Ridding bubbles

P

ProOC

Limp Gawd
Joined
Jun 17, 2003
Messages
129
I am filling my swiftech system, yeah leak and all. It's a wicked small leak I still can't see it or know where it is, but anyway...

How do you get all the bubbles out? Right now there are tons of really tiny little bubbles all in the loop and the container I am using to fill the system. It's like the bubbles get pumped up and then just get spat back in and pumped up again. So how would they ever go away fully?

I thought the bubbles would come out in the container and pop at the top and disapear, but there are so many of them!!

Could it be that the wicked small leak I have is letting some air in hence generating more and more bubbles? ahhhh, help, eheh

Thanks.
 
I used to have those too... if they are what im thinking... I wouldn't worry about them... I ran the system over night and in the morning they were all gone....

However with a leak... they could be coming in. Do you have a closed system OR a res?
 
It's a closed system when all said and done, but this is during the fill process with a container, kinda acting like a res I guess?....?
 
I have never done a closed system. I have always had a res W/pump... and it always took a bit to as it were de-bubble the lines. So if there are micro-bubbles, i really wouldn't worry about it. As for the res, there are benifits to having a res. For one it helps cool the water, getting the air out is easy and refilling can be easier. The weird part is mine is a closed system (i thought) with a sealed res, but I still loose water somehow...
 
It's easy find if a leak is letting air get sucked in. I use a stethoscope made for automotive stuff (but you could also just take a length of tubing and put one end up to your ear) and hold the end of it near the suspect parts. If there's air being sucked in, you'll hear it easy.
 
HeThatKnows said:
It's easy find if a leak is letting air get sucked in. I use a stethoscope made for automotive stuff (but you could also just take a length of tubing and put one end up to your ear) and hold the end of it near the suspect parts. If there's air being sucked in, you'll hear it easy.
Click to expand...

A way to check if it's leaking at all, would be suck on the fill/bleed so there's some pressure (empty the water first....) then close the valve. Leave it for awhile. Then open it, and see if there was still pressure from you sucking on it. If there wasn't, then do what ^ said.
 
Im not sure if that would work chicken. This leak is super tiny. I mean it's been running for 48 hours on my kitchen table and I don't see one drop anywhere so far. I think it evaporates at a rate quicker than it leaks out. I am probably just going to do my best at ridding the bubbles and set it all back in my machine. I don't think the leak will even effect me other than I will need to refill the water every 2 months or so.
 
HeThatKnows said:
It's easy find if a leak is letting air get sucked in. I use a stethoscope made for automotive stuff (but you could also just take a length of tubing and put one end up to your ear) and hold the end of it near the suspect parts. If there's air being sucked in, you'll hear it easy.
Click to expand...


Oh I can hear the sloshing loud as can be from the pump somewhere and like I said in a previous post I saw green stuff from the hydrx like under the pump in the velcro they used to attach the pump to the tray, but the sloshing is so loud I can't tell exactly where its coming from.

I'd like to pull the pump up and look underneath it, but the fill and bleed kit is attached with a zip-tie and I don't know if me cutting it would void a warranty, but I don't even know if have a warranty so I might do it later tonight and really examine for the leak. I'm definitely a pretty do it yourself kinda guy with pcs so I am gonna "get her done".
 
OK??? you are not seeing any visible water??? If you are not then you may not have a leak. What type of tubing are you using? if you are using the clear tubing it does allow evaperation THROUGH the tubing... I have to fill my system (especially in the summer) oh about 1 a month to every other month. I have recently seen several articles on the fact that water vaper does "leak" through the tubing. There is another kind of tubing that doesn't leak at least as much. It is the stuff with lines in it... If i run across the articles again I will post them here.
 
ProOC said:
Im not sure if that would work chicken. This leak is super tiny. I mean it's been running for 48 hours on my kitchen table and I don't see one drop anywhere so far. I think it evaporates at a rate quicker than it leaks out. I am probably just going to do my best at ridding the bubbles and set it all back in my machine. I don't think the leak will even effect me other than I will need to refill the water every 2 months or so.
Click to expand...

uh how do you know you have a leak if you cant see it?
 
kronchev said:
uh how do you know you have a leak if you cant see it?
Click to expand...

In my other post kicking around here I explained that I could see green beneath the pump area where it was velcroed to the tray, so I dabbed some tissue in there a bit and sure enough a very small small bit of green liquid soaked into the tissue.

It's not pouring anywhere so I am just setting it back up. This setup works great it's just I had to refill it due to evap and/or leak whatever, but it'll be back up real soon. I'll post pics.

P.S. I even got the UV hydrx fluid this time.
 
I would either epoxy or RTV that leak. That's the only way to rid the bubbles. Besides it will grow over time and cause bigger headaches.
Granted the tubing can release water vapors but not usually to a great amount. They should be replaced when they become saturated.
 
often a dedicated air trap is employed at the top of the loop
(Im sure a search query with air trap would dredge up some posts)

worse case senerio (and bad all around) is cavitation
as unlikely as that is I'll post info here so you can recognize it if it occurs
Cavitation
Cavitation means that cavities are forming in the liquid that we are pumping. When these cavities form at the suction of the pump several things happen all at once.

We experience a loss in capacity.
We can no longer build the same head (pressure)
The efficiency drops.
The cavities or bubbles will collapse when they pass into the higher regions of pressure causing noise, vibration, and damage to many of the components.
The cavities form for five basic reasons and it is common practice to lump all of them into the general classification of cavitation. This is an error because we will learn that to correct each of these conditions we must understand why they occur and how to fix them. Here they are in no particular order :

Vaporization
Air ingestion
Internal recirculation
Flow turbulence
The Vane Passing Syndrome
Click to expand...

each is described indepth with steps to correct it
cavitation is nearly the worse thing that can happen to a pump
typically youd hear it as a knocking

also extremely good (technical) reference
Understanding the Basics of Centrifugal Pump Operation PDF (as its related to the above) ;)
 
Thanks for the replies. I do have somewhat of an air trap and now that my system is back together and ran for a day the bubbles are all out and it's bubble-less now. :D

Some good info here though. Thanks again.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top