Distilled drinking water for battery water?

[tanatej]

I often use low-maintenance batteries, and I often find myself running out of the distilled water being sold by car battery stores. I was wondering if I can use Wilkins/Absolut as a replacement since they're much more accessible and convenient...?

[andywesteast]

OK to use those for battery

[nvidi.turion]

OK to use those for battery

how about sir for for our radiators? can we use those we can buy at establishments for dringking waters?... like wilkins...

[al shaheen]

how about sir for for our radiators? can we use those we can buy at establishments for dringking waters?... like wilkins...

Ok naman ang absolute at wilkins, nasubukan ko na rin ito. Pero nung binanggit ko sa utol ko ang laman ng radiator ay absolute, pinapalitan nya pa rin ng coolant kasi mas effective daw kung may coolant. Siguro di pwede sa matagalan.

[Thumbdrive]

I also use distilled drinking water in my Battery.
For Radiators, Coolant and/or the recommended mixture/ratio.

[box_type]

i think its somewhere in the owner's manual that coolant is recommended for the radiator, now some people don't have access to coolants at the time they needed to put fluid into their radiators, they opt for the next best thing.... distilled water, when we say distilled it means free of minerals which are common in regular tap water, which in turn may damage the radiator and engine block in the long run due to corrosion because of its(water) mineral content, so better use mineral free (distilled) water when coolant is not available, imho

[naphrel]

i think its somewhere in the owner's manual that coolant is recommended for the radiator, now some people don't have access to coolants at the time they needed to put fluid into their radiators, they opt for the next best thing.... distilled water, when we say distilled it means free of minerals which are common in regular tap water, which in turn may damage the radiator and engine block in the long run due to corrosion because of its(water) mineral content, so better use mineral free (distilled) water when coolant is not available, imho

Pre I just want to clear your idea. Im not saying that your idea is wrong, I just want to share this knowledge, mineral water / distilled water for radiator coolant is not good. why? because as what you say this free from any minerals that can be found in water. thus this kind of water will have a lower boiling point, plus it will react with the electricity running to your system ( Yes there is electricity conducting in every pipe and the body of your engine ) so in the long run it will result to electrolysis which can cause corrosion to any part of the radiator and engine. And it will be prone to sulfate which will create salt and will hardened and block the passage of radiator. Compare to Tap water which contains lots of minerals which can help cooling.
But if you used coolant it is much better if you use distilled water.
This information came from OAT Seminar conducted in singapore.
and it focuses in coolant.

[fourtheboys96]

Pre I just want to clear your idea. Im not saying that your idea is wrong, I just want to share this knowledge, mineral water / distilled water for radiator coolant is not good. why? because as what you say this free from any minerals that can be found in water. thus this kind of water will have a lower boiling point, plus it will react with the electricity running to your system ( Yes there is electricity conducting in every pipe and the body of your engine ) so in the long run it will result to electrolysis which can cause corrosion to any part of the radiator and engine. And it will be prone to sulfate which will create salt and will hardened and block the passage of radiator. Compare to Tap water which contains lots of minerals which can help cooling.
But if you used coolant it is much better if you use distilled water.
This information came from OAT Seminar conducted in singapore.
and it focuses in coolant.

i am not a chemist but:

yes, distilled water has lower boiling point than tap water.

no, distilled water does not conduct electricity as much as water with minerals.

another thing, water (more so distilled water) is a universal solvent. it can dilute a lot of liquid / dissolve lots of minerals without any kind of chemical reaction. so i am not sure it will create salt inside the radiator.

on the other hand, if you use tap water, the mineral content tends to get concentrated over time as water slowly evaporates out the cooling system. at high concentrations, these minerals will crystalize and will clog your radiator.

can any chemist / chemical engineers confirm this?

[andywesteast]

Hard Water deposits when using Tap Water. Distilled water does not do this.

[claRkEnt]

i am not a chemist but:

yes, distilled water has lower boiling point than tap water.

no, distilled water does not conduct electricity as much as water with minerals.

another thing, water (more so distilled water) is a universal solvent. it can dilute a lot of liquid / dissolve lots of minerals without any kind of chemical reaction. so i am not sure it will create salt inside the radiator.

on the other hand, if you use tap water, the mineral content tends to get concentrated over time as water slowly evaporates out the cooling system. at high concentrations, these minerals will crystalize and will clog your radiator.

can any chemist / chemical engineers confirm this?

this is correct.

[miked]

to sum it up:

distilled water has a lower boiling point than mineral water (tap) at normal atmospheric pressure i.e. 100C at 101,325 Pascals for tap water....say 98C for distilled at the same pressure (not sure but its lower than 100C). if you go to higher elevations, the boiling point is lower due to lower pressures. example: the boiling point of water in Baguio City is, say, 97C, while in manila it is at 100C.

