Are these algaes?

[oscar7601]

Hi everyone,

 

I'm running a custom watercooling loop to cool my CPU down. I finished building and filling it up around march 2017.

 

It was running pretty decently for months until I started getting "random" Asus AI Suite notifications telling me that my pump had stopped just for a split second and then it would turn on again. Doesn't sound good but anyway it was still cooling well...

 

The thing is I sold my initial GPU in early July as the prices had risen "thanks to" the miners. And I left my rig without turning it on until today since I've got my hands on a GPU again (i7 3930K doesn't have any internal graphics card).

 

So remember, the GPU is just the reason my rig had not been running, it's not watercooled.

 

My issue however is that today I fired my rig up and it was working fine until I opened HWMonitor just to check everything was alri.... HOLY COW! 90°C+ on some cores of the CPU!

I turned the rig off and noticed the pump wasn't running. I thought my CPU waterblock might be clogged by the few drops of dye I had put in the loop (which had quickly started staining the soft tubing).

 

But after checking the fins, they were really quite clean.

 

But the fluid though...

 

Look at this : it looks like there's something solid in it. Does that look like algae to you? I'm quite surprised since both the fluid AND the dye were biocides...

 

 

[Crunchy Dragon]

Looks like it to me.

 

Also, for future reference, please do not film vertically as it's a pain to try and view from a PC

[nebula33]

looks like it

[oscar7601]

Thanks for your swift replies @Crunchy Dragon & @nebula33.

(I won't ever film vertically again I promise ahah)

 

If anyone ever had this kind of "thing" in their fluid please do not hesitate and share the way you got rid of it.

[W-L]

1 minute ago, oscar7601 said:

Thanks for your swift replies @Crunchy Dragon & @nebula33.

(I won't ever film vertically again I promise ahah)

 

If anyone ever had this kind of "thing" in their fluid please do not hesitate and share the way you got rid of it.

If your using soft tubing your going to want to replace it especially if it's gone foggy, for cleaning it's fairly basic but your going to have to tear down the whole loop and open up the blocks to scrub them clean. For rads you can use a diluted vingear solution to clean out and to neutralize afterwards with a baking soda wash before general rinsing. 

[oscar7601]

I've read automotive cooling fluid, while not as fancy as specific computer watercooling fluids, does a way better job to prevent algaes from growing in a loop.

 

Any opinions on that topic?

 

@W-L I sure will open and scrub everything I can from this loop. I have to say it's a bit heartbreaking when you've been waiting for a GPU for months and then when it arrives... this happens.

 

I will also get rid of the current soft tubing. I have some hard tubing and the fittings for it. I'm going to think about it.

[W-L]

1 minute ago, oscar7601 said:

I've read automotive cooling fluid, while not as fancy as specific computer watercooling fluids, does a way better job to prevent algaes from growing in a loop.

 

Any opinions on that topic?

 

@W-L I sure will open and scrub everything I can from this loop. I have to say it's a bit heartbreaking when you've been waiting for a GPU for months and then when it arrives... this happens.

You can use automotive coolant but your best to just go with proper watercooling premix or concentrate. EKWB's cryofuel or Mayhems X1 are both good options for transparent fluids. 

 

It happens sometimes but good timing I guess since your going to have to drain your loop. 

[oscar7601]

The following question might sound dumb but I'll ask anyway :

 

No matter how well I'll scrub every single part of my loop, do you guys agree algae are microscopic living things and even if i let only one single cell inside the loop this sh*t is going to grow just as well/fast in the loop?

 

ie, is it reasonable to just wash/scrub what I can and cross fingers or is it more realistic to build a whole new loop with new parts (or is it quite rare to have algaes in a watercooling loop and I'm just unlucky?)

[W-L]

10 minutes ago, oscar7601 said:

The following question might sound dumb but I'll ask anyway :

 

No matter how well I'll scrub every single part of my loop, do you guys agree algae are microscopic living things and even if i let only one single cell inside the loop this sh*t is going to grow just as well/fast in the loop?

 

ie, is it reasonable to just wash/scrub what I can and cross fingers or is it more realistic to build a whole new loop with new parts (or is it quite rare to have algaes in a watercooling loop and I'm just unlucky?)

The coolant has a biocide in it to prevent the widespread growth of any minor contaminates that get inside that loop but it does breakdown overtime which is why the fluids need to be replaced every 6-12 months. It's not a problem to reuse old watercooling equipment as long as everything is thoroughly and properly cleaned. 

[oscar7601]

And... I guess that 20€ Chinese pump which doesn't even turn on anymore is not to be salvaged and I'm better off getting a decent pump from now on right?

