Coolant Change - How important is Distilled H20?

[ST 96 FZJ80]

I mostly lurk here, since all of you here have vastly more experience for me to learn from...I mostly try to absorb just a small portion of the knowledge here - many thanks!
Now my question...
Went to have coolant flushed from system and replaced with Toyota red. Took it to a trusted mechanic, who used tap water (against my wishes). I know distilled water SHOULD be used, but how big of a deal is it if I leave the tap water in? I plan on changing it every year. I have no signs of the dreaded gray sludge.

 

[cruiserdan]

This horse has been beaten to death many times over.



The use of distilled water insures that the media in the cooling system is at it's best performance level and that NO foreign substances are introduced into that environment.



D-

 

[clownmidget]

Having done this way too many times in the past 1 1/2 years what I have found in your local grocery store is referred to as "purified water" and lists applications like clothes irons, humidifiers, etc. They might say deioninzed as well but the general jist is to have as few minerals that may react with the coolant and/or block to create problems (take your pick).
Mike

 

[RavenTai]

distilled water is cheap enough ($0.59/gal) that everybody should use it, but in many areas the tap water is not that bad, the minerals in that water are going to leave some deposits how much of a problem this is depends on how pure your water is, the clorine and floride are not a very nice things to have in a cooling system either, the well water at my mom's house is florida leaves visible rust stains on everything it touches, I wont even fill my windshild washer or rinse the road dust of the truck with it, it would do a number in a cooling system. the minerals and lack of clorine make it taste good after filtering out the big stuff, makes the best tea,

another example of doing as much of your own work as possible, it saves money and the results are better, most should have the ability to do thier own coolant change.

 

[Beowulf]

>> ... but how big of a deal is it if I leave the tap water in? <<

Not a big deal but you should do a good flush and fill annually so next year take a couple of gallons of distilled water with you or do it yourself. Your cooling system will appreciate it.

-B-

 

[ST 96 FZJ80]

Thanks for the replies...
I want and did take the distilled water to this mechanic & they dropped the ball, but are not offering to pay for the next $40 in toyota red to re-do it right with distilled. Think I may err on the side of caution and go force the issue with this mechanic.

 

[scottm]

I flush and change both trucks every Fall. My systems are supposed to hold 15.5 qts, but after draining both block and radiator, I can barely get two gallons of Prestone in there. I assume the other 9.5 qts are fresh hose-water from my flushing. I could try a final flush with distilled water before draining and filling, but I'd still only dilute the hose-water. I've tried blasting with my air compressor but no more water comes out. Same situation with my Audi. I'll be replacing my rear heater hoses this fall, possibly adding a manifold with valves and hose fitting. Maybe I'll discover something then.

 

[Rich]

...
Think I may err on the side of caution and go force the issue with this mechanic.

I wouldn't bother. You are just going to piss off the mechanic. I would look at it this way - your truck already has 99K miles, and I'll bet all of those have been cooled by tap water. Unless your local water is really nasty, I doubt another year or two on the tap water will make a material difference. I do appreciate the feeling of not having instructions being followed by somebody you are paying to provide a service. I also appreciate that the mechanic probably believes that using distilled water makes no difference one way or another. Anyway, I don't think you want a pissed off mechanic working on your truck. A bad attitude on his part could cost you a lot more than $40 bucks of coolant.

 

[Landpimp]

I read that distilled water promotes electrolisis(sp) if there are aluminum parts in the motor.

true or not I don't know.

 

[RavenTai]

I read that distilled water promotes electrolisis(sp) if there are aluminum parts in the motor.

true or not I don't know.

Distilled Water

In the absence of dissolved electrolytes, water will not conduct electricity, so no electrolysis occurs.

http://jchemed.chem.wisc.edu/JCESoft/CCA/CCA1/R1MAIN/CD1R1630.HTM

I dont know if this is still true after mixing with coolant or after it picks up garbage from the cooling system for a wile it probably will become conductive eventually , but at least you did not add any impurities to the mix if you use distilled water







cross post from other thread:

something similar to was talked about here,

https://forum.ih8mud.com/showthread.php?t=19558

read from post #12 down,

Distilled water is universially recomended in all cars, I have not head of gray sludge outside of Toyota's

 

[RavenTai]

more google findings:

Stray electrical currents can cause electrolysis corrosion.
They attack the coolant and turn it into an acid.
This acidic coolant then eats away at engine component
metals which lead to failure..................................


