Testing your Antifreeze/Coolant - Important Antifreeze Facts

[houdel]

Does anyone know of any places where I can mail in a sample of my antifreeze to test the additive and protection levels? For that matter, has anyone done that on a regular basis? I assume a full service truck center could do that, but I live out in the boondocks and the nearest full service truck center is over 100 miles away, so I don't want to drive all that far just to get my antifreeze tested. And heavy duty diesel approved antifreeze/coolant is $10.00 per gallon at my local mini truck stop, so I don't want to spend $50+ to drain and refill my system just because I haven't tested my old coolant.

A couple of important points I found while researching DIESEL antifreeze/coolants on the web:

1. Not all antifreeze/coolants are the same. DO NOT use regular automotive antifreeze/coolants (i.e., Prestone, Wally World antifreeze, etc.) in a diesel! Use ONLY an antifreeze/coolant that specifies on the label that it is approved for HEAVY DUTY diesel applications. Diesel engines require low silicate levels and specific additives to provide pitting and wet sleeve liner cavitation protection which automotive antifreeze/coolants do not provide!

2. Use only soft or deionized water when mixing with diesel antifreeze/coolants. Hard water contains minerals which will react with the special diesel additives and negate the additional protection you paid all those extra bucks to get!

3. Properly maintained heavy duty diesel antifreeze/coolants can be good for up to 1,000,000 miles, 12,000 operating hours, or 6 years of protection, whichever comes first (depending on the brand used)!

4. Diesel SCAs (supplemental coolant additives) are available (I guess at the same truck stop that tests your antifreeze/coolant) to bring the corrosion, pitting, and liner cavitation protection up to specifications if your additive level has fallen during use.

For more info, see:
http://www.imperialoil.ca/Canada-English/Files/Products_Lubes/IOCAENCVLESEsso_coolant_antifreeze.pdf
https://www.cbest.chevron.com/generated/MSDS/PDS7660219.PDF
http://www.penray.com/coolantguide/
http://www.penray.com/hdcatalog/teststrips.htm

 

[cranetruck]

Lee, I agree that the cooling system is often neglected. There are tests you can do yourself to determine acidity, level of additives, freeze point etc.
Get "Cooltrak" test strips, available on the internet. They will test pH and freeze protection.
Other test strips are available, but I think they are coolant specific (by Fleetguard for example).
I use Texaco heavy duty antifreeze plus distilled water plus additives.
SCA, Supplemental Coolant Additive and DCA, Diesel Coolant additive are available at NAPA. You'll need about two pints for the 8 gallon multifuel engine cooling system.
For further pointers, see article in MVM June 2005 issue (#109).

 

[wallew]

Boy am I glad someone brought this up. I did NOT know that diesel engines require a different anti-freeze.

THX so much for posting this. Hey Bjorn, I've liked you new avatar so much, I'm considering mounting my boost and egt gauges in THAT exact position, so I can see them by just glancing up...

jim

 

[Polverone]

Bjorn has a slick filtration system for his coolant. This thread brought to mind that I had it bookmarked.

http://www.steelsoldiers.com/index.php?name=PNphpBB2&file=viewtopic&t=2640&highlight=coolant+filter

Pictures are gone from the "Great Flood/Meltdown" of '05. Maybe we can get Bjorn to post them again? Please?

 

[cranetruck]

Well Gary, you know me, few words and lots of pictures.
Here is a one image, the plumbing has changed now that I also have the dual/heated fuel tank connections involved.
The filter is a bypass type connected where the heater connections are made (used Tee's in the final set-up).
A bypass filter filters some of the coolant at all times and eventually all will run through the filter.

 

[devilman96]

DIY Coolant test kit ... Napa PN 4107
Above pictured filter base is Napa PN 4019

There are several filters you can use with this base the above filter (4070) is additive free, PN 4428 and 4429 have water softening chemicals to prevent rust and maintain pH. I dont know which is best for a Deuce but I cant see the pH and rust control being a bad thing on any application...

I will prolly order a set of these tomorrow... I will post the cost when I do!

 

[muthkw25]

So to clarify. You use 50% Texaco Anti-freeze and 50% distilled water and add two bottles of DCA or SCA?

Ends up being 4 gallon a piece plus the additives?

