Is Iodine OK?

I

ih8spam

Weaksauce
Joined
May 6, 2007
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I am getting ready to start testing my WC loop in the next few days.

My WC system has been lying open during construction for over a month now in a dirty environment - cat/dog hair & dander flying around, not to mention dust as well.

I want to flush the junk out of my system, and try to kill off any buggies prior to filling the loop with HydrX. I plan on filling the loop with distilled water and some anti-bacterial agent while testing for leaks, and then drain the fluid/junk out after running it for 24 hours. Then, I'll refill with HydrX and test-run again for 24 hours before sealing everything up.

Would iodine be a good anti-bacterial agent to run through the system during the initial cleaning? If so, how much should I add?

I've heard that I shouldn't run alcohol in the loop.

I've also seen copper sulfate @ Petra's Tech, but I don't want to wait / pay for the delivery for a $2.50 bottle. (If copper sulfate is good, is there anywhere else I can get it cheaply?)

Thanks!

IH8Spam
 
I think Idonie would work, but it would also stain your tubing... tubing tuuuuuuuuubing.
 
I guess I'm confused - Is there a real problem here?

I think I only have to add a few drops of iodine, so I don't know how much staining or damage would occur - that's why I'm asking ...

IH8Spam
 
I've been using iodine for months. To 4 litres of distilled water I add about 10 drops of 2.5% Iodine Tincture. So far I havn't noticed anything growing in the tubing, which is a good sign :p

It's left a bit of a yellowish-orange stain on the tubes but not much. I also don't know how my amount of iodine compares to other using it; maybe I'm not using enough, maybe too much.

HOWEVER, I'd recommend looking for something called "Lugol's Iodine" for this; it's just iodine and potassium iodide in distilled water, instead of a tincture which also has a bit of alcohol in it (not enough to worry about though; we're talking 10 drops per 4 litres here!). I tried getting this first but was unsuccessful at all my local drugstores. You might have better luck though.
 
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