has anyone who started with an undamaged engine and then run a 50:50 mix of distilled water and anti-freeze ever subsequently lost the engine to corrosion?
I doubt it. But if you throw a shorted temperature sending unit that leaks current to the coolant into the mix they'll be losing heater cores and aluminum fittings on the heater hoses to corrosion.
Ok, since it's my thread I get to pick the winner and I'm going with "Plumbid" and his Red Dawn reference, the boy has a way with words.
50/50 using distilled water here. I ran straight outta the hose and anti-freeze for years with no problems. I thought I was doing good by switching. I have a Desert Cooler radiator,Flex-a-Lite fan,and the factory shround on my '64 C10. It does not run hot under any circumstance. That radiator is one of the few things I've ever bought that actually works right.
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