Antifreeze - Straight or 50/50

H

handiman

Member
I've always used full-strength antifreeze when topping off any of my sleds that were down on coolant. I was recently told that I should be using the same 50-50 mix of water and antifreeze that cars/trucks use.

Which is it?
 
indy_500

indy_500

Well-known member
the stuff polaris sells in a bottle i believe is 60-40. I have 50-50 in my 700 and about 55-45 in my dads 700
 
J

jimfsr

New member
Water does the cooling, ethelyne glycol (antifreeze) keeps the water from freezing, and lubricates the water pump, also keeps the internal parts from corroding. It does raise the boiling point to a certain degree also
 
V

vw56german

New member
jimfsr said:
Water does the cooling, ethelyne glycol (antifreeze) keeps the water from freezing, and lubricates the water pump, also keeps the internal parts from corroding. It does raise the boiling point to a certain degree also
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If that were true then 100% antifreeze would not freeze. Actually it is the water that keeps the antifreeze from freezing. 50/50 will give about a -34 freeze point. The max ratio is 69% antifreeze which will give about a -69 freeze point. 60/40 should be about -50, not much reason to go beyond that.

Boiling point is the converse of the freezing point. The mix raises the boiling point in a similar fashion and the presure in the system does the rest.
 
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J

jimfsr

New member
vw56german said:
If that were true then 100% antifreeze would not freeze. Actually it is the water that keeps the antifreeze from freezing. 50/50 will give about a -34 freeze point. The max ratio is 69% antifreeze which will give about a -69 freeze point. 60/40 should be about -50, not much reason to go beyond that.

Boiling point is the converse of the freezing point. The mix raises the boiling point in a similar fashion and the presure in the system does the rest.
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That does not make any sense at all. Water cannot keep something from freezing. The alcohol in the Anti freeze keeps it from freezing (at a reasonable temp.) Antifreeze will loose its ability to protect over time, so the best way is to use a hydrometer to test the antifreeze for the level protection that you need.
 
V

vw56german

New member
jimfsr said:
That does not make any sense at all. Water cannot keep something from freezing. The alcohol in the Anti freeze keeps it from freezing (at a reasonable temp.) Antifreeze will loose its ability to protect over time, so the best way is to use a hydrometer to test the antifreeze for the level protection that you need.
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Looking a bit further I think we could say both views are correct.

Ethylene glycol disrupts hydrogen bonding when dissolved in water. Pure ethylene glycol freezes at about -12°C (10.4°F), but when mixed with water molecules, neither can readily form a solid crystal structure, and therefore the freezing point of the mixture is depressed significantly. This is the reason pure ethylene glycol is not used as an antifreeze--water is a necessary component as well.
 
L

lvr1000

New member
vw56german said:
Looking a bit further I think we could say both views are correct.

Ethylene glycol disrupts hydrogen bonding when dissolved in water. Pure ethylene glycol freezes at about -12°C (10.4°F), but when mixed with water molecules, neither can readily form a solid crystal structure, and therefore the freezing point of the mixture is depressed significantly. This is the reason pure ethylene glycol is not used as an antifreeze--water is a necessary component as well.
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Then why can I pour my "strait" antifreeze out of the jug when it was -27f degrees? Non diluted is not pure ethylene glycol?
 
P

polarisrider1

New member
lvr1000 said:
Then why can I pour my "strait" antifreeze out of the jug when it was -27f degrees? Non diluted is not pure ethylene glycol?
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when was it -27 degrees to try this out? "Straight" anti freeze does not work as well as a 50/50 blend. One of sciences mysteries.
 
L

lvr1000

New member
polarisrider1 said:
when was it -27 degrees to try this out? "Straight" anti freeze does not work as well as a 50/50 blend. One of sciences mysteries.
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The year I bought my new sled with the short windsheild '09 (tall took 8 months to get). Got the frost bite marks to prove it. I parked the new Sled for two days and rode the 11 year old back up sled, tweeked t-cat. I flushed the coolant in the T in the preseason and needed to top it off after a thorough warm up (and I mixed it with distilled water that wasn't kept in the trailer with the antifreeze)

And I agree 50/50 works MUCH better at pulling the heat out.
 
J

jimfsr

New member
Wow, we really beat this one didn't we. Didn't mean to be argumentative. I guess the answer that was sought in the first place is... yes, you need a mix in your sled, not just straight Antifreeze. New subject anyone?
 
V

vw56german

New member
jimfsr said:
Wow, we really beat this one didn't we. Didn't mean to be argumentative. I guess the answer that was sought in the first place is... yes, you need a mix in your sled, not just straight Antifreeze. New subject anyone?
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All discussion / debate (for me, and I believe most here) is in good spirts. Its fun to kick these topics around.
 
N

newbluerider1

New member
vw56german said:
Looking a bit further I think we could say both views are correct.

Ethylene glycol disrupts hydrogen bonding when dissolved in water. Pure ethylene glycol freezes at about -12°C (10.4°F), but when mixed with water molecules, neither can readily form a solid crystal structure, and therefore the freezing point of the mixture is depressed significantly. This is the reason pure ethylene glycol is not used as an antifreeze--water is a necessary component as well.
Click to expand...


This really made me laugh, I did not know Dr. Sheldon Cooper was on John Dee and rode a snowmobile
 
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