purple ice

[rojizostang]

So I read some about purple ice, and decided that it may help in my attempts to reduce ait2f's. It seemed logical that if I could lower engine coolant temps, that reduced ait2f's could follow.

Well, I'm here to tell you, that in my application it absolutely makes








no difference

Engine coolant temps are absolutely unaffected by purple ice. Perhaps if coolant temps were much higher than they are, maybe it would help some. But when they're running between 193 and 199...no detectable difference.

Save your money....$17 a bottle. I bought 2 bottles. 8 ounces in the intercooler loop, and another bottle in the radiator. I find it to be useless. Maybe water wetter would work better, but the brown gunk in the degas bottle thread scared me away.

I should have known better.

 

[01yellerCobra]

I've used Water Wetter in the past and didn't see any difference in temps.

 

[travelers]

Have you tried a lower temp thermostat?

 

[rojizostang]

Have you tried a lower temp thermostat?

yes it was installed with the blower.

 

[07 Boss]

I've used water wetter as long as I can remember. There have been issues with some kind of sediment build up within the cooling system when using this stuff along with the purple ice but I have yet to experience anything like that.

 

[Jeepngli]

I asked around and was told the same thing you experienced: nothing. The comments are really positive about those two products on the big distributor sites, but I wonder if its like you said: people with high engine temp problems. Maybe in their case, they need all the help they can get so every little bit helps.

 

[05stroker]

I use Water Wetter because I don't run coolant/antifreeze. It helps keep the rust away that you get with straight water.

 

[W1ldcat]

I didn't notice any lower temps.

 

[eighty6gt]

Like so many things, it's snake oil. It caused my Ford coolant to accumulate brown deposits.

 

[rojizostang]

Like so many things, it's snake oil. It caused my Ford coolant to accumulate brown deposits.

well I didn't want to hear that. I chose purple ice instead of water wetter because of the gunk issue with water wetter.

I may just drain the whole thing and start over.

 

[hamish]

On the same ambient temperature days while doing WOT tuning\datalogging.
There was a 2-3* difference in AIT temps for me when using water wetter and straight water.
I am looking for anything I can get right now.

 

[eighty6gt]

On the same ambient temperature days while doing WOT tuning\datalogging.
There was a 2-3* difference in AIT temps for me when using water wetter and straight water.
I am looking for anything I can get right now.

Probably got cooler outside later in the day, other factors.

 

[NUTCASE]

Here is the thing: Until you exceed the capacity of your radiator and water pump a coolant additive CAN'T help you.

Your fan and t-stat will still activate at the same temperature. Thus you will run at the same temperature. The most an additive can do is alter the heat capacity of your coolant, meaning that your coolant can now take on more heat energy before the coolant temperature rises.

Which is cool, if your existing cooling system is already pushed to the max. And if the additive can alter the heat capacity of the coolant enough to make a significant difference.

 

[Riptide]

I put some in my system when I filled it last year but I probably won't bother with it again. Running 10-15% anti freeze should be enough to protect against corrosion.

I've read the same things about the gunk in the degas but so far have yet to see that in mine. Been about a year now. They say to re-add it every year which is another reason I'm done messing with it.

 

[05stroker]

I have seen no gunk in mine, just a smooth white film in the water passages. Like I said though, I don't run coolant. Water Wetter works for my usage. I would be very careful about mixing things into the coolants. Hell, the different colors don't even mix well together. There is nothing you can do to your engine coolant system to reduce AITs enough to matter. IMO

 

[Pentalab]

Water wetter + 100% distilled water in either the eng coolant loop....or in the HE-degas-IC loop will work. As soon as you start using glycol in with the distilled water, the water wetter /purple ice effectiveness is reduced to next to nothing.

At the local stock car track, they are not allowed to use anti freeze at all due to strict regs..and ditto with the drag racers using the main straight on weekends. They all use straight distilled water and red line water wetter.

Even then, the water wetter / purple ice is probably acting more of an anti corrosion....anti electrolysis additive.

However, without glycol, the boiling point will be reduced a bunch. Flip side is the boiling point of water increases due to the pressure in the loop...but it will do that anyway, regardless of whether glycol is used....or not.

I saw no redux in IAT's or eng temps. 190 deg T stat used for the eng, so it's all a moot point anyway.

IMO, I would not use it again...since I use a 50-50 glycol-water mix in both the eng and the HE-IC loop.

On paper, 100% distilled water should be capable of extracting far more heat vs a glycol-water mix.. The 100% water will just activate your T-stat sooner.

 

[NUTCASE]

DI water will move more heat. But the glycol part raises the boiling point, adds lubrication, and prevents corrosion.

