Re: antifreeze

Posted by rustmonger on July 24, 2020 at 06:38:49 from (75.254.58.224):

In Reply to: antifreeze posted by Ellis Kinney on July 23, 2020 at 17:22:27:

Ellis,
I use the test strips, and have also periodically had labs (such as Fluid Life or Polaris) run a test to back up my test strip efforts. So far, I have not found a problem with Ethylene Glycol type antifreeze that couldn't be addressed, usually as simple as adjusting DCA levels. My formal training started with Detroits at GM in the 70's, and I have zero formal knowledge of the newer generations of coolant.

My method changed somewhat when I bought a farm in 1985 and became a larger scale user of coolants. Rather than test and change vehicle by vehicle, or tractor by tractor, I will drain the coolant when I service or exchange an engine, etc., and allow the sediments or turbidity to settle in a container (Usually a 5 gallon bucket with a lid). I then use a test strip to run a rough PH/ DCA test. If at that point the drained coolant passes the strip tests, I decant it into a barrel I dedicate for that purpose, discarding the bottom half inch or so if it contains sediments. The barrel usually has around 25 to 40 gallons in it. When needed, I use the coolant drawn from the barrel, and I have never had a problem. I could always pay a lab to run a more complete test on the coolant in the barrel, but haven't done so in years, since the tests always came back within limits. If I don't know the pedigree of the coolant, I discard it, because so many people will use tap water, and the cost to accurately determine dissolved mineral content exceeds the value of the antifreeze. I personally use only rainwater or distilled water for dilution, no exceptions.

There is however an additional issue that all should be aware of. For years, the super cheap antifreezes were loaded up with silicates to serve as stop leaks. A certain level is okay, but too much can clog up a heater core, etc. I have opened old gallon jugs of cheap antifreeze, and seen "icicles" of silicates that had come out of suspension. My chemistry knowledge is limited, so I asked the test lab about it the last time I had the barrel tested. The answer was- "If the excess silicates have already fallen out of solution, just add the coolant to the barrel, and any additional silicates will be diluted by the large volume. Discard the silicates in the jug.".

Just one program, everybody has a different situation.

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