I have a 2006 L4330 GST. It came from the dealer new with the tires fluid filled. Is there an easy way to tell what kind of fluid was used? Can you mix fluids?
Type of fluid inrear tires
- Thread starter p t farmer
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Your best bet is to draw off a shot glass worth of fluid, take a picture and post it so everyone can see the color. Im guessing beet juice would be red but so are other types of antifreeze. If its calcium...once it touches your skin it will make your skin very dry instantly. I dont know if beet juice will do that to your skin but im guessing no, and i know glycol wont dry your skin.
Tip of tongue taste test. Salty with a metallic bouquet= CACl3
Sweet and yellow/green= antifreeze
Alcohol taste and clear or blue+=methanol
Borsht taste and red color with pulp=rim guard or beet pulp.
Sweet and yellow/green= antifreeze
Alcohol taste and clear or blue+=methanol
Borsht taste and red color with pulp=rim guard or beet pulp.
zoomy
Member
Equipment
l5740,6' Brush mower, Bobcat 873,Marshal tree saw, 48" Pallet Forks, Bobcat T770
If it's beet juice it will have a red tint and is very sticky when rubbed between your fingers. Chloride will be milky and translucent. Washer fluid will smell like windshield washer fluid. If propylene glycol is used it will be clear with a slightly oily feel to it. Chloride and beet juice will have the most weight per gallon. Chloride would depend on the mixture used. Beet juice is 10.7 pounds per gallon.
Not sure how to post pictures on this site. The color of the fluid in my tires is a grayish white. Had a slight chemical smell. I poured some of it on some uncoated steel a few minutes ago, but not sure how long it will take to "flash rust".
Any thoughts?
Any thoughts?
It's probably calcium especially if it came from a dealer. When it dried on your hands, did it Feel like it dried out your skin? If it was alcohol you would be able to smell it, smells like a cheap vodka or like rubbing alcohol. Propalyne Glycol would have a red color. Personally I would never taste test any unknown chemical. It may be worth getting ahold of some paper test strips. I know they make them for glycol, im sure there is the same type of testing stips for all different antifreeze. Maybe even a PH test could narrow down the possibilities with a little research. MSDS records will tell you every detail of any chemical or chemical compound. Antifreeze is a common substance so the MSDS info should be easy to find on the inter webs.
zoomy
Member
Equipment
l5740,6' Brush mower, Bobcat 873,Marshal tree saw, 48" Pallet Forks, Bobcat T770
Had no idea propylene glycol came in red color. When we filled my brother inlaws tractor it was clear.
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Correction.... It is does come as clear. The PG that I use in heating/cooling systems is red and we typically use a brand called NoBurst. Thanks for pointing that out. You would think they would keep a color coded system for different chemicals. It would be a big help in case there was a spill to help determine what it actually is. I also use Glycerin for antifreeze in CPVC piping systems that is orange. Sometimes over time it will look more on the red side than orange. One time we had a CPVC fire sprinkler system that had a deep red color antifreeze, we had to send it out to a lab to be tested and it came back as glycerin. I think it's safe to say to throw the whole color guessing game out the window because different brands could have different colors.
Went to te dealership. They told me they use Methanol, and have been for the past 15 years. I asked them how they can tell th difference between CACL am Methanol as the both are clear and look about the same.
They told me to pour a little on a flat surface. If it beads up like water on a freshly waxed car it is CACL. If it sits like water on old paint it's Methanol.
I thought it was a great explanation.
They told me to pour a little on a flat surface. If it beads up like water on a freshly waxed car it is CACL. If it sits like water on old paint it's Methanol.
I thought it was a great explanation.
Correction on rim guard: Rim Guard is slimy brownish color and smells likeTip of tongue taste test. Salty with a metallic bouquet= CACl3
Sweet and yellow/green= antifreeze
Alcohol taste and clear or blue+=methanol
Borsht taste and red color with pulp=rim guard or beet pulp.
pig shit, you'll know immediately if that's what it is with no doubt about it.
Nasty stuff glad I don't run a service truck pumping that stuff every day,
but it is the very best ballast since it's nearly as heavy as a good mix of chloride non corrosive and bio degradable won't hurt a thing except your
nose.
Al
MY Bad, I assumed since it was made of beet pulp, that it would be reddish. As to the flavor and smell, I dare say, yes I have tasted pig shit, rather unwillingly, I might add, LOL