Pink stuff lingering
- Thread starter seadoggie
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Recommissioning the fresh water system will get rid of it
And if you want water that that doesn't taste/smell funky, you need to do that every spring anyway, whether you use antifreeze or not. I've posted the directions a number of times...a search for "Fresh water maintenance" should turn 'em up.
Ross, one of the these days you're gonna find out that vodka does nothing more than nothing. 'Cuz although straight uncut vodka won't freeze--at least not as low as -10 F (that's the coldest I've tested it), even 90-10 cut with water WILL freeze in the teens. So to actually get any freeze protection from vodka, you'd have to use it full strength...which requires blowing/vacuuming every last bit of water out the tank and system. And if you're gonna do that, you don't need to put ANYthing in the tank...'cuz it's not freezing temps that do damage, it's ice, which needs 10% more space than liquid water. So save the vodka to drink.
And if you want water that that doesn't taste/smell funky, you need to do that every spring anyway, whether you use antifreeze or not. I've posted the directions a number of times...a search for "Fresh water maintenance" should turn 'em up.
Ross, one of the these days you're gonna find out that vodka does nothing more than nothing. 'Cuz although straight uncut vodka won't freeze--at least not as low as -10 F (that's the coldest I've tested it), even 90-10 cut with water WILL freeze in the teens. So to actually get any freeze protection from vodka, you'd have to use it full strength...which requires blowing/vacuuming every last bit of water out the tank and system. And if you're gonna do that, you don't need to put ANYthing in the tank...'cuz it's not freezing temps that do damage, it's ice, which needs 10% more space than liquid water. So save the vodka to drink.
Let me guess - you put antifreeze in the entire system without first by-passing the water heater????
If I'm correct, don't do that - it wastes antifreeze and leaves the lingering after-taste. By=pass the heater, drain it and if you are anal, you can blow it out. A little remaining water in a tank with room for expansion will do no harm.
Regardless, you can flush with peroxide in a strong solution, not the drug store variety, ventilate the empty heater core or repeatedly flush with fresh water. There is no shortcut.
YES it does!!!
That is why I blow dry my system now. the idea of bypassing the hot water heater is kinda dumb IMHO as the effort to do it is just as hard as just draining the thing and blowing air throught the tubing. But my way costs less and you are back in operation without the nasty taste.
That is why I blow dry my system now. the idea of bypassing the hot water heater is kinda dumb IMHO as the effort to do it is just as hard as just draining the thing and blowing air throught the tubing. But my way costs less and you are back in operation without the nasty taste.
There are many options to avoid residual "pink stuff"..
1) by-pass the water heater before sucking in pink stuff
2) Drain the tanks and only suck the antifreeze through the hoses. Purge the hoses before re-connecting to the system in the spring by running copious amounts of FW through them.
3) Blow the system out. This is not always a good option on some boats as it is very difficult to get it all and some still settles back to a low spot and freezes. You'll have to be the guinea pig on your own boat to find out.
4) As Peggie mentioned a once yearly "shock" cleaning is a great tool to always have fresh tasting water.
In order to get rid of the pink stuff you have now, through dilution, will require many tank flushings and re-fills. Once you are fairly certain it's gone then a tank cleaning..
Our system does not work well being blow out so I need to AF the hoses. There is no AF in our tanks or HW heater ever, just the hoses. It is important to not un-by-pass the HW heater until you've thoroughly purged the lines of AF in the spring..
1) by-pass the water heater before sucking in pink stuff
2) Drain the tanks and only suck the antifreeze through the hoses. Purge the hoses before re-connecting to the system in the spring by running copious amounts of FW through them.
3) Blow the system out. This is not always a good option on some boats as it is very difficult to get it all and some still settles back to a low spot and freezes. You'll have to be the guinea pig on your own boat to find out.
4) As Peggie mentioned a once yearly "shock" cleaning is a great tool to always have fresh tasting water.
In order to get rid of the pink stuff you have now, through dilution, will require many tank flushings and re-fills. Once you are fairly certain it's gone then a tank cleaning..
Our system does not work well being blow out so I need to AF the hoses. There is no AF in our tanks or HW heater ever, just the hoses. It is important to not un-by-pass the HW heater until you've thoroughly purged the lines of AF in the spring..
