Welding Tips and Tricks

I have an older bernard v35 cooler that is a little low and I would like to top it off but I am not sure what to use, a friend told me to use regular antifreeze for automobiles, it currently looks green like regular coolant. Would anyone know where I could get a manual for this unit? What fluid should I top it off with? Thanks in advance

Color is only a partial indicator of what kind of antifreeze it is. If you mix two diferent kinds togeather they may be fine or they may do anything from turn acidic to gell up and leave behind a gunk that resembles half dried paint. If I were you I would flush out the system with just plain water and circulate it till you get it all cleaned. Then fill it with a new mix that your sure of. It probably doesn't hold much so it's cheap insurance.

Poland308 wrote:If I were you I would flush out the system with just plain water and circulate it till you get it all cleaned. Then fill it with a new mix that your sure of.

Yup! Always a complete guess what's in there as far as the coolant additive package goes (usually for the corrosion protection) and some of these can definitely play up if mixed with an incompatible type.

Poland308 wrote: It probably doesn't hold much so it's cheap insurance.

Well... The label on the photo lists '3 gallons', so still quite a bit I guess

Bye, Arno.

Regular auto antifreeze and regular tap water do NOT get along with high-frequency anything, like HF start or HFAC welding. I've destroyed a few hundred dollars' worth of (a company's) torches sorting that out.

I strongly suggest distilled water (less than $1/gallon most places), and if an anti-freeze is needed, your LWS will have (or can get) one rated for water-cooled GTAW and Plasma. If you want to be cheap, use a plain (no anti-bacterial additives or corrosion inhibitors, etc.) RV winterizing antifreeze.

Steve S

Just guessing the unit is from the 80's, I am not sure what they had for coolant then for these machines. Probably best thing for me to do is drain it completely, flush with? And refill with current tig coolant, being in central Wisconsin, I will need it to be antifreeze Of some type, so it looks like a hundred dollar project.
Thanks Guys, I appreachiate the feedback

Notapro wrote:Just guessing the unit is from the 80's, I am not sure what they had for coolant then for these machines. Probably best thing for me to do is drain it completely, flush with? And refill with current tig coolant, being in central Wisconsin, I will need it to be antifreeze Of some type, so it looks like a hundred dollar project.
Thanks Guys, I appreachiate the feedback

3 gallons of the Miller coolant will be <$100

Even at below zero I think it will still only need a % mix. Lessening the cost even more.

Airgas has a other name coolant for $26 , the miller low conductivity looks to be around $36. A gallon, that had a mix of deionized water and glycol.not sure of the rv antifreeze boiling point. Miller does rate their boiling point. I know the 18 torch i have does get warm welding 1/4" aluminum plate and channel. I wonder if the low conductivity stuff would help my older transformer with high freq starts.....