Long term effect of mag- chloride?

[fkovalski]

I am concerned about long term effects of CDOT's extensive use of the de- icer where I live on under carriage components. Specifically I wonder about brake calipers and associated hardware. A co- worker had to replace the calipers on his A6 ($$$) and his on line info site indicated that it was the de icer that caused the malfunctions. I realize that other components can be affected, (exhaust, body parts etc. ) but it is the major items that concern me. I do high pressure wash as best I can about once a month to try and offset any residue. Any comments? Thanx. -frank

 

[radixr]

I don't know specifically what deicer will do to your truck, but it can't be good. I got so disgusted with salt/sand soup slopped onto my truck everytime I drove it in winter, I bought a beater car to drive when the roads are in less than, uh, optimum condition.



The road I live on was tar and chipped 2 years ago in the fall. Believe it or not, the next spring my wife's car, my truck, my neighbors vehicles were all covered with road tar. It wasn't just a little bit on the rocker panels. The entire vehicle except for the hood, roof and trunk lid looked like we had followed the tar truck when it sprayed the road. The salt had partially liquified the tar. Needless to say, PennDot denied responsibility.

 

[EOliver]

The research I have done, shows that Mag Chloride is far worse than any salt/sand mix you get on the under side of your truck. I have seen the effects first hand on over the road big rigs (as I own one) Mag Chloride corrodes wiring connectors in two, rusts through air tanks, eats brake parts like crazy-mostly shoes and drums, also corrodes threads off the wheel studs. Basically there is only one paint I know of that will hold up to this crap... POR 15! I am so glad to be out of Colorado with my personal vehicles, I was getting tired of waging the war against rust.



Here in good ole Wyoming they use only sand. Oo.



Sure Mag Chloride keeps the trees alive on the side of the road, but man does it reak havok on metal.

 

[illflem]

Washington state had a class action lawsuit against them the first year they switched to Mag Chloride rather than sand. Took out folk's brakes and wiring.

 

[Sticks]

I had a job interview with the Colorado DOT last week. Before we got started we were talking about the Mag-Chloride. They have been taking a lot of heat lately, particularly from the utilities companies (phone, electric). Apparently the roadside access boxes are not sealed well enough and the Mag-Chloride is getting inside and corroding and shorting out the panels inside. The only damage the DOT will admit to is that the solution slightly corrodes aluminum, otherwise it is completely harmless. All this and it doesn’t even work below 20*F.



All I know is that it tastes really nasty (splash back while riding motorcycle) and does not simply spray off with pressure washer. It has to be scrubbed off. Hard to notice on the undercarriage, but after a wash job on the body panels, if you take a clean cloth and wipe the side, it will dry with a definite “clean” spot. This is not mineral deposit from the water, it is the residue from the Mag-Chloride. The best solution that I have found that takes most of it off is Simple Green. It still leaves a little, but not nearly as much as other mild detergents that I have tried. As far as it not killing trees, I have noticed more dead roadside trees and shrubs over the last three years than ever. In some areas, every tree or shrub within 30 feet of the road is dead or dying



Sticks

 

[fbaurley]

Is the magnesium chloride blue in color. I have seen some blue stuff used here in Indiana,but thought that was calcium chloride.

 

[Sticks]

Nope, Mag-Cloride is clear, unless someone mixes some tidy bowl in it.

 

[fkovalski]

Recently, the local paper here reported that citizens are taking this concern of mag chlor. to the county commissioners. Their worry is that this stuff eventually drains into Straight Creek which runs along I-70. The creek is a major domestic water supply for parts of Dillon. This is one time that I might side with environmentalist if they push this issue.

 

[illflem]

"We're only at the beginning of the problem," says Greg Fulton, president of the Colorado Motor Carriers Assn. Fulton is involved because Colorado is a leading user of mag chloride, and his members are reporting serious problems.



He's experiencing "astronomical failures" in his wiring systems, he said.



Mag chloride corrodes his wiring several feet at a time - on equipment that is only four months old, he said. "I've never seen anything like it. "



The trouble is, the Colorado Department of Transportation has never seen anything like it, either - so it is not convinced that there's a problem.



Tom Norton, executive director of the Colorado Department of Transportation, said he has heard concerns about wiring problems related to mag chloride. But he has seen no specifics.



"There is no scientific evidence to prove it," he said. "We are having trouble confirming that from a laboratory perspective. "



While Colorado awaits laboratory results, maintenance personnel for state fleets in Idaho and Montana do not hesitate: the problem is mag chloride. "



Very informative read here http://www.truckload.org/infocenter/stories/HDT_01_killerchemicals.htm

 

[TURBOs4LIFE]

LOL we make mag chloride at my job. You should see how corrosive it is on our steel mezzanine!