I use the "Peggy" system and re-commission each spring. Each spring, I completely drain the system until it is dry. I then run water into the tank and flush our until the anti-freeze is apparantly gone - even though I can't taste it, some is still there. I wait about 30 minutes, test the water from both hot and cold and will always find some anti-freeze taste is present - flush out again until not noticable taste. I then fill the tank with chlorox and water mixture per Peggy's percentage and wait at least 4 hours before draining again. DO NOT TURN ON THE HOT WATER HEATER! I then completely flush this out by draining the tank and the hot water heater and then turn on the hose to try to match the output of the house water pump. This effectivey just flushes through water and will take the chlorine and residual pink stuff out. I do this for about 30 minutes and then stop. I taste the wate for chlorine and anti-freeze and if still there, continue to repeat this action. After two or three times, I usually get it all out. This year, I finished and the next morning could taste the "pink stuff" again, so I drained the water out and flushed again for about 30 minutes before refilling the tank. That got the last of it. It is hard stuff to get rid of!
Perhaps a few clarifications, or perhaps just going farther ....
2. Installing a glycol suction fitting before the pump but after the water tank shut-off valve is a great time saver and ought to be factory equipment. A "T", a few valves, and a bit of hose makes winterizing much simpler. Also removes any temptation to pour glycol in the tank. The trouble with tanks--either the water heater tank or the fresh wate rtank, is that they do not have the plug flow you get in a line and take nearly infinate dilution cycles (it will seem that way) to clear.
The previous owner believed in disconencting and reconecting hoses; unfortunatly, this wore all of the fittings out and so I chased leaks for a year. I much perfer a simple valave arangment, if possible.
3. My personal opinion, after years of blowing out systems on boats and also in refineries, is that this is most often a short term gain, long term loss option. Eventually, as Mainesail indicated, some water will get left somewhere expensive.
If the owner is determined to minamize the amount of glycol there are numberous tricks; one is to blow the water out, pump in the glycol, and then blow the glycol out into a waiting jug, for use in another leg. This will also reduce the amount of flushing required in the spring. I have 2 sinks and 2 showers and a gallon will do with enough left over for the head.
1. Instant heaters better NOT bypassed. They don't hold much and purge easily in the spring.
2. Installing a glycol suction fitting before the pump but after the water tank shut-off valve is a great time saver and ought to be factory equipment. A "T", a few valves, and a bit of hose makes winterizing much simpler. Also removes any temptation to pour glycol in the tank. The trouble with tanks--either the water heater tank or the fresh wate rtank, is that they do not have the plug flow you get in a line and take nearly infinate dilution cycles (it will seem that way) to clear.
The previous owner believed in disconencting and reconecting hoses; unfortunatly, this wore all of the fittings out and so I chased leaks for a year. I much perfer a simple valave arangment, if possible.
3. My personal opinion, after years of blowing out systems on boats and also in refineries, is that this is most often a short term gain, long term loss option. Eventually, as Mainesail indicated, some water will get left somewhere expensive.
If the owner is determined to minamize the amount of glycol there are numberous tricks; one is to blow the water out, pump in the glycol, and then blow the glycol out into a waiting jug, for use in another leg. This will also reduce the amount of flushing required in the spring. I have 2 sinks and 2 showers and a gallon will do with enough left over for the head.
Our boat has been specifically re-plumbed for winterizing. Both tanks have drain valves that drain to the bilge. This way I can leave them open for a few days to get nearly 100% of the water out. Water heater is by-passed and left open also plus I blow it out.
I then isolate the tanks with shut off valves and connect a suction hose that connects to a dedicated valve on the PEX manifold. I then insert the suction hose into the 1 gallon AF bottle, flip on the pump and open the faucets and shower head.
In the spring I connect a garden hose to the "suction hose" and flush the piping of AF.
I didn't mention on-demand heaters because there are not many that meet the ANSI/ABYC requirements for marine use these days, though this has not stopped companies from marketing them that way or folks from installing them.
For typical storage type heaters you'll want to by-pass them...
For the first time in 8 years, I winterized the water system by draining both tanks by running the taps dry, Then I blew as much of the water in the pipes out as I could by using my little 1gal vacuum held against the filter outlet on my pump- there is a clear "bowl" with a screen in it. When the screen is removed I can hold the vacuum hose (on blow) against it and get a pretty good air pressure going. This blows the water in the pipes back into the tanks I think. I opened the heater drain and left it open. I left all taps open. It was sure a lot easier commissioning the system this spring- I used to fill the tanks, and run them dry 3 times to get most of the anti freeze smell out, then follow Peggy's instructions for chlorinating the tanks which required another couple of drains and fillings. I probably contributed to most of the wear on the pump I replaced by this whole process. This year i filled the tanks, added the chlorine, drained, filled, drained and filled.
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