Wow. I have never heard of anything like this. Good to know!

 

Hows about reading the fact sheet from Red Line. Water Wetter doesn't need to be run with antifreeze if you're in an area that doesn't freeze, and your A/C doesn't freeze up the heater core. It has the noncorrosive properties in and of itself.

I've run waterwetter and distilled water in my AFCO aluminum radiator for the last 5 years and had no corrosion issues.

http://www.redlineoil.com/whitePaper/21.pdf

 

How often do you change your coolant, James?

 

I haven't. I just add distilled water when it gets low. I have an inline filter that I keep an eye on, but it never had much gunk.

 

Ben,
I was looking for one of those in line filters last year. I looked everywhere and found that a company in Australia made them. Are they still available?

I hear there is an anode rod that screws into the drain plug of a radiator.

 

okay...a little more info. I'm paraphrasing this how i understand it (or not!) as i still havent got my head around all the chemistry yet.

1) if you have cast iron, copper and stainless steel together you have the opportunity for electrolysis to take place as these three can set up their own current.

2) if your water quality is not as it should be (ie some disolved salts in the water) then its game on.

James, i cant explain why this has hit my car and not others, but obviously i have the cast iron. There is copper in the temp sender and the radiator filter gauze is stainless steel.

the alum becomes the anode that is eaten away.

the inhibitors in the coolant are not sacrificial anodes but a form a barrier on the metal surfaces. good quality coolants have effective inhibitors. cheaper ones may not. either way coolant needs to be changed out pretty regularly and topped up with coolant/ water mix to maintain the same strength.

magnesium can be used as a sacrificial anode. zinc (which the boaties often use) can not be used.

one last i have to get my head around... I had a stainless steel overflow bottle bolted to the alum radiator frame. wonder if this is part of the problem too???

 

distilled water is key, just like your battery you must run distilled water.


distilled water is pure, there is nothing in it!!!

 

.....

 

ok, fair comments

I did a pH test on the mix that came out...10.8. Quite alkaline and not acidic as I expected it would be.

Also, the water wetter spec sheet that James posted showed it should be 8.6.

Im wondering if there's anything else that can make it more alkaline or if that's just a function of the reaction that's been going on in there?

Anyone got any idea what the composition of the white crud might be?

 

alum corrosion? from the radiator water pump etc