Distilled water does not contains salts, minerals, etc....Tap water is the opposite....

Ethylene glycol (pure) has a boiling point of 197.2C and freezing of -25C.

Ethylene glycol has negligible effect (pitting) on aluminum...

I therefore conclude:

Use distilled water (to prevent corrosion and scale formation) plus ethlene glycol (to increase boiling point of the mixture)....Plus a radiator cap is used to further increase the boiling point of the mixture....

Wait a minute, usapang battery tayo ah...

you may use distilled water on mcGuyver situations but the solution sold by battery shops is preferred....adding distilled water will lower the specific gravity of the electrolyte previously contained in the battery. a slower cranking may occur or the worst thing to happen is it may not start your engine.

[timo07]

to sum it up:

distilled water has a lower boiling point than mineral water (tap) at normal atmospheric pressure i.e. 100C at 101,325 Pascals for tap water....say 98C for distilled at the same pressure (not sure but its lower than 100C). if you go to higher elevations, the boiling point is lower due to lower pressures. example: the boiling point of water in Baguio City is, say, 97C, while in manila it is at 100C.

Distilled water does not contains salts, minerals, etc....Tap water is the opposite....

Ethylene glycol (pure) has a boiling point of 197.2C and freezing of -25C.

Ethylene glycol has negligible effect (pitting) on aluminum...

I therefore conclude:

Use distilled water (to prevent corrosion and scale formation) plus ethlene glycol (to increase boiling point of the mixture)....Plus a radiator cap is used to further increase the boiling point of the mixture....

Wait a minute, usapang battery tayo ah...

you may use distilled water on mcGuyver situations but the solution sold by battery shops is preferred....adding distilled water will lower the specific gravity of the electrolyte previously contained in the battery. a slower cranking may occur or the worst thing to happen is it may not start your engine.

If I may add just to clear things up. On initial fill of ordinary batteries (Non-Sealed type), Battery Solutions are used - these are ACID Solutions. In topping off the battery fluid, distilled or demineralized water (for batteries) sold in gas stations are used. Drinking type distilled water (Wilkins or Absolute) may be used only if you cannot find any battery water for topping off. To eliminate this confusion later on - Buy Maintenance-Free Sealed Automotive Batteries..

And oh.... Tap water is not recommended for radiator coolant use, they form scale (from the mineral content) on engine cooling galleries and radiator that will diminish the heat absorption/rejection capacity of the engine coolant. Add concentrated coolant additives to recommended proportions to raise boiling point and protect your system from forming rust. If you need to top off, use premixed water-additive. Use Absolute or Wilkins or other distilled or demineralized water NOT Mineral Water like Viva. Pinakamatipid ang purified water pero they still contain trace minerals. Sorry OT sa topic pero can't help it...

[ParticleX]

Sorry for the necro post

I wonder kung pwede ang water from the refilling stations para i-refill ang battery? I have a couple of Motolite Golds kasi to have be refilled.

Also bought a battery charger. Mas mura nang di hamak ang charger kesa bagong battery . Two years plus na etong Gold 3SM ko. In my experience 2-3yrs lang tinatagal ng battery sa akin. Kahit at least additional two years lang sulit na sana

[falken]

Sorry for the necro post

I wonder kung pwede ang water from the refilling stations para i-refill ang battery? I have a couple of Motolite Golds kasi to have be refilled.

Also bought a battery charger. Mas mura nang di hamak ang charger kesa bagong battery . Two years plus na etong Gold 3SM ko. In my experience 2-3yrs lang tinatagal ng battery sa akin. Kahit at least additional two years lang sulit na sana

Better to use absolut or wilkins. Refilling station water is filtered, not distilled.

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[Walter]

^^^ Don't think you can use distilled drinking water for batteries. The water to be used for batteries should not touch any metal.

[12vdc]

Batteries use de-ionized/ de-mineralised water.

[dr. d]

we were using distilled water from the lab for decades. no ill effects..

[ParticleX]

Okay na, bought Wilkins. Dami kong nilagay sa current batt ko mga 1L .

Charged it for mga 3 hours, pagbalik ko sa sasakyan galit mag redondo so that does it I think.... Monthly checking na lang and top up thru batt charger. Sana tumagal pa ito (it is on its second year na)

[erick_214]

I use battery solution, yung ginagamit pag bagong battery. Never had a problem with my batt. The outlast in my van is approx 2 years nah at ok pa rin pati yung motolite (green color) sa car ko ganun din, using it for 2 years na w/c I bought the car 2d hand.

So, I would suggest to use battery solution...