antifreeze for boat engines

[BlueStringPudding]

I just popped my head into the engine bay, removed the cap. Nothings frozen yet. You cant get a tongue down that thin filler hole unless you're really skilled, which I'm not.

 

[ditchcrawler]

It's visible...about half way down the reservoir....I havent filled it since picking up the sailaway (it was full when delivered)...brought it to the marina...started it up a few times, but it's been unused...waiting for warmer months....I've got no need to run the engine, so thought it best to cover it up and leave till things thaw out.....just wanted to make sure nothing freezes in it while it sits and waits...so I need to top it up....with a mixture of water and antifreeze tomorrow..to be safe.

 

ok, I'm off to get a stick and taste it.

Back in a bit

 

It's sweet !

 

I'll mix a 50/50 solution to top it up tomorrow.

 

Thanks all.

No point in topping it up to the top as it will just get pushed out when you run the engine up.

[Skye]

Dean

 

Don't use neat antifreeze else those nice black hoses, on your photo, may not last the winter! As someone as already said water it down first and run engine to temperature.

 

David

[Keeping Up]

At £1.99p a tester worth getting.Halfords tester

 

Mark.

 

 

 

 

 

I bought one of those, but when I got outside the store I had a look and the tube was empty. I went straight back to the till with it, and a few seconds later the cashier's voice was heard over the Tannoy system saying "Technical assistance required, there's a customer at the till who seems to have no balls". PThe other customers looked at me very oddly while I was waiting for the technical assistant to turn up.

 

They swapped it for a working one, and it seems to do the job OK.

[Guest]

It's visible...about half way down the reservoir....

 

Then the level is pretty much spot on.

 

Either check the mixture strength as per my post #2 or Biz's post.

 

You may find it is OK - but if you need to add a mix ensure your level is not so high your system merely expels it.

 

You may need to remove some to get the quantity and mix spot on.

[Geoff Taylor]

Hi, I always keep a 5 litre container of 50/50 mix handy for topping up,it guarantees not getting caught out when the weather turns for the worse.

[mango]

If there is antifreeze present, it is important to use the correct type when topping it up. The colour will give a clue as to which type has been used, though this is information that should have been passed on to anyone buying a boat.

 

The different types of antifreeze are described on car discussion forums. Ethylene glycol-based antifreeze (often blue) is relatively cheap and popular for boat use. Unlike the old fashioned methanol-based antifreeze it does not become less effective unless water has been used to top up the system, though it should be replaced every two or three years to maintain corrosion protection. Cars now use long-life antifreeze (e.g. pink), but it is more expensive. I don't know if the cheap antifreeze testers are accurate with this type of antifreeze.

 

Coolant should remain nice and clean and any sign of discolouration or rust suggests that it could do with replacement.

[DeanS]

Hi, I always keep a 5 litre container of 50/50 mix handy for topping up,it guarantees not getting caught out when the weather turns for the worse.

 

Definately the way to go, for someone like me....forgetful.

[mango]

A quick check is to dip a finger into the filler and touch your tongue with it, the correct amount should taste very sweet. If there's no sweetness, there's no antifreeze.

If you like sweet drinks I could recommend a fine Madeira.

[Geoff Taylor]

Hi, The antifreeze testers will work on pink antifreeze as well, at work we use refractometers, I find that the accuracy between these and a good make of floating ball type is around 5 degrees. Mixing pink and blue antifreezes together has been known to dissolve the rubber seals bonded to modern head gaskets causing either water in oil or vice versa.

[Capt Ahab]

If you don't want to follow Biz'z suggestion, buy a little antifreeze tester, which will give you a slightly more scientific indication of the concentration. I can't imagine they're expensive, had mine for about 30 years so haven't a clue now what it cost.

 

Tim

About a tenner from Halfords.

[mango]

About a tenner from Halfords.

The £1.99 Halfords tester claims to be suitable for modern OAT antifreeze as well as ethylene glycol based antifreeze.

