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Which distilled water additives do you recommend?

5K views 22 replies 12 participants last post by  ryan92084 
#1 ·
Hello,
I want to prepare my own coolant since shipping of pre-mixed coolants cost too much to my country.
I was using primochill liquid utopia with UV Green colorant before. I don't want to use dyed coolants this time, I know that they are bad for blocks and radiator.
What are your suggestions? I need both algae and corrosion protection. My setup is: copper radiator, copper vga block and electroless nickel plated cpu block(copper inside).
I need one product or two compatible products. I mean two products without chemical interactions/side-effects. As I read, we need to pick the right anti-corrosion agent for different types
of metals.
 
#4 ·
Get one of the concentrates like these...

Mayhems X1 Clear Concentrate
XSPC ECX Ultra Concentrate Coolant
EK-Ekoolant EVO CLEAR

They've done all the homework already, all you need to do is mix it with distilled water and your good to go. Are you in the US, performance-pcs.com stocks stuff like this.

Like these...
http://www.performance-pcs.com/watercooling-fluids/shopby/brand--ek-waterblocks--mayhems--phobya--primochill/color--clear/fluid-type--concentrate/?

The mayhemsX1 is a good pick, their XT-1 formula is for subzero so probably not what you want. I'm sure the xspc and ek concentrates are fine too.
 
#5 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by michael-ocn View Post

Get one of the concentrates like these...

Mayhems X1 Clear Concentrate
XSPC ECX Ultra Concentrate Coolant
EK-Ekoolant EVO CLEAR

They've done all the homework already, all you need to do is mix it with distilled water and your good to go. Are you in the US, performance-pcs.com stocks stuff like this.

Like these...
http://www.performance-pcs.com/watercooling-fluids/shopby/brand--ek-waterblocks--mayhems--phobya--primochill/color--clear/fluid-type--concentrate/?

The mayhemsX1 is a good pick, their XT-1 formula is for subzero so probably not what you want. I'm sure the xspc and ek concentrates are fine too.
I'm not in the U.S. and performance-pcs.com offers high international shipping costs, unfortunately. It's like $40-$50 for just shipping.
I generally prefer ebay sellers or amazon, even aliexpress. The products you suggested seem nice, but you can only make 1L of coolant with one pack.
My loop needs more than 1 liter to be filled. I kinda look for an alternative to Liquid Utopia.
You can make 1 gallon of coolant with a small additive. I wasn't satisfied with algae protection of Liquid Utopia, this is why I want to prefer a different product this time.
 
#6 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by umutcan15 View Post

I'm not in the U.S. and performance-pcs.com offers high international shipping costs, unfortunately. It's like $40-$50 for just shipping.
I generally prefer ebay sellers or amazon, even aliexpress. The products you suggested seem nice, but you can only make 1L of coolant with one pack. I kinda look for an alternative to Liquid Utopia.
You can make 5L of coolant with a small additive. I wasn't satisfied with algae protection of Liquid Utopia, this is why I want to prefer a different product this time.
Liquid Utopia, no wonder it didn't work, 15ml for a gallon? Where are you from?
 
#7 ·
#8 ·
And if you want really cheap algea & mineral protection.... : 1 flat teaspoon of Citric Acid for 1 liter of water

Citric Acid can be found below or on the same shelve as Baking Powder (Sodium bicarbonate) either in the cooking/cake-making section or the household cleaning section of your local supermarket or grocery.
smile.gif


Tip: both products are excellent cleaning products also , although each with their own "specialisation" : cleaning coffee makers, kitchen sinks, toilet bowls, laundry refreshment, teeth whitening, etc
 
#9 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by michael-ocn View Post

Liquid Utopia, no wonder it didn't work, 15ml for a gallon? Where are you from?
Instructions were saying "mix with 1 gallon DI water". I live in Cyprus so it's very hard to find PC water cooling supplies here. I need to buy everything from
international shopping sites. I can buy automobile additives though. If you recommend using an antifreeze product, or an automobile radiator additive, I may check.
Paying $50 for shipping of a $8 product doesn't seem reasonable. When you need to buy 2 or more products from different sellers(because amazon/ebay you know) shipping costs get even more ridiculous. Ebay sellers from Germany/UK send with much lower shipping costs, I generally prefer them.
I can consider using cheap alternatives like glycol/citric acid/anti-freeze but I don't want to destroy my blocks and radiator. So it must be safe at first.
 
#10 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by RnRollie View Post

And if you want really cheap algea & mineral protection.... : 1 flat teaspoon of Citric Acid for 1 liter of water

Citric Acid can be found below or on the same shelve as Baking Powder (Sodium bicarbonate) either in the cooking/cake-making section or the household cleaning section of your local supermarket or grocery.
smile.gif


Tip: both products are excellent cleaning products also , although each with their own "specialisation" : cleaning coffee makers, kitchen sinks, toilet bowls, laundry refreshment, teeth whitening, etc
Thanks for your suggestion, I will consider using Citric Acid as an alternative. As I know Citric Acid stabilizes the liquid's pH, am I right?
 
