Watercooling loop cleaning, how do I do it properly?

[XzzDSA]

Heyo o/

So I've had my first custom water-cooling loop going for just over a year now I think.

And it's just about time I change it.

 

I'm going from a full sized atx motherboard in a silverstone TJ-11 to a much smaller and more practical build with an m-atx in a Corsair Carbide Air 240.

 

As I'm doing this switch, I'm changing my radiator from a quad to a dual-rad. This means disassembling my loop completely. I'm also going from one type of coolant (Feser one coolant RED) to another red coolant (EK Ekoolant EVO, BLOOD RED). 

 

So here's my actual question and what I'd actually want some advice on.
How am I supposed to go about this? How do I properly clean my loop without damaging or leaving residue inside of my components?

 

Running an EK D5 pump
quad rad 45mm

ek gtx 980 acetal block

ek supermacy EVO ACETAL CPU block

Tubing is primochill primoflex LRT crystal clear.

[Master Disaster]

Drain the loop as dry as you can.

Get a 50/50 mix of vinegar and water (doesn't have to be anything special for cleaning), fill the loop back up with it and run it for 12 hours (use a psu shorter).

Drain it out and refill again with distilled water, run it again for 12 hours.

Drain it again and disassemble the loop to move case.

When you rebuild it just fill it as normal and you should be ok.

[Benji_w]

Heyo o/

So I've had my first custom water-cooling loop going for just over a year now I think.

And it's just about time I change it.

 

I'm going from a full sized atx motherboard in a silverstone TJ-11 to a much smaller and more practical build with an m-atx in a Corsair Carbide Air 240.

 

As I'm doing this switch, I'm changing my radiator from a quad to a dual-rad. This means disassembling my loop completely. I'm also going from one type of coolant (Feser one coolant RED) to another red coolant (EK Ekoolant EVO, BLOOD RED). 

 

So here's my actual question and what I'd actually want some advice on.

How am I supposed to go about this? How do I properly clean my loop without damaging or leaving residue inside of my components?

 

Running an EK D5 pump

quad rad 45mm

ek gtx 980 acetal block

ek supermacy EVO ACETAL CPU block

Tubing is primochill primoflex LRT crystal clear.

 

The problem with using vinegar to clean your loop is you need to make sure that it is actually free of the acid it will leave behind. If you want to clean your loop properly then I'd suggest the following.

1. Drain your loop
2. Remove the loop from your case
3. Disassemble blocks and clean (don't use acid on Nickel plated parts)
4. Use water and vinegar in your rad, shake it and drain then flush the rad for a good while (if you can test the pH level with test strips)
5. Check pump is clean, usually it will be fine
6. Reassemble and leak test, Always leak test...

This is how you do it "properly".

[Najuno]

The problem with using vinegar to clean your loop is you need to make sure that it is actually free of the acid it will leave behind. If you want to clean your loop properly then I'd suggest the following.

1. Drain your loop
2. Remove the loop from your case
3. Disassemble blocks and clean (don't use acid on Nickel plated parts)
4. Use water and vinegar in your rad, shake it and drain then flush the rad for a good while (if you can test the pH level with test strips)
5. Check pump is clean, usually it will be fine
6. Reassemble and leak test, Always leak test...

This is how you do it "properly".

Good guide,

 

yep that´s how it´s done properly.

[XzzDSA]

The problem with using vinegar to clean your loop is you need to make sure that it is actually free of the acid it will leave behind. If you want to clean your loop properly then I'd suggest the following.

1. Drain your loop
2. Remove the loop from your case
3. Disassemble blocks and clean (don't use acid on Nickel plated parts)
4. Use water and vinegar in your rad, shake it and drain then flush the rad for a good while (if you can test the pH level with test strips)
5. Check pump is clean, usually it will be fine
6. Reassemble and leak test, Always leak test...

This is how you do it "properly".

 

Where do you get ph-strips? never really thought of using those outside of my chemistry classes

And with the distilled water. You just buy a liter or two, fill the loop and run it?

And I actually do believe my blocks are nickel plated..... So what would you then use to clean them with.

[Benji_w]

Where do you get ph-strips? never really thought of using those outside of my chemistry classes

And with the distilled water. You just buy a liter or two, fill the loop and run it?

And I actually do believe my blocks are nickel plated..... So what would you then use to clean them with.

