Hey guys i got a b16 boosted, 50 trim, 260whp. I have a full size mishimoto radiator fillled with 70% distilled water and 30% motul racing radiator fluid and water wetter. When cruising my water temp is around 200F and in boost is like 205F. I cut my front bumper to get more airflow, but that didnt work. I read this on here "What you pour into a radiator is also an important decision if you want to protect all those expensive aluminum engine components. Straight water is the most thermally efficient coolant, but anticorrosion issues and cold weather demand antifreeze. According to Jay Ross at Applied Chemical Specialties, the best water to use is soft water. Distilled water is not a good idea because distillation strips ions from the water. When it is introduced into the cooling system, the natural chemical-balance process will pull the ions from light metals such as aluminum or magnesium that are exposed to the water. This ion transfer greatly enhances the corrosion process called electrolysis. Soft water is treated with sodium chloride that replaces the lost ions and minimizes the electrolysis process. If soft water is not available, then bottled water or tap water is the next best solution. If you insist on distilled water, Ross says mixing it 50/50 with antifreeze will pull ions from the antifreeze rather than from your cooling system itself"
My questiom is what exactly is sfot water. So i i boiled tap water would that take the minerals out? Also can i go 80% water, i live in Cali no freezing issues

 

Soft water is water with relatively low concentration of calcium carbonate and other ions. It contains few or no minerals like calcium (Ca) or magnesium (Mg) ions.

Soft water specifically refers to water that has low amounts of certain minerals such as calcium and magnesium and it may still contain many other dissolved materials such as chlorine or sodium. Distilled water, however, is very close to pure water with nearly all dissolved materials removed through the distillation process.

So, they're similar but not entirely the same thing.

Also, boiling it will not do anything - you'll likely increase the concentration of minerals since you're boiling off "clean" water and leaving the solutes behind.

 

What about reverse osmosis? I've heard that is actually worse then tap water and will eat the metals because it wants to take in minerals to stabilize itself chemically. But wouldst distilled water have the same problem? I would never run straight water for this reason.

I run about 10% glycol, water wetter, and the rest straight water. The Water wetter and glycol are to help increase boiling temperature and effectiveness of the coolant mix.

 

I've used only distilled water (40%), Toyota Red coolant (50%) and Royal purple ice water wetter that tends to not foam so much (10%). I've never had issues with distilled.

Even with soft water, (depending upon your region similar to well-water), there are mineral deposits that can cause issues of the inner linings of the radiator.

Distilled water boils clean (that's why its used for those that know how to iron their clothes ) vs. soft water.

 

Ok thanks for the good info. Im just gonna use distilled, seems the safest. So you guys use a half size radiator with one bottle of water wetter? Can i use 2 since i have a full size?

 

One full bottle will be plenty

 

I am surprised to see this is even still debated. In a LOT of racing they don't allow anything but water to be ran in a coolant system. People put in all kinds of stuff like dish soap, fabric softener, and any other cheap and "track safe" surfactant that they can come up with.

Anyone with straight water experience will tell you that tap or bottle watered WILL rust your system. In a lot of drinking waters there are actually minerals added or left for taste. Distilled has been and will always be the way to go. If you are that concerned then run a zinc anode.

Since everyone wants to get all fancy with the ion transfer stuff, coolant or no coolant it doesn't matter, if you don't have an excellent grounding system you are going to have corrosion no matter what you do. Having coolant only creates a battery like environment. Most people's problems is they don't change their coolant anywhere near often enough.

Look at boats for an example where combating corrosion is commonplace. Things are extremely well grounded and an anode is always used in saltwater. Another good example is GM vehicles with DexCool namely ones that have an ignition coil on the intake manifold. Practically all of them develop coolant system leaks. Guess what you find when you pull the manifold to replace the intake gaskets? Massive amounts of corrosion.... poor grounding and "lifetime" coolant are a very bad mix.

Adding more water wetter than necessary is just a complete waste of money (well so is buying it anyways when other things work identically) as water will only "thin out" so much. Ever shaken up a bottle of RedLine Water Wetter? It's one of the few clear bottled ones for a reason - you can see all the foam of your overpriced dish soap. Surfactants work by breaking the surface tension of the water and this allowing any bubbles to escape the system. No bubbles creating barriers / hot spots the better the cooling system works.

 

Water wetter does have corrosion inhibitors though. My local track has a firm rule of no antifreeze (and they check your overflow) because of how hard it is to clean up a spill properly. Water wetter atleast allows you to run straight distilled water with a bottle of water wetter and your ready to roll. Its like $6 when on sale, not breaking the bank

I also like my coolant pink

 

So Honda radiators still use solder? Asbestos? LOL! You have to actually look into the products some more. Sure I could of missed some stuff, but hey, there is no such things as marketing gimmicks right?

Red Line Synthetic Oil - WaterWetter® Coolant Additives - WaterWetter®

ASTM D2570 and ASTM D1384 corrosion tests

ASTM International - Site Search

Asbestos in Water Methods: EPA's 100.1 & 100.2 and AWWA's Standard Method 2570

I looked into this a long time ago, but it's always nice to have a refresher.

 

It comes down to pure water is very corrosive, its all relative but add high temps increases its reactivity. With distilled water and adding an additive your controlling whats going in the water. Non-distilled water can have ions in it that may react with internal engine parts, along with pure water. Look up metal activity series anything above aluminum will replace aluminum. Adding these additives to your distilled water water gives ions that are safe lower in the above metal activity series, but let the waters partial charge bind and somewhat neutralize its self. Also there are other substances for lubrication in the cooling system people tend to forget about. This can get pretty deep. In the end add what they tell you to add no more there are side effects of having too much your really messing with the boiling point of the cooling system. Look up azeotropic diagram, shows how solutes in small concentration can make a huge change in boiling points.
Hope this wasn't too much, just trying to bring together what a few people have posted above.