Which Water for Cooling System?

[HighMileage]

I just drained my old coolant/water mix. It looked ok but was old. I filled with water…ran up to operating temp….drained. Repeat until clear.

I use Conventional Green and RMI.

Q: Which water? Distilled? Filtered spring water? Chlorinated tap water?


Thx.

 

[TexasT]

I would do distilled but I'm kinda cheap so mine usually just comes out of the hose unless I plan accordingly.

 

[HighMileage]

I would do distilled but I'm kinda cheap so mine usually just comes out of the hose unless I plan accordingly.

Thanks for the reply. I heard distilled attracts minerals and causes corrosion. But who knows? That’s why I’d like to see what others use.

 

[TexasT]

Why You Should Never Use Distilled Water in Your Cooling System | Rislone

Many people have "heard" that distilled water is the best water to use in a cooling system. This is wrong! Let us tell you why.

rislone.com

You might be right. I guess i'm ok with the hose water.

 

[HighMileage]

Why You Should Never Use Distilled Water in Your Cooling System | Rislone

Many people have "heard" that distilled water is the best water to use in a cooling system. This is wrong! Let us tell you why.

rislone.com

You might be right. I guess i'm ok with the hose water.

I knew I heard something about Distilled not being good. Only good for batteries. I think my dad said it 20 yrs ago.

I’m leaning towards the filtered spring water at Walmart. Comes in gallon jugs like distilled. They have Nursery Water,too. I wonder what that is.

 

[deezdad]

I know its frowned upon for being a waste of $ and stupid & lazy & all that crap but I use 50/50 premix.. I just trust whatever water prestone is using is good, another benefit is I periodically drain my radiators & refill with new & everything stays 50/50 (New England) without breaking out the measuring cups & science lab beakers.

 

[HighMileage]

I know its frowned upon for being a waste of $ and stupid & lazy & all that crap but I use 50/50 premix.. I just trust whatever water prestone is using is good, another benefit is I periodically drain my radiators & refill with new & everything stays 50/50 (New England) without breaking out the measuring cups & science lab beakers.

I use a simple coolant tester. Just the right amount of Conventional Green,RMI and water for 60-70%.

 

[deezdad]

Just searched it, prestone uses demineralized water. Then searched that vs distilled for some interesting reading.. distilled is go to popular opinion same way most think 160° tstat is the only way to go.. till you start reading

 

[HighMileage]

Just searched it, prestone uses demineralized water. Then searched that vs distilled for some interesting reading.. distilled is go to popular opinion same way most think 160° tstat is the only way to go.. till you start reading

Found this about distilled:

“But the problem is that when water is distilled, or “stripped,” of its minerals and impurities, the resulting solution is composed of chemically imbalanced “ions.” This leaves distilled water “ionically hungry,” so it will actually strip electrons from the metals in a cooling system as it attempts to chemically re-balance itself”

 

[John Larkin]

Walmart sells purified water for $1.37/gal. That ought to quinch your OCD just fine.

"A prominent example is the production of Bottled Purified Water, which involves using purification processes such as distillation, deionization, or reverse osmosis to remove impurities. " - from aquascience.com.