Coolant and Distilled Water

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Labman,

You haven't lived in Burtontown, Mich. Well water smelled like fish; had so many minerals it was probably woth a fortune if you could extract them.

Distilled water is best for mixing with coolants since it doesn't contribute anything to clash with its chemistry.
 
FWIW, the HVAC in my BMW is pretty complex with dual heat control temp. zones, etc.. A common complaint is "bubbling and gargling" heard through the dash (no doubt from the piping and heater core). It would do this even with numerous burbing/bleeding of the system of air. I just thought this was "normal" as it's done this since I bought the car at 12k.

The last time, I brought in my trunk and asked the mechanic to flush and replace the coolant with the customary BMW coolant, but to use the supplied distilled water. No more bubbling/gargling sounds! So although tap water will work, IMHO distilled water is better. Maybe it is a better surfactant than tap...certainly there's less garbage (Cholrine) in it. Unfortunately new rads are now sealed (you fill it thru the expansion tank) so it's hard to tell what effect/difference it makes inside w.r.t. build-up.
 
Well as far as I'm concerned on this matter I purchase the "pre-mixed" stuff off the shelf when I do a drain and fill.It advertises "distilled water" right on the label...it's a 60/40 mix with the majority on the coolant end of the mix...my new vehicles came with this 60/40 mix...I tested them when new...and it works great in the two years I've been using it...it's the green 2 year Canadian Tire brand pre-mix...love it!
 
quote:

Originally posted by Greaser:
Well as far as I'm concerned on this matter I purchase the "pre-mixed" stuff off the shelf when I do a drain and fill.It advertises "distilled water" right on the label...it's a 60/40 mix with the majority on the coolant end of the mix...my new vehicles came with this 60/40 mix...I tested them when new...and it works great in the two years I've been using it...it's the green 2 year Canadian Tire brand pre-mix...love it!

I use this premix CT stuff in my wife's Honda too! It makes life so much easier, I hate mixing coolant!
 
quote:

Municipal tap water is also fluoridated. I wonder if that affects this discussion?

Those Chevron cars in the commercials sure have nice looking teeth!
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All of the major engine manufacturers have clear standards for water; and none (CAT, Cummins, DD, Volvo) include tap water as an allowable unless it meets minimums interms of additives. The primary recommendations are for distilled or de-ionized water. Water containing any levels of contaminants will, as previously posted, cause solids build-up within the coolant system, creating hot spots which then further deteriorate the coolant/cooling ability of the engine. Flight of the dodo bird as it flies in ever decreasing concentric circles, etc. etc..
In our ever increasing underhood temp vehicles it is all the more imperative that de-ionized, distilled, or water meeting the specifications of the various manufacturers is used.
All we want/need as a 50/50 blend with our anti-freeze is pure, good old H2O. Nothing else, no minerals, no calciums, just H2O.. Period..
George Morrison
 
My 2000 Chevy owner's manual says dilute the coolant 50/50 with "Clean, drinkable water".

I use the pre-diluted stuff. Tired of jacking around with mixing etc.
 
I have to admit that in some pinches I have used our local tap water, but I know what's in it, down to the parts per billion (ppb)!
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But 99% of the time I use distilled water since I usually have some around for other, sinister purposes!
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Most municipal water supplies have chlorine and fluorine which could potentially be corrosive in the long term.

However, minerals in water do more to create scale and solids than anything else.
 
I can just picture some of you guys going into your fridge and taking out your Brita so you can get clean filtered water for your cars!
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Let's take another view on this.

The purer the base stock of a motor oil, the more effective additives are, so wouldn't coolant be more effective with a pure dilutant? The coolant has additives to protect the cooling system.

If you were talking about pure distilled water, I could see problems, just like putting pure lube oil base stock in an engine would not be a good thing.
 
quote:

Originally posted by Mike:
If its safe to drink, its ok for the cooling system.

NO, NO, NO. Well water, with so much iron, calcium, and who
knows what other compounds that you can see it, will not hurt your
body. Too much of it, and it may not taste that good, but it won't
hurt you. It will leave solid deposits in your car's cooling system and
the plumbing of your house. The hard water may be better for you
than after all the iron and calcium is replaced with sodium by a water
softener. The softened water may not be as quick to plug up the
radiator, but will still be more corrosive than water that started out
low in minerals.
 
Couldn't be further from the truth...

The minerals that give my water a ridiculous hardness of 33gpg may actually be good for your body, but will cause massive scale and deposit buildup in a cooling system.
You simply have to boil the water too see all the deposits that result from it. Our pots will turn into the surface of the moon if you boil too much water in them.
Or how about I take a picture of my whole house humidifier pad after only a few months use
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and tell me if you want that in your engine
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Or my water heater that has to have a few gallons flushed out at minimum every couple weeks otherwise build up is so severe it can no longer heat the water.
So if my water heater can't heat...how would a cooling system cool...
 