 

[702GT]

I still don't understand what all this talk is of Redline and corrosion. I'm still on the stock water pump, stock radiator, stock hoses, a 180* T-stat w/60k miles on it, and a 70/30 mix of original factory coolant and distilled water with a bottle of redline floating around in it. Looks/smells the same as the day I thinned it out. 8 Vegas summers, countless road trips, nitrous, supercharger, track poundings, not a damn thing wrong/failing. Only thing wrong with my coolant system is the piece of shit procharger fan strapped to my radiator. I look forward to the day I modify my FRPP fan and feel sympathy for the next poor bastard I sell it to who has to hear that fucker howl over his blower.

Redline and many other coolant additives have been around a long time. If it was poison, then I guess most of us are just a bunch of morons. Maybe this winter I'll dump my 8 year old coolant for shits and giggles, I'll happily post pics and eat crow if my coolant is brown and chunky, otherwise, bullshit.

As far as relying on an additive to decrease non-critical coolant temps, OP is barking up the wrong tree. Nutcase is correct. Coolant and additives only support the water in the system. Dumping a bottle of additive in water isn't going to lower your normal operating temps. A lower T-stat will generally lower your normal operating temps, as long as you have the water pump and radiator capacity to back it up.

Another thing to pay attention to is those radiator/degas bottle caps. The system is designed to operate under a specific pressure. Pressure in the coolant system raises boiling point of the coolant. I had a friend who was having spiking coolant temp issues, we thought maybe his T-stat was sticking, but it turned out his degas cap was shitty. It would randomly hold 7psi, then 3psi, then 10psi, ect. We got an updated cap from Ford, it even looked different on the spring side, beefy, and he didn't have anymore issues. I figure his coolant was boiling and thus flashing steam in his radiator, nullifying his heat exchange rate, on top of doing all sorts of other bad things in his coolant system. I'm honestly surprised he didn't develop a radiator leak or blow head gaskets. Probably not the OP's issue, but something to check on as our cars age.

 

[hamish]

Probably got cooler outside later in the day, other factors.

Granted there are always variables that you can't control.
But I stand by my testing as I have been trying to get the most out of a system that is way out of it's efficiency zone.

 

[rojizostang]

As far as relying on an additive to decrease non-critical coolant temps, OP is barking up the wrong tree. Nutcase is correct. Coolant and additives only support the water in the system. Dumping a bottle of additive in water isn't going to lower your normal operating temps. A lower T-stat will generally lower your normal operating temps, as long as you have the water pump and radiator capacity to back it up.

I'm not sure what you're saying. Isn't dumping a bottle in water to lower operating temps it's purpose? Here's what Royal Purple claims about purple ice

Look at the columns. Improvement in every column, not just purple ice and water. They claim purple ice and water can reduce temps up to 22 degrees. I'm not sure why it's illogical to think that improving the thermal efficiency of the water in the intercooler loop wouldn't lower ait2f's...I mean, that is what the intercooler loop is for, right? Maybe only a couple of degrees, but worthwhile for a $16 dollar bottle of additive if it works. In addition, if engine temps, which are controlled to a degree of course by coolant temps, which could also conceivably reduce ait2'fs because of the mass of all the components running at a cooler rate and thus reducing the amount or volume of air that is normally heated by merely being within the engine itself, aside from compression by the blower, why would it be illogical to think it would also help to reduce ait2f's?

If running purple ice or water wetter has no cooling effects, what's their purpose? If cooler motors and cooler intercoolers don't promote cooler ait2f's, what does? (I don't know anyone that has control over ambient temps). I've already added a 160* thermostat. During steady state highway driving, the fans really shouldn't need to come on much, right? as they shouldn't need to with the high volume of air flow. It should be the perfect opportunity for rp or ww to display their thermal capabilities. Maybe I am barking up the wrong tree, however improving the thermal efficiencies of both cooling systems certainly doesn't seem unreasonable in an attempt to improve ait2f's, at least not to me. This whole thing started because Royal Purple makes certain claims. Whether or not there's enough improvement of thermal efficiency in the intercooler loop alone is one thing. However their claim is that it lowers normal engine operating temps, and I saw absolutely zero difference.

The original intent of this thread was my experience with rp and cooler engine temps. In the long run of course, reducing aits was the original goal, but primarily this thread is/was about engines running cooler with the addition of purple ice. In that regard, my hope was that purple ice would keep coolant temps in the low 190's in a steady state situation, rather than the upper 190's that I experience now. In that regard, compared to the manufacturers claims, there has been no cooling improvements.

part of the original post:

So I read some about purple ice, and decided that it may help in my attempts to reduce ait2f's. It seemed logical that if I could lower engine coolant temps, that reduced ait2f's could follow.

the italicized portion is my original intention of the thread. again of course, all in an attempt to reduce overall ait2f's

Here is the thing: Until you exceed the capacity of your radiator and water pump a coolant additive CAN'T help you.

While this might be correct, it's not detailed anywhere on rp's website. Their assertion is that it lowers engine operating temps, to some degree, depending on factors, but always an improvement (at least that is what is inferred). If there isn't an opportunity for improvement, those situations should be detailed in order not to promote false advertising.