I have read a number of threads where members talk about using distilled water in their radiator. What are the advantages of this.
I understand corrosion can occur with cast iron but I use Castrol coolant (the green stuff), and flush the system every twelve months and don't seem to have any issues.
The tap water here in Tasmania is reputed to be one of the best in the world and only has fluoride added.
Do people buy distilled water or just let tap water sit in a container for a while to let contaminants settle.

 

Personally, i add distilled water to a max of 10/20% into the already diluited coolant...they say it helps cooling and there must be something true about that if many racers use plain water as coolant...

 

There are minerals in tap water which can cause corrosion. It's better to use distilled water for this reason.

 

There are minerals in tap water which can cause corrosion. It's better to use distilled water for this reason.




Panic, not only does water remove heat faster than glycol. Coolant(green stuff) is very slick when dumped on the pavement. Tech inspection before the races here check for water only and of course any kind of oil leaks to keep the track clean

 

for around $5, it's good insurance

 

[QUOTE=gkull;1561881586]There are minerals in tap water which can cause corrosion. It's better to use distilled water for this reason.

calcium is devastating for engine blocks
once i saw the 'opening' of a lotus 2.2ltr alu blk you couldnt believe all internal coolant passages obstructed by calcium, similar to arteries get obstruction with cholesterol.

 

Cooling passages will "lime-up" over time if you use tap water. If you do, you should use radiator CLEANER {not flush} every couple of years when you change coolant to get rid of interior surface contaminants [which reduce your cooling efficiency]. The cleaner costs more than the distilled water.

 

Also keep in mind that distilled water is not the same as mineral water. In case someone did not know

 

What's the difference between distilled water and deionized water?

 

From the internet

So far as quality goes, distilled is better than deionized. However,
having had
extensive experience with both, I suggest you simply purchase distilled water
from a reputable supplier. The costs and aggravations associated with
maintaining deionizers and stills is considerable. Unless you have funds to
hire a maintenance technician, you will be spending a lot of your time
looking
after whichever system you select
De ionized is usually made from running water through reverse osmosis filters and distilled is made by boiling and then condensating steam.

 

All good answers why distilled water is better for cooling systems than are tap water or spring water or mineral water or cave water or well water or river water or any other water. Less minerals/metals (or ions thereof) in water means reduced reaction with cooling system's materials and less fouling/liming/scale.

Accumulation of scale will reduce efficiency of rad core to transfer heat & impedes flow of coolant.

Here in SC USA ... virtually all grocery stores sell steam-distilled water in a gallon jug for less than one dollar ... as said ... cheap insurance. I also use it in our hummingbird feeders' nectar (simply for purity-health). Frankly, I suggest anyone should have several gallons of good water on hand at all times ... for basic emergency human supply ... distilled is AOK for that.

 

Here you go, DB.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deionized_water

 

Well, I wouldn't agree that distilled is better than Deionized, but I guess it depends on what you're using it for.

Deionized water is made by first running it through a reverse osmosis membrane which remove about 90%-95% of the contaminents. It is then run through a filter containing anions and cations. This removes EVERYTHING from the water. It is completely pure and will register zero on a TDS meter.

I have an RO/DI system and it's not that much trouble to maintain.

 

Hey Bash, I used to work in a professional photo and imagery lab, and we had a deionized water filtration system. They always told the employees there were severe health risks to drinking the deionized water and I was wondering if you knew if that were true or not.

 

Not unless it is run through the nuclear deionizer. [Then you glow in the dark.]

 

Not true at all. They probably didn't want you guys drinking it because it is rather expensive to make.

 

Since 1975, I've used 100% diethylene glycol (no water at all) in my C3's and daily drivers. No problem. The advantages are that there is no corrosion or rusting in the cooling system. My 68 C3 had pure glycol (the green stuff) in it since 1975, and when I removed the engine about three years ago, there was no rust in the block. I still have the original factory heater core in the car. Another advantage of glycol is that it boils at 244 degrees C (471 degrees F). This means that if you use pure glycol, your cooling system is never pressurized. You can open the radiator cap any time you want. My 1997 Ford Thunderbird developed a crack in the water crossover chamber of its plastic intake manifold. I drove it for about a year with the crack before I finally replaced the manifold. With an unpressurized cooling system, I had only a small leak.

WWII liquid cooled fighter planes used pure glycol, mainly because it didn't pressurize their cooling system. Glycol can be used in high performance engines!

The glycol is slightly less efficient than water. You probably can't use it in a air conditioned C3 BB with a copper radiator. My engines run slightly warmer, probably about 200 degrees F. But even if they were to overheat, they won't boil.

 

$5!!?? It's 65 cents for a gallon at Walgreens out here...

AFAIK, DI water that they sell in stores only has ions removed. They'll never go through all that for commercial sales because they don't have to. It can still contain bacteria, organics, and other substances - but not ions.

Distilled water only has CO2 in it from the air.

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I'm guessing that, just like chlorinated water, mineral buildup in the system would result from using water with flouride - (calcium flouride, etc.).

You get Deionized water for your radiator if you suspect electrolysis in the system. You get distilled water to prevent deposit buildup due to impurities in the water.

I suppose if you are a real fanatic, you could distill some DI water to use in your radiator...

 

The reason for recommending Deinonized water is to prevent corrosion in the cooling system.
The IONs are removed. Ions is simply the scientific term for the parts of calcium. copper, brass, magnesium, sodium, chlorine carbonates and other materials less known contained in the water. It is this mixture that allows the water to be electrically conductive. Corrosion is a galvanic/elctrical process.
The purity is determined by how well it is filtered. Drug companies use deionized water that is also bacteria free. Costly to do and not the same as your aquarium water.

Distilled water runs a close second for this purpose, as it has some of the ions (minerals etc) left in it from the distilling process and equipment used.

Bottom line, You wouldn't take a bath starting with dirty water, so why try to prevent cooling system corrosion by using water that already promotes corrosion.

 

The DI water they sell in stores, at least around here, is first run through an RO membrane. These membranes are relatively cheap and do remove bacteria and organics. It would be stupid to only use the DI resin since it would take about 20 times as much resins to produce the same amount of water, and the DI resins are the expensive part.