Water Based Coolants

The ideal range is 20:1 (5% GrindClean, 95% water) to 10:1 (10% GrindClean, 90% water). You should start out with a ratio of 20:1 for initial tank fills. Use clean, soft water if possible.

If you have very hard water with lots of minerals, then increase the percentage of GrindClean to 15:1 or 10:1.

Using the Brix scale, the ideal setting is between 1 and 2. A reading of over 2 is too rich, while under 1 is too lean. A fresh batch of 20:1 coolant should read 1.0, while a fresh batch of 10:1 coolant should read 2.0.

Over diluting or too lean a mixture will decrease GrindClean’s corrosion protection and cause rust. Too strong or rich a mixture will make the fluid stickier and foamier. It will also have a strong chemical odor, and could cause irritation of the skin (especially if it sticks to the skin). A strong mixture does not improve coolant performance.

Refractometers work best with fresh coolant. Do not rely on a refractometer’s high reading after the coolant has become dirty with grinding contaminants. The reading may appear to be higher than normal, since the refractometer is now measuring all the oils and other grinding contaminants that have been added to the mixture. In this situation, an operator may think that the coolant needs more water, since the Brix reading is > 2; however, by adding too much water, the operator is actually diluting the overall percentage of GrindClean in the mixture.

You can still use a refractometer with dirty coolant to make sure that you don’t go lower than the recommended Brix reading of 1.0. If your reading is below 1.0, then it’s time to add more GrindClean to the mixture. A manual or digital refractometer that measures the Brix scale from 0 to 10 is recommended.

Due to evaporation of water in the coolant mixture, you should not top off the tank at the same dilution ratio that was used to fill the tank with fresh coolant. A good rule of thumb is to use one-half the amount of GrindClean when topping up. If you start a fresh batch of coolant at a ratio of 20:1, then top off with a ratio of 40:1 (Brix reading of 0.5).

Most users will not need to use de-ionized or distilled water. Locations with especially poor quality water or very high evaporation rates could switch to de-ionized or distilled water to see if that lengthens their coolant life.

Users that are switching from another brand of synthetic coolant to GrindClean should be able to use the same company to haul away their spent coolant.

Lookup “waste disposal & recycling service” in your local Yellow Pages for help in finding a company to haul away your spent coolant. Many industrial areas will have recyclers that reclaim metal particles from spent grinding coolant.

Spent grinding fluid or coolant should never be disposed of into a septic or sewer system. Contact your appropriate local or state agencies for additional information.

GrindClean works well with centrifuges (no problems with foaming or suds) and can be used with filter cartridges or paper designed to remove particles down to 0.5 microns.

If the ambient temperature in your grinding facility is very high, then use deionized or soft water to help prevent excessive evaporation. It is not necessary to chill GrindClean coolant

If your coolant is turning pink and you grind a lot of carbide, then you are probably leaching cobalt. Switching to GrindClean synthetic coolant should dramatically reduce this problem. While no coolant will completely eliminate cobalt leaching, laboratory analyses of various brands of coolant consistently show GrindClean to have the lowest concentration of cobalt. Excessive cobalt leaching will decrease the life of the carbide tool, diamond grinding wheel, and the coolant. The dissolved cobalt can also be a health and disposal concern.

Coolant can also turn pink due to excessive minerals in the water or due to highly contaminated coolant. Maintaining proper GrindClean dilution levels should prevent this problem. Mixtures that are turning rancid can also turn pink in color. If this happens, then it’s time to change your coolant.

GrindClean is specially formulated not to foam. In the rare case where foaming is a problem (typically due to too rich a mixture or the addition of foreign particles not normally associated with grinding), then contact GrindClean regarding the purchase of a defoamer or biocide.

Coolant that is maintained at the correct dilution ratio AND properly filtered by a centrifuge and/or filter type cartridge/paper should last for up to 12 months. Note the translucent green color of a fresh batch of GrindClean coolant. Unlike other brands of coolant, properly maintained GrindClean coolant will keep its original color even after 6 months of use.

Grinders that have a small coolant tank (e.g., 20 gallon tank with inexpensive paper filter) will need to have their coolant changed more frequently (e.g., every 60 days), especially if grinding solids are continually re-circulated through the pump due to poor filtration.

In general, coolant life will depend upon:

” How well you filter the coolant
” The quality of your water
” How well you maintain the dilution ratio and volume of coolant in the tank

First, calculate the volume of your tank. Do this by multiplying the Length X Width X Depth to get the tank’s total cubic feet. Multiply the total ft3 by 7.5 to convert to gallons. Then divide the total gallons by the dilution ratio to obtain the total amount of GrindClean to add in the coolant mixture. The following example shows how to calculate the amount of GrindClean to add.

Tank width: 24″ or 2 ft
Tank length: 36″ or 3 ft
Tank depth: 12″ or 1 ft
Total cubic feet: 2x3x1 = 6
Total gallons: 6 x 7.5 = 45
Dilution ratio: 20:1
Amount of GrindClean to add: 45 / 20 = 2.25 gallons

If you are still having problems with your coolant, then send us a sample of your coolant in a small leak-proof bottle. We will analyze it for cobalt leaching, rust, bacteria, etc., and provide recommendations to enhance coolant life and increase performance (proper dilution ratio, top off rates, water type, etc.).

Refer to our Material Safety Data Sheet for additional information on handling and storage of this product. Observe all safety precautions shown on the label and in the MSDS sheet.