[Damascus]

19 minutes ago, oscar7601 said:

 

I've read automotive cooling fluid, while not as fancy as specific computer watercooling fluids, does a way better job to prevent algaes from growing in a loop.

 

It also kills pumps

 

Just replace the fluid every couple of months

[W-L]

1 minute ago, oscar7601 said:

And... I guess that 20€ Chinese pump which doesn't even turn on anymore is not to be salvaged and I'm better off getting a decent pump from now on right?

What are your watercooling components, that would be a good start and yes a proper D5 or DDC pump would be recommended. 

[oscar7601]

30 minutes ago, W-L said:

What are your watercooling components, that would be a good start and yes a proper D5 or DDC pump would be recommended. 

My setup is basically made of  the following parts:

• A tube res on top of the case just for looks
• which feeds an internal bay res (yeah i know two res is useless)
• which feeds a chinese pump (out of order)
• which feeds a Nexxxos waterblock cooling my i7 3930K running @4.8GHz (quite safe settings I'd say)
• which feeds a 360mm rad which feeds the outside tube res

[For Science!]

8 hours ago, oscar7601 said:

My setup is basically made of  the following parts:

• A tube res on top of the case just for looks
• which feeds an internal bay res (yeah i know two res is useless)
• which feeds a chinese pump (out of order)
• which feeds a Nexxxos waterblock cooling my i7 3930K running @4.8GHz (quite safe settings I'd say)
• which feeds a 360mm rad which feeds the outside tube res

Everything W-L says is correct. just for my reference, could you tell me exactly what combination of fluids you used for your coolant (including dye)

[oscar7601]

12 hours ago, For Science! said:

Everything W-L says is correct. just for my reference, could you tell me exactly what combination of fluids you used for your coolant (including dye)

 

The coolant is EKWB Ekoolant Evo transparent

The dye is Mayhems Dye UV Yellow / Green (which i highly NOT recommend since the UV reactivity goes away in about 10 days...

[W-L]

1 hour ago, oscar7601 said:

The coolant is EKWB Ekoolant Evo transparent

The dye is Mayhems Dye UV Yellow / Green (which i highly NOT recommend since the UV reactivity goes away in about 10 days...

If you still have the fluid check the PH, with the loss of UV effect it sounds like something cause the PH to drop which can cause growth to occur if the fluid becomes slightly acidic. 

[oscar7601]

21 hours ago, W-L said:

If you still have the fluid check the PH, with the loss of UV effect it sounds like something cause the PH to drop which can cause growth to occur if the fluid becomes slightly acidic. 

 

Thank you very much @W-L, as always your post helps me out a lot to learn things.

I didn't know I should pH-test my fluid, assuming it was already neutral or set to the perfect pH.

[W-L]

20 hours ago, oscar7601 said:

 

Thank you very much @W-L, as always your post helps me out a lot to learn things.

I didn't know I should pH-test my fluid, assuming it was already neutral or set to the perfect pH.

Most fluids are just slightly basic around 7-8PH for a brand new bottle. 

[oscar7601]

And here she flows again!

 

I put a silver coil in the reservoir this time and i have a liquid biocide I will maybe put inside

[SolarNova]

keep it out of direct sunlight, that really promotes growth.

 

 

[oscar7601]

23 minutes ago, SolarNova said:

keep it out of direct sunlight, that really promotes growth.

 

 

I had built my watercooling loop this way because I thought it looked cool, but you are right and during my soon-to-happen case swap I will do things differently!

[AnonymousGuy]

On 11/15/2017 at 3:14 PM, oscar7601 said:

I've read automotive cooling fluid, while not as fancy as specific computer watercooling fluids, does a way better job to prevent algaes from growing in a loop.

 

Any opinions on that topic?

 

Don't do it   Linus did this with whole room watercooling and had tons of growth in his lines.  Engine coolant is primarily meant to have a high boiling point and to not be corrosive to mixed metals.  There is nothing in it to prevent biological stuff.  The fact engine coolant gets up to 190F is what kills organics.

[daimonie]

On 8-1-2018 at 6:04 PM, SolarNova said:

keep it out of direct sunlight, that really promotes growth.

 

 

 

On 17-11-2017 at 6:47 PM, oscar7601 said:

 

Thank you very much @W-L, as always your post helps me out a lot to learn things.

I didn't know I should pH-test my fluid, assuming it was already neutral or set to the perfect pH.

Both of these are correct, by the way. If you're really facing algae problems, visit the local pet store. This might sound weird, but the mechanism of algae growth is the same as in an aquarium. They got test kits and what not. You might be able to use their kits to change the properties (Ph, ion content) a bit. Watch out, though - aquariums don't face galvanic corrosion, so check the contents.