What's in the water?

[Miles]

Is distilled water the best coolant for my new Swiftech kit? Would certain additives give me better performance or protection from corrosion? The Swiftech waterblock is now anodized so it can be used with "pure" water, suggesting that is best way to go. :confused:

[Jodie]

I'd think you'd still want to go with WaterWetter. Redline's WaterWetter (used in performance cars-I use it in mine...) is reasonably priced and easy to come by. Any performance car parts shop can sell it to you by the gobs over the counter... Your flow will be slightly higher for the same atm, and it will convect heat better. The only advantage that I know of for distilled water is that you have a (slightly) higher survival rate if things get wet inside the box...

[phil]

Originally posted by Miles
Is distilled water the best coolant for my new Swiftech kit? Would certain additives give me better performance or protection from corrosion? The Swiftech waterblock is now anodized so it can be used with "pure" water, suggesting that is best way to go. :confused:



Don't worry too much about corrosion...this is an old wives tale spread by people who have never used watercooling.

The liquid to use is distilled water and Redline Water Wetter (as Jodie said) You can get both from good automotive stores. Do not use antifreeze or anything similar as you will lose the cooling properties of the water.

[MechCD]

I use water plus a few drops of Dye Lite to kill the fuzzies. Make sure yopu put something toxic in there to kill the fuzlies. Water Wetter will work, so will anifreeze, bleach is BAD! It does evil things to your block. Rubbing alchohol doesn't werk either, and hydrogen peroxide might fiz too much or change the thermal properties of the water.

I'm using mineral water. i read somewhere that if you use mineral water, the chances of the other materials in the water losing ions and small particles is less because there are already things in the water. My friendly friend Chem Engineer said that should be right too. There might be a greater chance of the battery effect, but no loose particles.

Do us all a favor, don't use copper and aluminum in the same watercooled loop. If you do, get some special alumin that doesn't corrode (some alloys don't corrode)

[Jodie]

Originally posted by MechCD
I use water plus a few drops of Dye Lite to kill the fuzzies. Make sure yopu put something toxic in there to kill the fuzlies. Water Wetter will work, so will anifreeze, bleach is BAD! It does evil things to your block. Rubbing alchohol doesn't werk either, and hydrogen peroxide might fiz too much or change the thermal properties of the water.

I'm using mineral water. i read somewhere that if you use mineral water, the chances of the other materials in the water losing ions and small particles is less because there are already things in the water. My friendly friend Chem Engineer said that should be right too. There might be a greater chance of the battery effect, but no loose particles.

Do us all a favor, don't use copper and aluminum in the same watercooled loop. If you do, get some special alumin that doesn't corrode (some alloys don't corrode)

Or expose some part of your system to direct sunlight... But, yup, he's right. You need to kill the ickies.

Mineral water... well, I can see that it might convect better. It may be that it's less corrosive because it has good molecular bonds with all the crud already in it. Flow properties would concern me... I'd have to test it. You want to make the water 'slicker' if you can...

[Jodie]

oops! Forgot one more important thing: Try to not mix metals in your system. Aluminum/Copper or Copper/Titanium, unless you're careful to find inert metals. The 'battery effect' can be rather brutal on the components of your system. (leakage-time)

I raced bicycles for some while... I remember racing for Kestral and having some of the first unobtanium-type bikes go to pieces under me. Steel lubs, titanium seat tub, magnisium alloy downtube and triangle. The metals would interact chemically and the bikes would become TOTALLY unstable...

[Miles]

Thanks everyone! I hope the Swiftech engineers thought about the mixing metals part when they put together thier kit. Now I'm off to Pepboy's for some water wetter. With any luck, I'll be watercooled by sundown!:D

[Jodie]

Cheer! Good luck! And keep us posted!

[Dave S]

Wot you need is Chemical called fluorinert; we use it at my company for cooling of our Active Control Systems we fit to Race Cars. It is totally enert so you can submerge anything electrical in it great stuff bloody expensive tho!!doh!!!

[Miles]

Wow Dave! Fluorinert sound like great stuff!


http://www.3m.com/market/industrial/fluids/library/prodinfo/FC77.html

[Dave S]

Man it rocks, we had a unit witch was basically a transputer on a very small box, sitting on the grid in say Florida they would get HOT so fill (no completely coz U need some slop) the unit up with Fluorinert sorted, but its not cheap dam shame!!!

[MechCD]

That flourinert is expensive! Isn't it like $30 just for SHIPPING? and then around $15 a gallon?

[siggy]

Ya but how much would you need? Isn't it a closed system when u watercool a computer?

[Dave S]

The cost I think is something like £250 :rolleyes: for a 3l tub, boy would I love to know somebody in that trade!!!:D:D

[MechCD]

Originally posted by siggy
Ya but how much would you need? Isn't it a closed system when u watercool a computer?

About a galoon,

Water is free, or very cheap if you get distilled or mineral water.

add in $14 for Water Wetter or dye lite

that not more than $15 if you buy water

Flouroinert.
$100

i checked, thats for the cheap stuff and half a galoon, shipped in bulk quantaties to MOEN (they make faucets and parts, dunno what they do with the stuff, cooling CNC machines? I don't think they even order it, they just have the prices for it)