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car coolent in loop?

M

mark660

Limp Gawd
Joined
Apr 21, 2007
Messages
510
is it ok to run distiled water and a good qulity car coolent in my loop?
 
Yeah, there's nothing wrong with running antifreeze (ethyl glycol) in your loop. I've done it before, but I prefer straight distilled because it's non-toxic and much less messy.
 
The most popular glycol in the loop is Pentosin and it's a car coolant additive by itself for Audi/VW ;)

You are fine but don't add more than 10% in the loop since having too much glycol doesn't help wil thermal transfer.



 
Pentosin is a nice blue color also.. which seems to be pretty appealing to lots... but it's not UV reactive in any way shape or form..
 
I think antifreeze is what most computer water coolant is. At least, thats what the stuff I dumped in my system smells like. Works great.

Early water coolant systems even utilized heater cores from cars as the radiator...
 
can i run just striaght distiled water and still get the same performance as distiled water and coolent?
 
mark660 said:
can i run just striaght distiled water and still get the same performance as distiled water and coolent?
Click to expand...

Coolant lowers performance. More coolant = worse temperatures.

The only reason to use an antifreeze is to reduce galvanic corrosion, and inhibit the growth of microbes.
 
If you run straight distilled water and have no mixtures of metals in your loop (ie aluminum /w copper), then you are providing the least conductive (in case of a leak) and the most performance in terms of heat transfer.

The only other mixtures should be for aesthetics (ie color and/or uv). You should have no problems with algae or anything else if you just run pure distilled. However, some don't like this because its 'boring' to look at. Some, like me, prefer performance and just buy colored tubing for the aesthetics.
 
The best coolant would be straight distilled water with 1-2 drops of biocide like Petra's PT Nuke. You can also get away with just distilled water if you change water each 2 months.

IMHO, with a properly setup loop, there is no point adding a antifreeze (anticorrosion) additive at all. Like Wshmaster0 said, it's the least conductive of all and even a few guys dared running a fan in distilled water or lemonade without shorting it out :p It take lots of voltage to make distilled water conductive (IIRC, above 240v).

The main reason ppl still use is for the color since Pentosin give a nice blue tint.

 
No you would not be better off IMO, at least your wallet would not be better off. If you want to pay $64 a gallon for that fancy stuff it will not hurt your system and you can stop reading here.

To try to clarify what others above have said.

Nothing cools better than water, putting "stuff" in the water reduces its cooling capability making it worse. (In fairness "how much worse" and if you could even measure the temp difference in a typical system, is debatable.) A gallon of distilled water + dye of your choice is the best. See link below for dye.

If you do not use mixed metals:
A gallon of distilled water is all you need. Add dye if desired.

If you use mixed metals (copper/brass rad and alum block):
Anti-freeze is used because of the additives that reduce/prevent corrosion if you have a copper/brass rad and use an aluminum block and the glycol will kill any 'bugs' if you do things like spit in the tubing or use pond water to fill the system. The "pump lubrication" touted in some fluids is un-necessary as the pumps for PC water cooling are designed to be lubricated by the water they pump. A few tablespoons of Zerex or any other automotive anti-freeze added to distilled water is all you need if running a mix of alum and copper/brass parts. If you are not running a mix of alum and copper/brass parts you do not "need" anything other than distilled water, $1 a gallon at the grocery store. As far as the "non-conductive BS" you system should not leak, end of story. If it is the color you are interested in you can buy the UV dye just by itself in just about any color a lot cheaper.
http://www.jab-tech.com/Dyes-and-Additives-c-55.html

How to make a 10% mix of water and antifreeze:​

Buy a gallon of steam distilled water, mark the top of the full water level on the side of the jug with a marker before you open the jug. Open the jug and pour out into a measuring cup, 3/4 cup (6 oz) of the distilled water. Pour out the water in the cup into the sink and do it again. We want to discard 12oz of water. Put away the measuring cup. Go into garage etc. find automotive antifreeze and refill the jug of distilled water back to the top level mark you made on the jug with antifreeze. Do not use the measuring cup with antifreeze. Clearly label the jug POSION DO NOT DRINK, and you now have a gallon of 10% antifreeze solution that should last you several years of topping off your system. Mix in the dye of your choice. It helps if you find antifreeze that is colored the same as the dye you intend. This limits your choices to mainly green and red I think, if you want blue get the petrosin mentioned in a post above and you will probably not need the dye.

those good at math will notice that 12oz/128oz is not exactly 10% /close enough :p

edit: The PT nuke would not hurt either if you are paranoid. The point is the cost of the stuff you are considering. You can "roll your own" so much cheaper.
 
BillParrish said:
Mix in the dye of your choice.
Click to expand...
When using dye, will there be color residue inside the system or the water blocks? For example, I want to flush it and everything will still look green?! :eek:
The manual :rolleyes: of my liquid cooling kit said you should have a 20% coolant-water-mix.

I would also like to know what may cause or contributes to a corrosion inside the closed cuircuit.

Thanks,
Ric
 
thegermankid said:
I would also like to know what may cause or contributes to a corrosion inside the closed cuircuit.
Click to expand...

Mixing metals in a loop will cause galvanic corrosion. Having an aluminum radiator, or reservior, and copper water blocks, for instance.
 
Argh... I just found out that my radiator is aluminum and the cpu water block is copper :eek:. I didn't know about this. Are most radiators made of aluminum?
 
thegermankid said:
Argh... I just found out that my radiator is aluminum and the cpu water block is copper :eek:. I didn't know about this. Are most radiators made of aluminum?
Click to expand...

Nope, real watercooling radiators is made of copper/brass, which is ok.

 
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