Ethylene Glycol Antifreeze (Poison!)
Ethylene Glycol Antifreeze BAD....
Ethylene Glycol is a poison, 30ml can be fatal for an adult, 4-5ml can kill a dog and 1-2ml can kill a cat. It is sweet tasting, an Asian woman in the UK, has been procectuted for killing her husband by adding it to his curry!
0.5-1.0% in engine oil can cause failure to engine bearings. Automatic gearboxes fail when shared coolant radiators fail, allowing minor contamination of transmission fluids. Mercedes and VW dealerships are issued with test kits to find Ethylene Glycol in oils, to fight warranty claims. It also damages some of the new types of waterbased paintwork systems.
It stops water in engines freezing, it raises the boiling point of coolant and contains inhibiters to stop internal corrosion of engines.
It is classed as hazardous waste.
It is cheap!
Propylene Glycol Antifreeze GOOD....
Propylene Glycol has one extra carbon atom in its chemical structure, but it has a very lower toxicity level. So low it is used in food, pharmaceuticals and cosmetics.
It freezes at the same temperature as the toxic alternative. It does not damage engine, gearbox bearings or waterbased paintwork.
It also stops water in engines freezing, it raises the boiling point of coolant and contains inhibiters to stop internal corrosion of engines.
It is expensive, only because it is not made in volume.
No major car maker in Europe or the USA fills new cars with it. No dealer franchises sell it, even thou they know the problems with the toxic stuff being sold.
You now know the facts!
If anybody knows of any other UK suppliers, contact me via email and I will add it this website.
The cure!
The effects of poisoning Ethylene Glycol take 12-36 hours. Symptoms of Ethylene Glycol poisoning are in this order, central nervous system failure, changes in metabolic processes and kidney failure. The central nervous system is affected early in the course of poisoning and the affected indervidual may look drunk & intoxicated. One antidote for Ethylene Glycol poisoning is Ethanol (Ethyl Alcohol). Ethanol is a competitive inhibitor of ADH. Ethanol acts by competing with Ethylene Glycol for alcohol dehydrogenase. Doctors normally precribe pharmaceutical grade Ethanol by injection as a 5-10% solution with 5% dextrose in water, but it can be given orally in the form of a strong spirit such as whisky, vodka or gin. Alcohol dehydrogenase has about a 100 times greater affinity for Ethanol than for Ethylene Glycol; Ethanol therapy saturates the enzyme, inhibiting further ethylene glycol metabolism thus limiting the formation of toxic metabolites. The other method of treatment is Haemodialysis but you are going to need a specialist hospital for this.
Transmission fluid, oil & diesel testing
Page updated 28-05-18