automotive antifreeze

[HermitJohn]

I am posting this both here and on General Chat for maximum audience. Kinda important especially if you used Walmart brand antifreeze.

If anybody else changes their own antifreeze, I suspect you have noticed it now comes either premixed or the kind you have to dilute with water. Without some rebate or special sale the traditional kind you dilute is best buy or so the price would indicate.

I just changed mine Saturday. Had bought what was labeled as the add water kind from Walmart. Mixed it half and half which should give -30F protection. Well just on whim after changing it, I used one of those little ball type testers. Two ball with +5F protection. HUH??
Tested it again with different tester. Same. Apparently Walmart or their supplier decided to make some extra money by selling the premixed as regular add water type. Now it rarely gets below 0 degreesF here and even rarer that it stays below zero for any length of time so I am pretty safe, but still dont appreciate being ripped off and no real way to prove I was ripped off.

If you used the tradition add water antifreeze this year, especially the Walmart brand, you maybe should check it with one of those cheap little ball testers. Lot cheaper than a busted radiator or even having to replace a buried freeze plug on engine. Hard to get to some freeze plugs especially on some modern engines.

[bgak47]

Thanks for the heads-up John, I'll be checking mine later today.

[Beeman]

I've run my own repair shop and have repaired cars for 30yrs. I always buy a name brand anti-freeze usually Texaco. The generic or store brands seem to have some of the lubricating additives left out. An easy way to premix antifreeze is to save an old container so you can split the first gallon in half. Then add water to the containers and always check with a tester before pouring into the car.
Just my opinion which has been formed from first hand dealing with it and corresponding with thousands of other techs. Stick to conventional green antifreeze. Newer cars have used Dex-Cool and other formulations of long life antifreeze. If your car came with green antifreeze stick with it, if it came with red antifreeze you might want to change to green. The Dex-Cool antifreeze has caused some major problems in cooling systems, the green has worked flawlessly for decades.
And be sure to dispose of your antifreeze properly. I have had a recycler pick mine up for a fee, ask where you buy your antifreeze where you can recycle yours. if you live on a sewer system you might be allowed to dump it in your drain, don't do this on a septic system.

re- disposal- I am told that it is sweet to the taste and cats and dogs will lick it up- with fatal results, destroys their liver

[Okie-Dokie]

Thanks John. I always go back and re-check after changing my anti-freeze. I guess I got lucky, as I got what was described on the label. I never have trusted the type that lasts for sev. years either. I just go ahead and drain, back-flush and install new every year.

[Farmer Brown]

I drained and refilled one piece of equipment that holds about 35 gallons of coolant. Used Wal-Marts "Super-Tech" antifreeze that says on jug to mix 50-50 with water and you get protection to -34F. OK, job done. The I read this post and do some checking. I have + 5 protection. So--I just bought a bunch of high priced water. I have a few unopened jugs so did a test in a vial with half water and half antifreeze. Same results. Called Manager at Wal-Mart. She is checking with headquarters to see if there is a recall , otherwise no refund on used product, only unused. If I had not read this post and it turned 20 below I'd been stuck with a cracked block on a high priced piece of equipment. I would not place my faith in other brands either. I'd check and see what you have. Tomorrow I'm going to call the maker of the antifreeze, Alsip Packaging, 708 371 7641, for their story. FB