 

EK says to clean nickel blocks with hot soapy water, if the plating needs heavier cleaning then you need to use a NON ABRASIVE polish. You can get pH strips from online retailers like amazon. Distilled to flush the rads? I would flush with tap water until pH neutral then rinse out the rads with distilled to remove impurities from the tap water used previously. I know this sounds very complex but I've not had any growths or crap in my loop, I don't use vinegar just a lot of tap water (too much) and distilled. I have a 5 litre tub of De-Ionized water around me at all time when I have my rig up and working, distilled is hard to get in the UK.

[XzzDSA]

EK says to clean nickel blocks with hot soapy water, if the plating needs heavier cleaning then you need to use a NON ABRASIVE polish. You can get pH strips from online retailers like amazon. Distilled to flush the rads? I would flush with tap water until pH neutral then rinse out the rads with distilled to remove impurities from the tap water used previously. I know this sounds very complex but I've not had any growths or crap in my loop, I don't use vinegar just a lot of tap water (too much) and distilled. I have a 5 litre tub of De-Ionized water around me at all time when I have my rig up and working, distilled is hard to get in the UK.

 

Will de-mineralised water be good enough? Else I'd proberly have to buy distilled water as coolant, just to flush?

And do I need to do anything with my pump? I guess it kind of gets the same treatment as the radiator as I use it to flush the rad?

[Benji_w]

Will de-mineralised water be good enough? Else I'd proberly have to buy distilled water as coolant, just to flush?

And do I need to do anything with my pump? I guess it kind of gets the same treatment as the radiator as I use it to flush the rad?

 

It's recommended to use Distilled above all else so I'd advise the same, can't remember why de-mineral water isn't recommended but I'd just use distilled or de-ionized water.

Depends, you'll need to inspect the pump in order to asses the level of cleaning required. If it looks spotless then a quick rinse with distilled water will be enough, if it has residue a light scrub with some distilled and a toothbrush will remove stubborn blemishes.

[XzzDSA]

demineralized is de-ionized. Distilled water is basicly cooked water. Does the same thing except distilled is as close to sterile as it gets to my understanding.
Trouble with distilled water is, it is hard to come by and it's expensive, might be worth the trouble though I don't know.

 

But I guess I could just go and buy 2 liters of distilled water from pc water-cooling suppliers.

[AnonymousGuy]

demineralized is de-ionized. Distilled water is basicly cooked water. Does the same thing except distilled is as close to sterile as it gets to my understanding.

Trouble with distilled water is, it is hard to come by and it's expensive, might be worth the trouble though I don't know.

 

But I guess I could just go and buy 2 liters of distilled water from pc water-cooling suppliers.

 

In the US, distilled water is 80 cents (.80 dollars) per gallon.  I have no idea why it seems to be so expensive everywhere else.  The strategy I recommend is filling up a bathtub with hot water, and use a submersible fountain pump (hardware stores will sell these for $20) to open-circulate bath water through your loop.  Then to rinse, fill a 5 gallon bucket up with distilled water, submerge the pump in that, then let it run through the loop and shoot out into the bathtub drain.

 

Alternatively if you have less water to work with, putting the radiator on the ground flat and using a large syringe (the kind meant for marinating meats) you can repeatedly fill up the rad, shake it around a bit, then turn it upside down to drain it.  To wash waterblocks, use tap water and then splash some distilled water on them to rinse.

[XzzDSA]

I think i 'screwed up'.

I am using a d5 pump from ekwb and I want to flush my loop with it. BUT I only have one PSU availible atm. And I want to use that for my pc if at all possible. 

 

Is there another way to run my D5 pump? Or do I have to just use the PSU that I've got?.

[Benji_w]

I think i 'screwed up'.

I am using a d5 pump from ekwb and I want to flush my loop with it. BUT I only have one PSU availible atm. And I want to use that for my pc if at all possible. 

 

Is there another way to run my D5 pump? Or do I have to just use the PSU that I've got?.

 

I don't understand why you're making things so difficult for yourself. Just use the directions I gave you earlier on and save yourself from doing something twice... Even if you skip the pH test strips your loop will be clean and you won't need to worry about crap being in your loop.

 

Hell I even just used tap water to clean my rads the first time and by block's channels are clear of flux. You don't need to hook your D5 up to the PSU to run water through the system for hours it takes like 10mins of shaking the rad with tap water, the blocks, clean by hand, if there is crap in your loop, running a d5 to flush it won't get it out it will just get the crap stuck in the blocks, the very thing you're trying to avoid...

[XzzDSA]

Alright then. Good point. Gonna do this tomorrow and get my system up and running with my watercooling.