Can you use water instead of antifreeze?

Artur Owczarek

Brand Product Manager Moje AutoHe has been involved in the automotive industry for years. He is passionate about cars and detailing. On his blog, he shares his knowledge and experience, offering tips on how to effectively care for your car and extend its life.

Water instead of coolant may seem surprising nowadays, but in the past this solution was the norm. It is worth knowing whether water can be poured into the vehicle's cooling system and what consequences may result from driving on water instead of coolant. The following article will dispel any doubts on this topic.

After reading this article you will learn:

1. Can you pour water into the car radiator?

2. What are the consequences of driving on water instead of coolant?

3. Are coolants of different colors miscible?

On a similar topic, it is also worth knowing how to choose winter windshield washer fluid.

Will the radiator cool the engine if there is water in it?

Yes, absolutely. Water is a coolant in combustion engines, in countries with tropical and tropical climates, it is even preferred to coolant. All because it loses temperature faster.

Here it is worth considering what general properties it has and what it is coolant. Most of these types of preparations available on the market are based on ethylene glycol. It creates a perfect mixture with water. It is refined with additives designed to protect the vehicle's cooling system against scale build-up and rust.

Coolant has a number of other advantages. Above all its freezing point can be even below 30 ℃, and its boiling point can be 110 or more ℃. These physical properties are definitely better than pure water, which solidifies at approximately 0℃ and boils at approximately 100℃. Coolant therefore brings benefits both in winter and summer.

It is also worth mentioning that in modern vehicles, pressure is generated in the cooling system during operation, which additionally increases the boiling point of the fluid contained in it.

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Can water in the radiator have negative effects?

However, filling the cooling system with water has many disadvantages, which definitely dominate in our climate. Belong to them:

lower boiling point of pure water than coolant – in summer this may lead to overheating of the engine, e.g. in a traffic jam and with the air conditioning on. In some vehicles, this may lead to serious failures, e.g. deformation or cracking of the head;
scale build-up in the cooling system – dissolved minerals precipitate from water as it heats and cools. The sediment hardens and forms the so-called stone. It may clog the coolant flow channels in the engine, radiator and heater;
faster wear of the water pump – pure water has worse lubricating properties than coolant, which causes faster wear of the water pump blades. Additionally, damage is caused by the stone mentioned above;
rusting of engine and cooling system components from the inside – clean water does not protect against rust, but even contributes to its formation;
high freezing point of pure water – riding on water requires draining all the liquid from the cooling system in winter and refilling it before driving. This was once a common phenomenon, because in the times of the People's Republic of Poland, citizens did not have access to coolant, but today there is no such need.

What will happen in winter if the car is flooded with water?

Leaving your car overnight in winter with its cooling system filled with water can have disastrous consequences for your vehicle. A physicist would describe the freezing of water as crystallization. During solidification, liquid particles begin to arrange themselves into regular structures. In this process, they move, which leads to an increase in volume. Close to the freezing point, the volume of this liquid is the highest (approx. 4 ℃). As it changes its state of matter, it expands and, having no outlet, causes the destruction of the vessel. And this is what happens in a car cooling system filled with water. In the best case scenario, the radiator will leak, in the worst case, the enormous force with which the freezing water will hit the walls will cause the engine block to crack, which will result in its complete destruction..

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Can you mix radiator fluid with water?

Yes, you can do it. In emergency situations, adding water to the cooling system filled with dedicated liquid is absolutely permissible and will not cause any unpleasant consequences for the engine. However, you should remember a few basic rules:

Only add demineralized water to the cooling system! During the production process, it was cleaned of minerals normally present in the liquid that cause scale formation. Demineralized water is widely available in hypermarkets (used for irons), automotive stores and gas stations. Absolutely avoid mixing coolant with tap or mineral water, and if you are forced to do so, be sure to replace the contents of the cooling system with dedicated coolant after repairing the failure;
remember that diluting coolant with water changes its physical properties - boiling and freezing point. If the refill was large, e.g. 5 liters of water, then be sure to add radiator fluid concentrate to the system. It will mix with the water in the engine. To check the quality of the coolant in the system, you can use disposable testers that indicate the freezing point of the fluid;

Also find out how to get rid of moisture from a car.

Pink or blue – what's the difference between these coolants?

Colors usually don't matter. In fact, most of the coolants on the market are based on ethylene glycol, and in the product description you can find information that they are miscible with other coolants..

However, it is generally accepted that, for example, red liquid is dedicated to cars from the Volkswagen group. All because the original coolant for vehicles of this brand, which meets the G12 standard, has this color.

The color of the coolant is actually intended to indicate that the system is not filled with water. Moreover, the bright color allows you to easily identify leaks.

How to choose the best coolant?

The vehicle's owner's manual will help you choose the right coolant. Always use agents approved by the manufacturer (this also applies to oil, power steering fluid etc.), meeting specific operational standards. If in doubt, it is worth going to a car shop where the staff will select the right ones coolant based on no. Vehicle VIN.

Remember! Coolant is highly poisonous!

Coolant is poisonous, handle it carefully! Never pour it on the ground or keep it in open containers! Drinking it can result in death, even in small doses, so keep it away from children and animals!