Deionised/Distilled?

Robmac

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I've just been down to Halfords, hoping to buy some distilled water which I can't seem to find anywhere. Sadly Halfords didn't have any either.

They did however have Deionised water. Now I've always thought that this was unsuitable for batteries as it is acidic and some sort of additive had to be added before use, but the Halfords container clearly states for topping up batteries.

It may well be that they have put the additive in, which I presume is some sort of neutraliser, but it doesn't state that anywhere on the container.

I purchased it anyway, but haven't used it yet, if no good, Julie can have it for her iron or some other such useless object.

Any thoughts?
 
Deionised is distilled - it’s just another name, albeit the correct version.

I've read that argument before, however I've also read that it is wrong?

Apparently deionised attacks metal as it is acidic. This is what I am trying to clarify.
 
According to the internet (I know who do you believe but if a couple of reputable sources agree then it is probably correct) 'Distilled and deionised water are both forms of purified water. The main difference is that in distilled water, most bacteria and viruses have been removed while some minerals are left behind. The deionisation process, in contrast, completely removes minerals from the water but doesn't remove most bacteria or viruses'. https://www.chemicals.co.uk/blog/what-is-the-difference-between-distilled-water-and-deionised-water

See also - https://www.trojanbattery.com/pdf/WP_EffectOfImpurities_0612.pdf
 
For batteries and steam irons, and I use it in my antifreeze in the motorbikes. Demi water is another name.
 

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According to the internet (I know who do you believe but if a couple of reputable sources agree then it is probably correct) 'Distilled and deionised water are both forms of purified water. The main difference is that in distilled water, most bacteria and viruses have been removed while some minerals are left behind. The deionisation process, in contrast, completely removes minerals from the water but doesn't remove most bacteria or viruses'. https://www.chemicals.co.uk/blog/what-is-the-difference-between-distilled-water-and-deionised-water

See also - https://www.trojanbattery.com/pdf/WP_EffectOfImpurities_0612.pdf

Sounds good.

If Trojan say it's OK, should be good for my 2xT125's.
 
S&N Tartan was the flavour of the month when I was at UNI (1969-73) and Newcy Brown
 
When I was still at school it was only 9p a pint and didn’t know any better. I still don’t. ?

When I was at school, we used to drink Party 4's and 7's of it.

It was horrible, but we drank it anyway.
 
Loved a Black and Tan with a half pint of heavy beer and a wee bottle of sweetheart stout I’ve no seen it for years It’s probably classed as a cocktail now and £10 a pint. O got sidetracked there that efoy thing I bought turns ethanol into pure distilled water I’ll stop tipping it down the drain nowill put in bottles
 
I've just been down to Halfords, hoping to buy some distilled water which I can't seem to find anywhere. Sadly Halfords didn't have any either.

They did however have Deionised water. Now I've always thought that this was unsuitable for batteries as it is acidic and some sort of additive had to be added before use, but the Halfords container clearly states for topping up batteries.

It may well be that they have put the additive in, which I presume is some sort of neutraliser, but it doesn't state that anywhere on the container.

I purchased it anyway, but haven't used it yet, if no good, Julie can have it for her iron or some other such useless object.

Any thoughts?

Distilled water is water that has been heated to steam and then condensed. This process leaves behind salts and particulates. However substances that have a lower boiling point than water will also vapourise and be collected along with the distilled water. So the source of the water used is important to limit this problem. Deionised water is made by running water (even distilled water) through an electrically charged resin. Ions in the water exchange with ions in the resin producing water. The process does not remove such things as sugars, bacteria or viruses. The problem with deionised water is that although it has a ph is 7 when produced it is highly reactive and when it comes into contact with carbon dioxide from the air the result is carbonic acid with a ph as low as 5.6. This means that as soon as you open a bottle of deionised water it rapidly becomes acidic (if it isn't already). So distilled water may have impurities which affect the performance of the battery. Carbonic acid generally does not react with metals so there is no issue with adding deionised water to a battery. Incidentally it is not advisable to drink either distilled water (because of lack of minerals and impurities although not dangerous) or deionised water (as it is corrosive).
 
All water, whether distilled or deionised, will naturally absorb Co2 from the atmosphere.
It generally ends up as very weakly acidic with a ph of around 5.8
 

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