 

http://www.halfords.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/product_storeId_10001_catalogId_10151_productId_159068_langId_-1_categoryId_255224

[system 4-50]

My take on antifreeze:

Don't taste it. You wonder why there are more cases of cancer these days? I'm not saying it does, just that nobody knows that it doesn't. A careless approach to chemicals must be part of the cause.

Don't use stronger concentrations than 50% as the antifreeze is not as good a carrier of heat as water AND it is bad for some rubber type components.

The antifreeze is necessary for the corrosion inhibitors even if you don't expect frost (you keep your boat at home in the bedroom).

Get a tester they are dirt cheap.

My sailaway was supplied with no antifreeze (not my idea), the logic being the system would be refilled anyway when the calorifier was fitted. Then I forgot.

 

But I have no claim to being an expert in this area.

 

Edit

Last time I researched it on the web the consensus seemed to be:

Blue AF lasts 2 years

Pink AF lasts maybe 5 years

Mixing pink and blue causes no problems but must then be treated as Blue ie 2 years

Edited January 17, 2013 by system 4-50

[mango]

My take on antifreeze:

Don't taste it. You wonder why there are more cases of cancer these days? I'm not saying it does, just that nobody knows that it doesn't. A careless approach to chemicals must be part of the cause.

Don't use stronger concentrations than 50% as the antifreeze is not as good a carrier of heat as water AND it is bad for some rubber type components.

The antifreeze is necessary for the corrosion inhibitors even if you don't expect frost (you keep your boat at home in the bedroom).

Get a tester they are dirt cheap.

My sailaway was supplied with no antifreeze (not my idea), the logic being the system would be refilled anyway when the calorifier was fitted. Then I forgot.

 

But I have no claim to being an expert in this area.

There is no need to taste coolant because if it contains antifreeze it will be coloured.

 

Having said that, I expect that you will take in more nasty chemicals from breathing the air exhaled by your engine in the bottom of a lock.

[Guest]

At £1.99p a tester worth getting.Halfords tester

 

Mark.

They are superb, I've had one for several years.

[mango]

They are superb, I've had one for several years.

The old ones had four balls and the new ones only three. That's diabolical – or maybe triabolical – but still worth having.

[Skye]

The old ones had four balls and the new ones only three. That's diabolical – or maybe triabolical – but still worth having.

oooo Mango that was below the belt! but good

[DaveC]

Probably a good idea to contact the people who fitted the engine to find out what antifreeze is in there so you can get the same type if you need to top it up.

 

 

 

Dave

[dmr]

A quick check is to dip a finger into the filler and touch your tongue with it, the correct amount should taste very sweet. If there's no sweetness, there's no antifreeze.

 

Please ignore this bad advice from Mr Bizzard, he is obviously showing his age and/or has not tested his anti-freeze for many years.

Antifreeze does not taste sweet, it tastes ABSOLUTELY DISGUSTING.

 

Thoughtless people were in the habit of leaving jugs of antifreeze laying about in the garden where cats found its sweet taste irresistible and promptly died.

As a favour to cats the makers now deliberately add a bad taste!

 

.........Dave

[Timleech]

Big Brother is watching.

Because I 'pre-ordered' something from Halfords a couple of years ago, I'm on their e-mailing list.

I've just received an email promoting their antifreeze tester!

 

Tim

[mango]

Please ignore this bad advice from Mr Bizzard, he is obviously showing his age and/or has not tested his anti-freeze for many years.

Antifreeze does not taste sweet, it tastes ABSOLUTELY DISGUSTING.

 

Thoughtless people were in the habit of leaving jugs of antifreeze laying about in the garden where cats found its sweet taste irresistible and promptly died.

As a favour to cats the makers now deliberately add a bad taste!

 

.........Dave

Traditional antifreeze based on ethylene glycol will be sweet because that is one of the characteristics of ethylene glycol. Modern antifreeze formulations are based on organic acids and they will taste disgusting without anything added to make them taste bad.

