Appropriate Antifreeze for Detroit Diesel

[Passages]

I know this has been discussed before, but the search function only gave me Nalcool and Power Cool.

Other options with low silicates are available. I saw Prestone Dex Cool at Wally World. The label said safe for GM gas & diesel engines but wanted to check with the group. What brand labels are safe for 2 cycle detroits?

[ThirdHatt]

I used Fleet Charge made by Fleet Guard. You can buy it at NAPA or Truck Pro or any heavy duty parts supplier. A bit cheaper than the Detroit brand, it meets ALL specs and I have been told that it is the exact same product as the Detroit brand product under a different label. Kinda like the Detroit Diesel brand oil was just Mobil Delvac 1240. Detroit doesn't actually MAKE everything themselves just because it has their name on it, so why pay the price if you don't have to? It already has the SCA's that wet liner engines (53 and 71 series Detroits) require. Just add distilled water at a 50/50 rate and you're good. They do make it pre-mixed but I don't think you get the most bang for the buck that way, although no mixing.

[Nonchalant1]

I just use Detroit Diesel Power Cool. Yeah, it costs a little more, but you don't change it that often and you know you've got the right stuff. I'm going to be out of freezing weather this winter and thinking about switching to distilled water plus additives.

Doug Shuman

[Genesis]

Fleetcharge is what I used to run. I can't see paying for a brand label, but I want "the right stuff." Fleetguard didn't get where they are by making junk products; they're a mainstay in the heavy-duty diesel world.

Whatever you use, make sure the SCA levels are right - this means getting the dip strips for the SAME CHEMISTRY you put in the tank.

On Detroits I VASTLY prefer to run distilled water with inhibitors if you're not in a freezing zone, or intend to switch for the winter (when you're laid up.) You have much more margin with water and overheats are how you get to spend a LOT of money.

[Nonchalant1]

Karl,

What are the specifications for distilled water plus additives? Which brand, amounts, etc. Where do you get test strips?

Thanks,

Doug

[Genesis]

Call up Saunders in Panama City and ask 'em for what Karl used to run

Its a Fleetguard product and the dose is on the bottle. You flush the system out well (run the Penray online cleaner for a month before you change it over if you've been lax in this in the past) and then refill with distilled water plus the appropriate dose.

The strips come from the same people - basically the deal is that you need to buy the strips from the same manufacturer as the chemicals.

The strip will show no freeze protection (duh!) but the nitrate level is the important one - that's the inhibitors. Once you fill with the recommended dose you check it - should be ok. Then every couple of months dip to check the nitrate levels, and if low, add a bit more of the SCAs until its ok again. Enough SCAs to do both engines is something like $30 - dirt cheap compared to buying 10 gallons of glycol! Of course you still have the cost of the distilled water.....

This path is cheap enough that you can dump the water + SCAs when you go to lay up in the winter (if you do) and refill with the glycol mix for storage. Just run the engine for a few minutes to distribute the mixture before you pull the boat. If you're in a year-round "no freeze" environment then I'd change the water + inhibitor mixture every 2 years (same for coolant), just because cooling system problems are no fun and get expensive.

The other thing about water + SCAs is that it won't drop out and make that gummy mess in the heat exchanger that necessitates an ultrasonic or hottank bath.

The final advantage with water + inhibitors is that they're (mostly) non-toxic, so there's not the concern that exists with an accidental release of glycol, which is highly poisonous to marine life. The water + inhibitor mix can go down the drain (nitrates are fertilizers, so intentionally pumping it overboard is not cool, but its not the disaster that an actual POLLUTANT is.)

Note that if you have modern engines this route is VERBOTEN. Its good with Detroits because they run 180 degree thermostats and should really never run over 185F, plus Detroits are almost always under-cooled in terms of their maximum capacity, so the extra cooling you get from running water is a very good thing. Modern motors tend to run 195s or 205s and 15psi caps instead of 7, and they WILL boil over if you run water + SCAs - those engines NEED coolant.

[dwaynec]

Another uninformed question. If the antifreeze is permanent and when drained is recycled, and the proper level of additives can be maintained by adding when needed, why do we have to change the antifreeze every two years?

BTW What does SCA stand for? I have seen the abbreviation many times, but all I could come up with is Some Coolant Additive. Pretty sure that is not right.

Thanks,

[doc g]

I think it is Supplemental Coolant Additive........................Pat

[REBrueckner]

If you Google Detroit Diesel online you'll find Detroit Diesel Coolant Spec 7SE298. I recall there are spec numbers provided therein. It discusses Nalcool and maybe Powercool as well and provides recommendations...maybe twenty pages total. But it does niot list other brand name antifreezes which meet DD specs. Often the term "heavy duty diesel" on an antifreeze container will be ok for Detroits, but its best to use one with a spec number for Detroits.

Different engine manufacturers MAY have different specs, as for nitrites and silicates, so don't assume, for example,Catepillar engine coolant is ok to use..

In any case, if you are operating in freezing parts of the country you may want an antifreeze. Some permit periodic addition of additives, many do not. What ever you do, do not mix differents brands nor different colors antifreeze.
Never use SCA additives unless the coolant specifies their use. Awful precipitation (clogging) can occur with improper combinations.

Otherwise, as noted above, water plus SCA's is a quality coolant alternative in moderate/warm climates or during warm weather operation.

I found Shoprite Antifreeze leftover in a supermarket ( a chain here in the Noprtheast) a few years ago. They were trying to get it out the door for $2/gal...I called Shoprite corporate, they connected me with the manufacturer, and I was assured it met the DD specs..so I loaded up on the stuff....but I do not have those DD spec numbers home here with me.