2nd Gen Non-Engine/Transmission battery water

[Berrigan]

Is anyone using RO water to top off you batteries. Is it ok to use?

Thanks Bill

 

[AKAMAC]

Should be fine, I use distilled H2O. DI is not good. Mike

 

[Dan_69GTX]

What is RO water?



What is DI water?



You should ALWAYS use distilled water to top off a battery.



Dan

 

[AKAMAC]

Reverse osmosis

DE-ionized

 

[Dan_69GTX]

Oh - now that makes sense - thanks!



Dan

 

[JR2]

I use hw to fill all my batts and it seems to work just fine.























hw = hose water, its the water that runs out of the hose on the front of my house

 

[Turbo Tim 1]

Why is distilled good and de-ionized not? I know the electricians at work put DI water in all the batteries here and some are over 10 years old.

 

[Gary - K7GLD]

Shucks, steam distilled water sells for about 89c a gallon, and is the absolute best for the battery - some of you guys wanna spend $10 a QUART for the "best" synthetic oil for the engine - then pinch pennies on water fer yer batteries?

 

[Turbo Tim 1]

See Gary, some guys are not retired so they work, but their job has a little goof off time built in so they do their maintenance at work where they have almost unlimited resources of water (DI and RO) but they can't leave work to buy water so they want to use what they have. I have just about the cleanest water you can find here at work, it goes through carbon filters then to a reverse osmosis system and then to cation and anion exchangers, but I don't know if there is some reason I shouldn't be using it.

 

[DanielH]

We've been using RO water in our turbines for the last 10 years, and they need the best water money can buy. Before that we used DI water and it was just as good. I use RO water all the time in my batteries at home and at work, the chemists tell me that it is actually better than Distilled. Whoever it was that said they use tap water probably only gets three years out of their batteries also.

 

[Bill Lins]

RO? DI?

Thought RO was Reg'lar Ole...

 

[DJW]

Of distilled water, it's devoid of chemicals, so therefore neutral. Of best water money can buy for use in turbines, in steam boilers water has to be treated for conditions related to temperatures certainly not fit to drink. drinking water if treated, is fit to drink, but certainly not Pure! Scrum Down

 

[Midnite]

Heck, get yourself a kettle, some rigid copper tubing, a nice long length of soft copper tubing, throw it all together, and make your own distilled water... among other things.

 

[JR2]

I use optimas now, they take NO water

 

[BTowler]

RO water

Reverse osmosis water is the purist water you can get. When water reaches this level it actually becomes a solvent, dissolving other substances and carrying them in solution, this is why water has a tendancy towards hardness, and also how water softeners work. A softener is an ion exchange system, trading a sodium ion for a calcium ion. In a battery it should be fine, but unless you work somewhere that has an RO system, just go buy distilled, the RO equipment is very expensive.

 

[bmoeller]

Originally posted by DanielH

Whoever it was that said they use tap water probably only gets three years out of their batteries also.

Have you tried it (at least unfiltered well water)?



We just use well water at the farm. We have some batteries that are going 6+ yrs. One is in a Case 1840 skid-loader. It is the OEM battery that came in it from the factory. Some of the worst conditions for a battery to live in. I just keep the terminals clean and the water topped off. Still going strong.

 

[Gary - K7GLD]

Much depends on how much/often water actually has to be added - if it must be added frequently, there are other more serious issues present than merely what water to use, such as overcharging - that will kill a battery lots faster than well water...

 

[Berrigan]

Thanks for all the replies. I have an under sink RO unit at home and have been using it to top of batts. I know its very pure but wasnt sure if it was good enough for batts. I think ill keep using it.

 

[Mr. C]

Originally posted by JR2

I use hw to fill all my batts and it seems to work just fine.



hw = hose water, its the water that runs out of the hose on the front of my house

Might as well just Pee in it to fill 'er up

 

[DPelletier]

A note of caution regarding tap (or well) water; not all of it is created equal! I am a director of the local waterworks district and I can tell you that the mineral content, etc. of our water varies drastically from well to well, even when they're only 10' apart! Unless you go through a very comprehensive water testing process, you don't know what you're using when you pour in tap water. Health regulations typically allow for a relatively high level of many minerals which don't hurt you, but aren't good for a battery.



Use distilled water.





Dave