Q: How important is water quality?
A: It is very important. The hardness of the water has a direct affect on the performance of your water soluble coolant. It is very important to control the hardness of your water. Remember, in most cases 90 to 95% of your water soluble coolant is water. That is why the quality of your water is very important.

Q: Is a proportioner necessary?
A: Although it is not necessary, it does help tremendously in controlling your concentration. In turn, this will give you a better idea on your coolant usage and also help monitor tool life.

Q: Can I just add water or just add coolant concentrate?
A: Yes, you can. However, it is recommended that you add both water and coolant concentrate together to keep better control of the concentration.

Q: How important is the control of pH in my coolant?
A: This is very important. Most cutting fluids are designed to run at 9 to 9.5 on the pH scale. Some run lower, but it is a good idea to keep strict controls to keep your pH levels within this range.

Q: Why is that important?
A: If your pH drops below an 8.8 and stays there, you have a greater chance for bacterial growth. On the other side of the scale, if your pH goes too high, you increase the chances for dermatitis.

Q: How can we prevent dermatitis?
A: You can prevent dermatitis by using common sense and taking a few precautionary steps. Barrier creams, gloves, long sleeve shirts and frequent hand washing go a long way in the prevention of dermatitis. In addition, control over your pH to keep it within range is very important. All these steps taken together will help to eliminate the possibility of dermatitis occurring.

Q: How can we prevent hydraulic or way oil from reaching our cutting fluid?
A: In most cases, it is impossible; it is a “nature of the beast”. However, a variety of oil skimmers are available to help remove the contaminating oil in your sumps.

Q: Is the refractometer giving us an accurate reading on the concentration of our coolant?
A: Theoretically no. However, it is the best “field” test to measure your coolant’s concentration.

Q: How can we increase the tank life of our coolant?
A: You can increase the life by taking control over your sumps. Daily checks of concentration, pH, water hardness and add amounts of water and concentrate all contribute to keeping your tanks within a certain range to maintain peek performance of your coolant. It is also important to eliminate or maintain a small amount of foreign oil as to not to contaminate your coolant.

Q: How do we know what type of coolant to use in certain applications?
A: Your Yuma representative can help you answer these questions. We have products designed for certain applications and some that can be used “across the board” for product consolidation at your plant.