...........Once the new radiator is installed, you must use only new quality antifreeze
and distilled water. Never use recycled antifreeze or tap water.

http://www.performanceradiator.com/Publications/Information/electrolysis2.pdf


interesting aluminum vs copper/brass reading

Aluminum vs. Copper/Brass

Aluminum prevails as the most common material used for passenger car and light truck radiators today. Though you may think aluminum radiators are relatively new, the first ones were used way back in 1913 by Rolls Royce. Copper/brass has been the material of choice for most radiators until recently because of its superior ability to conduct heat (twice as good as aluminum), greater strength/corrosion resistance and lower cost.

In the 1960s General Motors introduced aluminum radiators on the Corvette as a means of reducing weight. A typical radiator that weighs 15 lbs. in copper/brass weighs only about five and a half pounds when made of aluminum. European auto makers began using some aluminum radiators in the 1970s, but use here was very limited until the 1980s when the push to improve fuel economy began to tip the scales in favor of aluminum because of its lighter weight.

Ford started what would soon become a full-scale transition to aluminum radiators with the Escort/Lynx and Tempo/Topaz. General Motors put aluminum radiators in its then-new front-wheel drive X-cars (Chevy Citation, Pontiac Phoenix, Olds Omega and Buick Skylark). Since then the use of aluminum has steadily grown. Today, Ford uses aluminum radiators in nearly all of its cars and light trucks. General Motors is also using mostly aluminum. Chrysler made the switch with the introduction of its LH-cars (Dodge Intrepid, Chrysler Concord and Eagle Vision), restyled Ram series trucks and latest minivan. Among the Japanese manufacturers, the use of aluminum has also been rapidly expanding with Nissan and Toyota leading the way.

In 1985, only about 24 percent of all new domestic and import vehicles were equipped with aluminum radiators. Today, that percentage is well above 90 percent....................................




..............................................Aluminum is more vulnerable to electrolytic corrosion than either copper/brass or cast iron because aluminum is a highly reactive metal. When the corrosion inhibitors are used up and the pH of the coolant drops to 7 or below, aluminum becomes a sacrificial anode and is eaten away.

This same type of corrosion can also occur even when the coolant is in good condition if the engine does not have a good ground connection. Voltage from the charging system will flow through the coolant to ground, creating electrolysis corrosion that attacks the components in the cooling system.

http://www.arrowheadradiator.com/Radiator_Diagnosis,_ Repair,_ &_ Replacement_ Tips.htm

you MUST AVOID using hard water, since the divalent minerals cause the phosphates and borates to precipitate out and form scale. Using distilled water will provide a slighter longer life of your AF, but I recommend changing it often, before the buffers are consumed.

http://bimmer.roadfly.org/bmw/forums/e46/5593676-1.html

Damage from poor coolant system management takes one of three forms. There's erosion, the thinning of material by mechanical force or impingement -- remember we're dealing with the vigorous movement of coolant, and abrasives or debris slamming into aluminum, copper or brass can literally "sand blast" its way through such soft materials. There's also corrosion, the result of a chemical attack on the metals or rubber, much like acid would do. And there's electrolysis, the stripping of donor material from one source for deposit in another location -- sort of a mini plating cell -- created by stray electrical currents passing through the coolant stream. In all cases, one of the largest contributors to the destruction of the system is water. Chlorine, calcium and magnesium from treated or hard tap water dramatically accelerates the onset and progression of erosion and corrosion. Most experts are beginning to recommend de-ionized or distilled water for fill or makeup, especially where aluminum is involved (can you think of a modem engine where it's not?).

http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0BQA/is_10_80/ai_79787782

 

[Russ in California]

Anyone ever use soluble oil as an anitrust/corrosion additive?
Never had an internal rad problem on any of my rigs.
IMHO
Russ in California

 

[cruiserdan]

Cummins has some sort of "tropical" anitrust for climates that do not justify true antifreeze.