Guys guys guys, quit yammering on the point and just use friggin distilled water - walmart sells it for 50 cents a gallon. at 50/50 thats roughly 3 gallons max. That way you have the power of knowing there is only water and coolant mix in the system.

and while ur at it, change the g-d d-mn oil.
 
Quaddriver, the problem and concern wasn't the money. At least for me originally. It was the people that were saying distilled was BAD. Now we know it's BS, so distilled it is...
 
I've also been interested in this question, and was looking for a "horse's mouth" answer. It would seen that ANY standard water is OK for your car, be it tap, distilled, de-ionized, or softened. I say that because many authoritative websites (AC Delco, Prestone, and others) don't specify a certain type of water in their car care websites covering coolant service -- they simply say "water." That said, there's "acceptable" water, and there's "better" water. The quotes below address the better choices. Also, there seems to be some nomenclature confusion regarding "soft" water (such as rain water since it has little calcium and magnesium), and "softened" water (such as Culligan) in which the calcium and magnesium ions are swapped with sodium ions. Since my home has a water softener, I was curious about the specific effects of that.

From Castrol's website: "Distilled water should be used in the formula, as it is free of the minerals in tap water that could denature the coolant mixture and prevent it from properly doing its job." http://www.castrolusa.com/expert/ae_article.asp?article_id=8&section_id=2

From Performance Radiator, a nationwide radiator shop chain: "Use distilled water, de-ionized water, or as a last resort soft water." http://216.239.41.104/search?q=cache:lY4o0beebKsJ:www.performanceradiator.com/Publications/Information/installer%2520flyer%2520final2.pdf+radiator+coolant+water+soft&hl=en&ie=UTF-8

From the European manufacturer of Texaco-branded coolant: "...the use of soft water is preferred for dilution. Though, lab testing has shown that acceptable corrosion results are still obtained with water of 20°dH, containing up to 500 ppm chlorides and 500 ppm sulfates." http://www.arteco-coolants.com/pils/pil hav XLC-PG.htm

From the Transport & Construction magazine, South Africa: "Most tap water contains calcium and magnesium, which may cause scaling or deposits that form on cooling-system parts such as thermostats or water pumps. Tap water also has chlorides and sulfates, which may corrode metal parts in an engine or cooling system. Use de-ionized "soft water," which can be purchased at most local bottled water companies." http://www.transportandconstruction.co.za/articles/article5.html

From Recochem, a Canadian coolant manufacturer: "Q: Why do the directions state that distilled, deionized, or soft water should be used to blend coolant? A: Some coolants are sensitive to hard water, which can cause some corrosion inhibitors to form insoluble salts in the water. The result is premature coolant failure. Hard water salts will deposit on hot areas within the coolant system creating insulating films, which contribute to overheating problems in the coolant system." http://www.recochem.com/cdnav/cdproalfaq.htm

From FleetWatch magazine: "Water with a PH factor of 3 is classed as soft water or acidic. This leads to rust formation, pitting in water jackets and the promotion of chemical reactions between various metals. Water with a PH factor of 11 is classed as hard water or alkaline. This leads to the formation of scale, retardation of cooling, the blocking of tubes and passages and creates hot spots in the engine. A PH rating of 6,8 to 7,2 is regarded as ideal. This is neutral water.
http://www.fleetwatch.co.za/magazines/sept99/002.htm

Lastly, this ASA Shop Tip appears to answer my Culligan water softener question: "If you use hard water in these systems, you are asking for mineral buildup problems. Softened water, on the other hand, contains dissolved salts that act as an electrolyte, encouraging galvanic action between the dissimilar metals. That's why distilled water is quickly becoming the water of choice!" http://www.asashop.org/autoinc/october/techtips.htm

As for "people" minerals, magnesium and calcium are the two minerals which are too bulky to put 100% RDA into a multivitamin/mineral. So a Centrum or One-a-Day pill can easily have 100% of all necessary vitamins/minerals -- with the exception of mag and cal. Attempting so would result in a "horse pill." Therefore, separate calcium and magnesium supplements are beneficial. But if your drinking water is "hard," it most likely has sufficient magnesium for you (per a medical guide I have). Not sure about calcium, but cheap calcium carbonate antacid tablets easily solve that problem. Removing minerals in your drinking water (through whatever means) is not a good idea unless you make up for it with supplements of some kind. And drinking softened water (Culligan, etc.) can lead to elevated sodium intake (per the medical guide), so install a pre-softener tap and drink from that, or drink bottled DRINKING water (not distilled or de-ionized).
 
I have my own well. I must replace my showerhead every 6 weeks due to the calcium buildup!

I got kidney stones 3 yrs ago and the doc said to stop drinking my well water which I did.

I have not had any stones since. Dunno if that was the actual cause or not but I sure wouldn't put my tap water in a radiator.
 
You want water and ethylene or propylene glycol and some additives in your cooling system. You do not want chlorine, calcium, sodium, acids, etc. in it. Some tap water is fairly good stuff. Some is terrible. Unless you are sure your tap water is low mineral, yeah, go ahead with the distilled/dionized stuff from the store.

Above all, fix the leaks so you are not constantly adding more.
 
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