Coolant/ Water mix - PeachParts Mercedes-Benz Forum

latief · #1 08-03-2010, 01:06 PM

If i Have more water than coolant in my cooling system, is there any possible damage to pump seal/ bearing? I understood that coolant lubricates these and keeps them in a good shape....

thanks

MTI · #2 08-03-2010, 01:18 PM

Assuming that the water you're using is decent, it's unlikely to cause damage to your system. However, it is more likely that if you're using the wrong spec coolant that damage can occur. Your M104 was designed to use a non-silicate coolant, G-05 spec, 50-50 dilution. Other coolants may contain abrasive silicate or may be incompatible with the seals and gaskets used in the engine.

latief · #3 08-03-2010, 01:45 PM

Distilled water and Zerex g-05.....

I am just just not sure how accurate the mixture is since i had some coolant lose due to hose changes, and i topped it off with distilled water only.....

thanks

rocky raccoon · #4 08-03-2010, 02:41 PM

No problem. It doesn't take a lot of the anti-freeze to adequately lubricate the pump. If you park outdoors, you should test before Winter though. A 50-50 mix provides the optimum anti-freeze protection.

Testers are available very reasonably at any big box auto supply store.

jsap · #5 08-03-2010, 04:06 PM

I'm in California, so I use 25% coolant, 75% water. I add a bottle of water wetter to the mix. Temp reads about 85*. When run hard, it could creep up to 95*, but come back down to 85* when cruising. Never goes higher than that.

latief · #6 08-03-2010, 04:41 PM

The reason I am asking is that i just changed my pump. the old one lasted for less than a year, as I ran it with only water for a week when i first installed it ( i was trying to clean out residue after my head-gasket) .....I will not repeat that mistake now....

Thanks, I will try to get the water/coolant tester to make sure i have enough g-05 in there ....

jsap · #7 08-03-2010, 05:55 PM

Water for a week could cause corrosion. Might want to do a chemical flush with scale removing properties, but I don't know if any would be safe for these engines. I hope someone with experience or MB-approval knowledge could chime in on that.

Since you're in FL, you could definitely do what I do: 25/75 + WW.

pop & blow · #8 08-03-2010, 06:37 PM

no harm to water pump at all but coolant cools the system better then water and keeps block from freezing minus 32 degrees coolant does have some lubicant ability to the pump itself.

jsap · #9 08-04-2010, 02:36 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pop & blow

no harm to water pump at all but coolant cools the system better then water and keeps block from freezing minus 32 degrees coolant does have some lubicant ability to the pump itself.

Hope you won't mind me disagreeing. He flushed the system with water, then ran the car without any corrosion protection for a week. When water, metals, heat, and air (there are little bubbles of air in the system) are combined, you get rapid corrosion. Flash rust can begin in a fraction of a second given the right condition. Try running an old brake disc under hot water.

Also, coolant is not a good conductor of heat. The function of antifreeze is to prevent the water from freezing, and to provide anti-corrosion properties. Only by mixing antifreeze with water, does this coolant solution become usable in our cars.

Water alone is the best heat conductor, and it has a high heat capacity. But, it provides no anti-corrosion. By mixing it with the minimum amount of anti-freeze for the lowest expected temperature, you get the necessary protection against freezing, plus some anti-corrosion. To provide the remaining anti-corrosion, you have to add something like water wetter or royal purple.

Corroded metals in the system will not only inhibit heat transfer, but it may damage the pump and seals. To make matters worse, it may further corrode. A chemical flush should be done to de-scale. It should be fully drained when the car is cold, rinsed with water with the thermostat removed, and filled up with proper solution before running the engine.

latief · #10 08-05-2010, 08:15 PM

Bought a Preston coolant/ water analyzer for like $4, anyone know how to interpret the readings? I know how to use it, but not sure what the readings are indicating......

emerydc8 · #11 08-05-2010, 11:42 PM

Check out this excellent link.

http://www.k6jrf.com/MB_WW.html

Ferdman · #12 08-06-2010, 06:10 AM

latief, check the instructions that should have come with the analyzer.

latief · #13 08-06-2010, 08:38 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ferdman

latief, check the instructions that should have come with the analyzer.

That's the thing, using it is straight forward, but there is no description of what the numbers mean.....not even on the box...one side shows freezing temps, and one side shows boiling points.....it is hard for me to tell which freezing/boiling point corresponds with what coolant/water mix....there is no explanation of that ...

Emercydc,

That is an excellent link, thanks. One point confuses which is he sometimes refers to the mix 40/60, or 30/70, then in the body of the article, he starts talking about mixtures of 60/40, and 70/30, so i assume he is talking about the same thing? i don't think it would be 70% coolant.....

emerydc8 · #14 08-06-2010, 09:04 AM

I'm sure he meant the smaller number to be antifreeze and the larger to be water. I run mine at 35% here in Arizona and it works well. I took a permanent marker and copied the percentages off Jim's tester for future reference. Too bad Prestone has to make it so complicated.

latief · #15 08-06-2010, 10:54 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by emerydc8

I'm sure he meant the smaller number to be antifreeze and the larger to be water. I run mine at 35% here in Arizona and it works well. I took a permanent marker and copied the percentages off Jim's tester for future reference. Too bad Prestone has to make it so complicated.

Aha, Awesome!! .... i did not see those in the picture...now I have

Thanks