Do you have to dilute antifreeze with water?

Answer 1

Yes!

100% AntiFreeze/coolant is too thick to work properly and will not cool and protect your engine!

AntiFreeze actually has a lower freezing point when diluted with water than straight AntiFreeze does.

You should always have AT LEAST 1/3 water !

Get a Coolant 'Freezing/Boiling' temperature gauge. They are very cheap. Especially in comparison to a new engine or cylinder heads and cam shafts!

Be aware that there are a couple of different types of coolants now.

The long used traditional one is Ethylene Glycol.

The newer 'Low Toxicity' Propylene Glycol has a different density and needs the appropriate meter for it.

The long used Ethylene version has a sweet taste to it and animals such as cats and dogs will readily lick it up and drink it and get very sick at the very least and most likely die. For this reason I ONLY use 'Low Tox' Propylene Glycol now.

Follow the tester instructions:

The coolant has to be at the correct temperature to check it properly: usually at operating temperature. Be VERY careful about opening up the radiator at any time while the coolant is hot. It is under pressure which raises the boiling point of the coolant, just like a 'pressure cooker' does. Thus when you release the pressure, it may now then be above the boiling point and instantaneously go from being a liquid to a gas. Which means it now has ~ 1000 the volume!!! If it does this it will pretty well 'explode' into a very hot and dangerous scalding geyser!

The best bet is to loosen the radiator cap when the coolant is cold and then start it up with the cap loose.

Virtually all Radiator caps have 'dual position' removal stages. The first one releases the pressure, but is still held mechanically to the radiator. This is for safety reasons because of the factors listed above. To fully remove it, you have to push down on the cap to get past the mechanical safety stop. So when refilling and purging the air from your coolant system, leave it 'half off' while warming it up. This will also reduce overflow that may happen. If you have to take a radiator cap off when the coolant is hot, wear thick leather gloves if you can, wad up a rag so that it has compact area a few layers thick and put this over the radiator cap to loosen it. NB: Be VERY sure that nothing including the rag is going to get caught in the cooling fans, belts etc! The rag will reduce and prevent the coolant shooting up and spraying all over the place including on you and in your face! It is best to either have a full face shield on as well as other protective clothing if you absolutely HAVE to do this! If not, turn your face away from the rad cap while loosening it off. You can feel it hit the first 'notch' or 'detente' that releases the pressure but keeps the cap on the radiator for safety as previously noted.

Once you have your coolant tester filled, you must tap it gently to release any gaseous bubbles that are attached to the float(s) that will cause erroneous results. Be sure that you have the tester oriented properly as in some style of testers where the float is on a pivot it will also give you incorrect readings if it is not in the correct position.

The water pump lubricant, the anti corrosion resistance additives in coolants become less effective with time. Even the freezing and boiling points will have less temperature range and protection for your engine and cooling system over time. Go two years at most without some cooling maintenance. You can get coolant 'ReChargers' that replenish these additives. It is a good idea to add a Coolant flush, (mineral) de-scaler etc to the coolant and then preferably power flush it periodically. Note that significant amounts of coolant &/or water will remain in most blocks unless you pull the drain plug if the block has one. I put brass drain valves on my vehicles in these when they are new. It is almost impossible to remove these plugs after being in for years. Even with the engine out and stripped down for full and easy access, let alone in the vehicle blocked and covered by all sorts of things with very limited and restricted access. However in many V shaped engine where there are two bank of cylinders at an angle: V8s & V6s; often there will only be a drain plug on one bank of cylinders. Thus when you go to refill it with fresh coolant, if you have flushed it with water, there can still be a significant amount of water in the block and in your heat exchanger that warms the passenger compartment which is just a very small radiator. Thus if you add coolant that is already diluted to the proper point, it will be very diluted and way too thin and weak for proper protection and operation. Thus you will have to drain what you can, add more undiluted coolant till you get it at the right mixture. This generally has to be done more than once. As I'm sure you realize, this is a pain and expensive. Thus in such circumstances, add straight coolant and remove and thin it out with more water if you have to. You can then use the diluted coolant to top it up when it needs it.