[Keeping Up]

So it's impossible to tell whether you've got antifreeze or Tesco burgers in your system

[dmr]

Traditional antifreeze based on ethylene glycol will be sweet because that is one of the characteristics of ethylene glycol. Modern antifreeze formulations are based on organic acids and they will taste disgusting without anything added to make them taste bad.

 

 

But the cat story is so much nicer and its on the internet so it must be true!!!

 

..........Dave

[blackrose]

My take on antifreeze:

Don't taste it. You wonder why there are more cases of cancer these days? I'm not saying it does, just that nobody knows that it doesn't.

 

Except that we do know and you'd have to ingest a bit to get ill. It's certainly toxic, but there's nothing about it being a carcinogen here:

 

Ethylene glycol has been shown to be toxic to humans[7] and is also toxic to domestic pets such as cats and dogs. A toxic dose requiring medical treatment varies but is considered more than 0.1 mL per kg body weight (mL/kg) of pure substance. That is roughly 16 mL of 50% ethylene glycol for an 80 kg adult and 4 mL for a 20 kg child. Poison control centers often use more than a lick or taste in a child or more than a mouthful in an adult as a dose requiring hospital assessment.[8]

The orally lethal dose in humans has been reported as approximately 1.4 mL/kg of pure ethylene glycol.[1] That is approximately 224 mL of 50% ethylene glycol for an 80 kg adult and 56 mL for a 20 kg child. Although survival with medical treatment has occurred with doses much higher than this, death has occurred with 30 mL of the concentrate in an adult.[9][10][11] In the EU classification of dangerous substances it is 'harmful' (Xn) while more toxic substances are classified as 'toxic' (T) or 'very toxic' (T+). The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency generally puts substances which are lethal at more than 30 g to adults in Toxicity Class III.

 

Ethylene glycol has a low vapor pressure; it does not evaporate readily at normal temperatures and therefore high concentrations in air or intoxication are unlikely to occur following inhalational exposures.[12] There may be a slight risk of poisoning where mists or fogs are generated, although this rarely leads to poisoning as ethylene glycol causes irritation and coughing when breathed in, alerting victims to its presence.[13] Ethylene glycol is not well absorbed through skin meaning poisoning following dermal exposure is also uncommon.[14]

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ethylene_glycol_poisoning

Edited January 17, 2013 by blackrose

[mango]

Except that we do know and you'd have to ingest a bit to get ill. It's certainly toxic, but there's nothing about it being a carcinogen here:

 

Ethylene glycol has been shown to be toxic to humans[7] and is also toxic to domestic pets such as cats and dogs. A toxic dose requiring medical treatment varies but is considered more than 0.1 mL per kg body weight (mL/kg) of pure substance. That is roughly 16 mL of 50% ethylene glycol for an 80 kg adult and 4 mL for a 20 kg child. Poison control centers often use more than a lick or taste in a child or more than a mouthful in an adult as a dose requiring hospital assessment.[8]

The orally lethal dose in humans has been reported as approximately 1.4 mL/kg of pure ethylene glycol.[1] That is approximately 224 mL of 50% ethylene glycol for an 80 kg adult and 56 mL for a 20 kg child. Although survival with medical treatment has occurred with doses much higher than this, death has occurred with 30 mL of the concentrate in an adult.[9][10][11] In the EU classification of dangerous substances it is 'harmful' (Xn) while more toxic substances are classified as 'toxic' (T) or 'very toxic' (T+). The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency generally puts substances which are lethal at more than 30 g to adults in Toxicity Class III.

 

Ethylene glycol has a low vapor pressure; it does not evaporate readily at normal temperatures and therefore high concentrations in air or intoxication are unlikely to occur following inhalational exposures.[12] There may be a slight risk of poisoning where mists or fogs are generated, although this rarely leads to poisoning as ethylene glycol causes irritation and coughing when breathed in, alerting victims to its presence.[13] Ethylene glycol is not well absorbed through skin meaning poisoning following dermal exposure is also uncommon.[14]

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ethylene_glycol_poisoning

One of the antidotes for ethylene glycol poisoning is alcohol. There are not many other ways of getting free alcohol from the NHS.