[Woodsman]

According to this....

https://seeburgservicecenter.com/how-does-antifreeze-work/

... a 50/50 mix of water/ethylene glycol antifreeze is good down to -37 C.

The user's/shop manual for my 2005 ST4s calls for 40/60 water/glycol that lowers the freezing point to -55 C, so it would appear that is is well protected against the -37 C that we see here in the northern US Rocky mountains.

I guess I should have started the thread with,...this is my first liquid bike. Anything liquid cooled, sold in our area, is already prepped for -40 winters. Reading your post made me wonder if your ST didn't come from a colder region dealer.

I'm just going to flush it in the spring, up the glycol and see if it runs too hot in the summer. I had read somewhere that heat may be a problem with less water content in the coolant.

 

[Suicyco]

Hi, I'm also from Australia so I don't deal with -20c temp. I can only assume your not going to be riding your bike in those conditions so if your worried about your coolant freezing why not just drain and replace when ready to ride.

 

[Mal’s900SS]

Not a great plan. Aluminum (for want of the correct term) corrodes , maybe oxidises, when it is left sitting without corrosion inhibitor in it. You get a white paste or dust as it ‘grows’. Come spring when you fill it up and run it this then flows through the system to where.. to where.,. Anybody ?? Anybody?? Beuller?? That’s right.. the radiator..

Ive seen it grow pretty fast in my 2zz Toyota engine, not helped by track regs that say no additives.. just water.

there is always/often a small electrical charge in place through your cooling system so something in there is better than nothing.

 

[Mal’s900SS]

To solve your issue.. bring the bike into the house and put your wife/kids or whomever complains first into the shed

 

[Suicyco]

Not a great plan. Aluminum (for want of the correct term) corrodes , maybe oxidises, when it is left sitting without corrosion inhibitor in it. You get a white paste or dust as it ‘grows’. Come spring when you fill it up and run it this then flows through the system to where.. to where.,. Anybody ?? Anybody?? Beuller?? That’s right.. the radiator..

Ive seen it grow pretty fast in my 2zz Toyota engine, not helped by track regs that say no additives.. just water.

there is always/often a small electrical charge in place through your cooling system so something in there is better than nothing.

Hey mate, good point I never thought of that as we don't have that problem here.

 

[DucInTheDesert]

I guess I should have started the thread with,...this is my first liquid bike. Anything liquid cooled, sold in our area, is already prepped for -40 winters. Reading your post made me wonder if your ST didn't come from a colder region dealer.

I'm just going to flush it in the spring, up the glycol and see if it runs too hot in the summer. I had read somewhere that heat may be a problem with less water content in the coolant.

The owner's manual is generic, not regional. The only allowance I've seen in that manual is choosing the motor oil viscosity based on expected ambient temperature range (-10 deg C to 40 deg C).

Coolant raises the boiling point of water and the ST4s motor is only slightly de-tuned from its sport bike role, so it could require the mix biased toward a higher boiling point. The max temp I've seen on the gauge is 198 deg F but it only gets up to about 90-100 deg F around here.

 

[Chuckracer]

Glycol raises the boiling point, but water is a better coolant.

 

[Mal’s900SS]

Glycol also increases the operating temp