Lee, I agree that the cooling system is often neglected. There are tests you can do yourself to determine acidity, level of additives, freeze point etc.
Get "Cooltrak" test strips, available on the internet. They will test pH and freeze protection.
Other test strips are available, but I think they are coolant specific (by Fleetguard for example).
I use Texaco heavy duty antifreeze plus distilled water plus additives.
SCA, Supplemental Coolant Additive and DCA, Diesel Coolant additive are available at NAPA. You'll need about two pints for the 8 gallon multifuel engine cooling system.
For further pointers, see article in MVM June 2005 issue (#109).

 

[SCSG-G4]

Another way of quickly checking your anti-freeze is to use a Reichert 7181 Duo-Check (coolant and battery tester), which is based on refractance not specific gravity. Manuals, available on the web, explain it a lot better than I can, and they can be found on that big auction site for about 20 percent of the cost of a new one.

 

[clinto]

So to clarify. You use 50% Texaco Anti-freeze and 50% distilled water and add two bottles of DCA or SCA?

Ends up being 4 gallon a piece plus the additives?

1. That's the right way to use the site-find the thread you need and bump it for clarification.
2. That's correct-I use a 50/50 mix of coolant, distilled water and then I add the SCA's.

 

[Ford Mechanic]

Boy am I glad someone brought this up. I did NOT know that diesel engines require a different anti-freeze.

THX so much for posting this. Hey Bjorn, I've liked you new avatar so much, I'm considering mounting my boost and egt gauges in THAT exact position, so I can see them by just glancing up...

jim

Me either..... I put regular green in mine when I changed it. Ford diesils take the same gold or green coolant that they put in the gas cars and trucks.

 

[zout]

DCA - great time to mention the damage internally in a diesel engine cooling system by static electricity bombarding the liners of the pistons until they cause tiny pinholes in the liners. Have seen this extensively on Detroits - Cummins - Cat engines by coolant systems neglected. I have also seen Cat engines water pump failures by replacing the coolant filter with the internal DCA release agents in them - for some reason it will cause premature failure of the water pumps. I am not sure if all liners are externally treated on the MV engines but I know the civy diesel engines mentioned above are.

 

[touringfordor]

My 2000 Ford Powerstroke requires coolant conditioner to be added at specific intervals.

 

[Ford Mechanic]

My 2000 Ford Powerstroke requires coolant conditioner to be added at specific intervals.

News to me... I'd have to ask the diesil tech. The new Ford 6.7l I've seen him test and add stuff to, but not done or seen anything done to the older stuff but change the coolant. The shop can kiss my you know what when it comes to diesil engines. Due to the disaster that is the 6.0 and 6.4, I don't have anything to do with any Ford diesil engine at this shop.

 

[MarcusOReallyus]

they can be found on that big auction site

I suspect that you mean www.ebay.com.


That's the big site that has live auctions, and it IS against the rules to post links to those auctions, and for some strange reason, some people seem to think that means it's forbidden to even mention eBay!

But it's not.

 

[touringfordor]

Here's the bottom page 11 (15K mile service) of the Ford Service Guide:


Additional services for: Light Trucks,Sport Utilities, and Vans
O Inspect and lubricate 4X2 ball joints (except F-450/F-550)
O Inspect and lubricate steering linkage (E and F Series, Expedition, Navigator, Excursion)


Additional services for: Diesel
O Check air filter minder, replace filter as required
O Replace fuel filter
O Add 8 to 10 oz. of FW16 coolant conditioner to cooling system

 

[MarcusOReallyus]

Another way of quickly checking your anti-freeze is to use a Reichert 7181 Duo-Check (coolant and battery tester), which is based on refractance not specific gravity.

That's got to be a lot more accurate and reliable than testing specific gravity with a hydrometer.

 

[IsaLandr]

My 2000 Ford Powerstroke requires coolant conditioner to be added at specific intervals.

The 1994.5 T444E in our '91 Centurion requires scheduled coolant additives, too. I just do what the Navistar techs tell me to do, which is, happily, the same thing the Ford techs tell me to do. The real trick is getting them to agree on exactly which additives to put in.

 

[Hainebd]

The issue is cavatation due to the water molecules being broken apart by the ignition of the fuel. This mini explosion then displaces the O2 molecules that have attached to the liners taking a tiny piece of liner with it. The additives reduce the surface tension of the water molecules keeping the intact. Newer engines use a pre burn to reduce this and quite the engine. Other additives are required and the coolant filters that add additives are best to maintain additive levels. My question is since our trucks sit, what is best?

 

[red]

Also need to take into account what kind of sleeves the engine uses. Wet, dry, or no sleeves? Dry sleeves (what the multi uses) are the least susceptible to pH issues.