I posted this eons agao but its still true.
BEWARE OF 'GREEN GOO'
I worked for the largest specialty chemical company in the country whose
business has
involved boiler and water treatment for decades. Here is what our chemists
have found:
If you heat antifreeze that contains silicon (such as Prestone) above 210 deg
rees, when
it cools down, the silicon precipitates with the minerals in the water.
After a period of
time, all the silicon will have precipitated and only the glycol is left
in solution. This
protects the car from freezing, but the precipitates form on the water
jackets preventing
efficient heat transfer, may harm the water pump, and clog the radiator.
Also the
silicon is not longer present to prevent corrosion between the dissimilar
metals in the
engine. Look under your radiator cap. See that funny looking green stuff?
We
call it the 'GREEN GOO'. Say 'THANK YOU' to Mr. Prestone.
By topping up with more antifreeze, you are just adding more silicon to the
system to
precipitate out. By flushing your radiator and refilling with fresh
antifreeze only adds
to the precipitate problem by giving it more silicon and tap water to make
precipitate
from. The precipitates are not water soluble and flushing will not remove
them.
Eventually your cooling system will fall victim to the 'GREEN GOO'.
Therefore whenever you change your antifreeze, you must use a good chemical
flush to
purge your cooling system of the precipitates. A 'quick' flush or power
flush will not
do it since they are mechanical flushes. One product 'COOL PREP' is
especially good
for cleaning a cooling system. You add it to your coolant and drive with
it for a week
and then flush the cooling system. This product will dissolve all
precipitates so they
can flushed. It may be too good. Any small leaks that were plugged by
corrosion will
be free to leak again. This includes heater cores, etc.
Refill with fresh antifreeze and clean water, leaving room for another
product called
'COOL TECH 2'. This product originally was developed for nuclear steam
plants and
prevents the silicon from precipitating. By staying in solution, silicon
provides the
dissimilar metal protection, lubricates the water pump, maintains good heat
transfer
in the engine water jackets, AND avoids the dreaded 'GREEN GOO'. It costs
less
than a dollar. In theory since the silicon remains in solution, and
ethylene gycol
never wears out, the antifreeze should be good forever.
In line coolant filters provide extra protection.
Also remember your coolant does not raise the boiling point. That's is what
the
radiator cap does. 3 degrees per lb. Boiling point with a 13 lb cap is 212
+ 39 = 241.
**************Gas prices getting you down? Search AOL Autos for
fuel-efficient used cars.
(http://autos.aol.com/used?ncid=aolaut00050000000007)
_______________________________________________
Support Team.Net http://www.team.net/donate.html
Tigers@autox.team.net
http://autox.team.net/mailman/listinfo/tigers
http://www.team.net/archive
|