[70 RAT]

Hi all, I'm getting ready to service my rad and remembered a thread awhile back about not using distilled water. BillK and others made some comments about the subject as well, but don't remember if a final recommendation was made. So is it tapwater or distilled ??

Dave MacGregor
Aces 1818
Team Chevelle 27

p.s. AL, got my card and decal. thanks

 

[Gene Chas]

Holy Moly Rat, we went round n round with this one. I started it recently with a question about DexCool. The bottom line, use your garden hose like you always did! A Culligan rep stated that the pure-er the water, the more it wants to bind with its surrondings - chemically. By the way the Dexcool solution is not to use Dexcool, but Prestone's 50/100 which is Dexcool like but "safe on Modine solder", which is a problem with Dexcool.

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[283v8]

If you use distilled water, be sure to fill the crankcase with baby oil !

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"Let me live in a house by the side of the road and be a friend to man, - with a garage and a smallblock Chevy"

 

[BillK]

Rat,
Never did get an answer from Prestone's web site on this one. I have been so busy I forgot about it, maybe I will make some more inquiries !

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Bill Koustenis
Advanced Automotive Machine
Waldorf Md

 

[Cam]

I recommend using non-silcate coolant (antifreeze) in the prper proportion. It is usually the stuff they refer to as 'long life' coolant. It keeps the deposits down and hence the effectiveness up. It costs more, but it makes more sense than distilled water.

 

[hangten]

I hate to rain on everybody's parade, but when I bought my new radiator the manufacturer recommended distilled water!

 

[Narti]

Here we go AGAIN!!!!

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Nick P.
Team Chevelle Gold #36

 

[Gene Chas]

Ok Ok here's the solution. I have these Brita water pitchers 'cause the water here in Buffalo is 50% chlorine in the summer. Use filtered tap. There, done. And Cam I think you're referring to the Prestone 50/100 product. That's what I'm going to use. It's like $2 more a gallon.



[This message has been edited by Gene Chas (edited 06-29-99).]

 

[Manny Gomez]

Okay guys I'll jump in this,
I live in Las Vegas and have for all my 50 years. The water here is high in alkline (very hard). Those chemicals that naturally occur in our water tend to come out of the water and bond to the internals of a cooling system. (If you've ever been to Lake Mead and seen the white ring around the lake you know what I mean) My brother has owned and operated a radiator shop here for years and recommended to me that I try distilled water in my 61 Corvette. The water seems to be especially active with aluminum radiators, and you don't take one of those apart and clean them. There is a definate reduction in deposits when distilled water is used in cooling systems in lieu of the stuff that comes out of our taps. Also don't use soft water instead. Most water softeners use salt to regenerate the core of the unit. This leaves a salt residue disolved in the water that will really cause problems in a cooling system. Real distilled water (not mineral water or even purified water) has all dissolved chemicals and minerals removed and is PH netural or close to it. Therefore it sould be much less likly to react with the materials that our cooling systems are made of. My own personal experience with this and that of my brother, has convinced me of this. By the way did you know that pure water cools much better than antifreeze?. I've seen lots of discussion about "Water Wetter" and the like lately, but one of the things we do here in the desert is reduce the amount of antifreeze in the summer to about 10%. You need some to resist rust and keep the pump lubed, but the increased about of water seems to move more heat out of the engine. Just remember to change back to a proper mix if you live in areas that freeze. Also keep an eye on the coolant for rust. If it starts to show up, you went too far. My conclusion and belief is that if you live in a part of the country that has lots of dissolved minerals and chemicals in the water, distilled water is far better for use in our cooling systems. It's cheap and I can't find and haven't seen evidence that it is harmful. I use it in my cars and have for years. mgg (Gold # 209)

[This message has been edited by Manny Gomez (edited 06-29-99).]

 

[ehjorten]

Also don't forget that given time the coolant in your car starts to turn acidic and will accelerate the deterioration of your cooling system components. Be sure to change your coolant reqularly, not just top it off.