Some thoughts on the ratio of Water to Anti-Freeze, and cooling.
1. Water by itself provides better cooling because it has a higher boiling point than Water mixed with Anti-Freeze.
2. Anti-Freeze is added to water because it lowers the freeze point of water, and it provides an anti-rust inhibitor. BUT, Anti-Freeze also lowers the boiling point of the water.
3. At 50-50 Water/Anti-Freeze the freeze point becomes 34 degrees below zero, as compared to 32 degrees above zero for water alone. BUT, this mixture will boil at about 20 degrees lower than water alone.
4. If you live in the North, and need the low freeze protection of -34, then use 50-50. Overheating of a healthy engine isn't usually a problem in the north, so the lower boiling point shouldn't be a problem.
5. If you live in the South, then low freeze protection isn't necessary since temps are rarely freezing. But, a higher boiling point of the coolant is what matters. In this case, using a ratio of 60-40 Water/Anti-Freeze will raise the boiling point of the mixture -- allowing the coolant to absorb more heat before boil-over.
1. Water by itself provides better cooling because it has a higher boiling point than Water mixed with Anti-Freeze.
2. Anti-Freeze is added to water because it lowers the freeze point of water, and it provides an anti-rust inhibitor. BUT, Anti-Freeze also lowers the boiling point of the water.
3. At 50-50 Water/Anti-Freeze the freeze point becomes 34 degrees below zero, as compared to 32 degrees above zero for water alone. BUT, this mixture will boil at about 20 degrees lower than water alone.
4. If you live in the North, and need the low freeze protection of -34, then use 50-50. Overheating of a healthy engine isn't usually a problem in the north, so the lower boiling point shouldn't be a problem.
5. If you live in the South, then low freeze protection isn't necessary since temps are rarely freezing. But, a higher boiling point of the coolant is what matters. In this case, using a ratio of 60-40 Water/Anti-Freeze will raise the boiling point of the mixture -- allowing the coolant to absorb more heat before boil-over.
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