Cold Weather Shortcut - Coolant Check

[LarrBeard]

Winter has come to NE Indiana. The pond has a thin skim of ice that doesn't go away during the day and the birdbath is frozen solid.

I puttered around in the car barn today (that's where the '48 truck lives) and one of the gallon jugs of water I keep over there for miscellaneous cleanups was frozen pretty solid. Of course that reminds me that i haven't checked the antifreeze in the truck for the winter. I'm 99% sure that I've got 50-50 coolant in it, but there that nagging 1% that says "Better check it Bubba".

I looked through all of the tool boxes and usual places and I couldn't find the little three ball anti-freeze checker anywhere. I didn't want to make a special run over to the parts place - but I didn't want to go through a 20-degree night without being sure. Then - a shortcut !

I don't need to know just now how low my antifreeze is good for, I just need to be sure it's OK at 20-degrees. SO, I took my turkey baster syringe I use to put oil in the transmission and differential and sucked about a half-cup of coolant out of the radiator. It looked green, but how low was it good for?

I put the sample of coolant in a plastic cup and set it in the freezer - which I know is -5-degrees. It sat for about 4 hours and didn't freeze, so I know I am good to at least -5. I'll wander out and get a checker in the next couple of days, but I'll not fret over that tonight.

[gmwillys]

I knew a guy who owned a junkyard. He would wander around his lot checking coolant. He'd dip a finger in and taste it. He claimed he could tell the freezing point fairly accurately. I called b.s. So, I went behind him with a hydrometer. I be derned if we was close. I learned to not second guess the old codger..... But I still use a hydrometer. Antifreeze neither tastes good, nor is good for your insides.