NB: If you are doing a coolant drain, (flush) and refill, be VERY sure that you get ALL air purged from the cooling system otherwise you may end up with NO coolant in the heads and end up warping (leaking) &/or more likely cracking them and destroying them, perhaps along with the cam shaft(s) )< 8( Thus if you are uncertain about this and the proper procedures to ensure this, do your homework and find out what you need to do in order to do this properly!

Elevate the end of the car that the radiator is in if at all possible. Some heads have a bleeder valve to allow the air to escape. This may also be in the thermostat housing/casting. One option is to loosen the thermostat housing a little bit until coolant starts to leak out of it then tighten it down to get most, but not ALL air out of the system. NB: if you do this, be aware that there is a slight recess/step for the thermostat to seat properly and if you tighten the housing down without it properly positioned, it will crack the housing that will then leak.

A procedure that can help purge the air is to leave the radiator cap 'half off' so that it cannot come off, but will not pressurize the radiator and cooling system while you warm it up to check it and purge the air. If you have air left in the system, often it will make its way to and bubble out the top of the radiator. You then top it up as you have to until it is filled to the proper level, then tighten the rad cap down fully.

If your system is sealed properly, when any air bubbles out through the overflow /reservoir, as it cools down and forms a vacuum in the cooling system, it will suck up the coolant mixture as it is supposed to and keep it at the proper level without and air in it.

Conclusion:

While this isn't 'Brain Surgery' as with many things, including those that on the surface appear to be quite simple, there are a lot of subtleties to it that have to be taken into account and done properly. Make absolutely sure that you fully understand and comprehend EVERYTHING fully and completely that is involved and required in order to do this job properly. Don't be afraid to ask if you are not sure! I've had numerous clients over the years that were going to save the expense of an hour or two of my labor by doing this 'simple job' themselves. In too many cases, it has ended up costing them thousands of dollars!

Don't end up being ''Penny Rich and 'Pound Poor'' (British/UK currency)

Don't forget to turn the heat up in the passenger compartment to include the coolant in it during all such procedures.

Their are newer coolants out now that have a 5 year life span. More and more new vehicles are coming equipped with it. All of these Coolants are different colors.

FYI: Your engine will operate about as long without (enough) relatively CLEAN oil in it as you will without (enough) clean blood!

Oil and filters are a LOT cheaper than engines!

I only use a full synthetic 5W-50 oil now. I use Canadian Tire's brand that isn't as expensive as 'brand name' oils, but it still meets the same standards. This oil is a 'full temperature range, 'ALL season'' oil. Where I live, it is the (FROZEN) 'Great White North' for significant portions of the year,. Thus there are very wide temperature ranges. If you are unfamiliar with this aspects of motor oil, here is an ''explanation' / 'memory aid'': The lower the temperature on the thermometer, the lower the number of your oil needs to be. VIca Versa; The higher the temperature on the thermometer, the higher the number of the oil you need to use. These numbers are indicative of how thick or thin (~ the viscosity) the oil is at different temperatures. With a nod to William Shakespeare, why not just do as I do: get one 'For all Seasons'

Driving a Vehicle that burns or even leaks a lot of oil? We all know that the best place for such vehicles is off of the road, but if you have one that you have to drive, adjusting the 'weight' of the oil can help compensate for this considerably. If you are going through a lot, it is getting 'changed' all of the time already. Just change the filter 2 to 4 times a year and switch to heavier oils and then thinner with the cold winter only when you have to. You'll be amazed at how much straight 50w (Canadian Tire) can reduce this consumption of oil during the hot weather. Don't use it otherwise! It's too thick!

One last tip:

- Smokes (heavily) on start up? Then your 'Top End' = valves/guides are worn out.

- Smokes (heavily) on heavy acceleration or heavy loads like going up a steep hill? Then your 'Bottom End' = (pistons &) rings are worn and leaking. Likely your cylinders as well.