#12 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by umutcan15 View Post

Can you name a product for example? Do you mean concentrated anti-freeze liquids?
Yes, what you put in a car. Just use 10% in distilled water.
 
#14 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by Soggysilicon View Post

Having of been out of the game for a few years... what ever happened to DI and a silver strip? Being that is all I have ever used.
Nickel plating happened....

Everybody who's making nickel plated blocks is saying that using silver strips may void warranty
Add to that the "marketing" of Mayhems ready-mix....
 
#15 ·
BMW coolant works well. It is blue so if a light blue tint is good then go that route.
 
#16 ·
If i couldn't get a a concentrate from mayhem, xspc, ek, swiftech (etc), i'd probably mix automotive coolant and distilled. Be aware that ethyl glycol is poisonous so be careful if you've got kids or any other critters around.
 
#18 ·
Quote:
Nickel plating happened....

Everybody who's making nickel plated blocks is saying that using silver strips may void warranty
Add to that the "marketing" of Mayhems ready-mix....
Hmm that is interesting thank you for sharing.

I think I noticed a mention of EK blocks having an issue (or at least had customers squawking the issue), so this must be what you are referencing? I use UV reactive tubing and lighting so material deposits along the walls have not been something that I would of found unacceptable. The acetal components never showed deposits just the inner tube which I just assumed was the mediocre metal of the jet plates oxidizing or flux I didn't get when cleaning the rad.

I assume some of these coolants suppress galvanic corrosion? Would that be harsh on the PVC tubing? Any articles that address the trade offs you could recommend?
 
#19 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by Soggysilicon View Post

Quote:
Nickel plating happened....

Everybody who's making nickel plated blocks is saying that using silver strips may void warranty
Add to that the "marketing" of Mayhems ready-mix....
Hmm that is interesting thank you for sharing.

I think I noticed a mention of EK blocks having an issue (or at least had customers squawking the issue), so this must be what you are referencing? I use UV reactive tubing and lighting so material deposits along the walls have not been something that I would of found unacceptable. The acetal components never showed deposits just the inner tube which I just assumed was the mediocre metal of the jet plates oxidizing or flux I didn't get when cleaning the rad.

I assume some of these coolants suppress galvanic corrosion? Would that be harsh on the PVC tubing? Any articles that address the trade offs you could recommend?
It has never been proven that silver "eats" nickel in our watercooling loops. But you can extrapolate that from their properties and lab behaviour. Thus, manufactures are playing it safe and putting in a "disclaimer" of sorts to discourage use of silver in the loop. Just like they advise to only use the mixture they sell. Some of them allow for Mayhems ready-mix, thou.
So you get a thing which is a bit like a self-fulfilling prophesy ... people not sure to believe it or not play it safe also.

As for the EK debacle... that was actually bad plating jobs and for a long time EK denied that and pushed the blame on their customers. Something for which they are still hated today, no matter how much they want that to be forgotten.

Mayhems mixes. I'm not going to say they dont "work"; they surely do and they are "easy", so you dont have to work out for yourself the best & safe "mix", and they are "sexy".. you can get them in any colour you want, so you dont have to chase up which colorants are "safe" to use in your system. And they are not outrageously hi-priced... but nevertheless.. for me there are some parallels to Dasani, but that is my opinion. I know that i can make a "safe" mix for a fraction of the price of a "ready mix", but i also admit it would be a lot easier if i had a bottle of "ready mix" handy.

Harshness on PVC tubing.. probably, but ordinary PVC tubing are no longer used.. because of plasticiser you know. So, nowadays "specialised watercooling tubing" is sold -by the foot. Never mind that you can pick up food grade or medical/surgical grade phthalate-free hose in 30 feet rolls which come out a lot cheaper by the foot... if you know where to look.

Now, i don't deny anybody making a living or even a quick buck. Good for them. I'm just saying that you can do watercooling a lot cheaper without cutting back on quality by using your brain and by making the time to "shop around".
smile.gif
 
#20 ·
i have run a silver coil in my loop for 6 years problem free had a few nickel blocks that didnt have any problems never had any build up of anything in my loop always clean when i drained it.
 
#21 ·
Several of the major manufacturers talk about Silver and Nickel plate but its generally just the observation (like Shoggy of Aquacomputer has made) that the majority of corrosion cases they see involve distilled water with a lack of an anti corrosive additive and either Silver or Copper sulphate. I don't believe its necessarily the silver or CUso4, but just that, that is the most common coolant used by people without an anti-corrosive.

Liquid Utopia is very popular in the Australian community and has been for years. Many people have had good results with it for a long time. The advent of the lower cost super concentrate coolants has made some switch.
 
#22 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by umutcan15 View Post

Instructions were saying "mix with 1 gallon DI water". I live in Cyprus so it's very hard to find PC water cooling supplies here. I need to buy everything from
international shopping sites. I can buy automobile additives though. If you recommend using an antifreeze product, or an automobile radiator additive, I may check.
Paying $50 for shipping of a $8 product doesn't seem reasonable. When you need to buy 2 or more products from different sellers(because amazon/ebay you know) shipping costs get even more ridiculous. Ebay sellers from Germany/UK send with much lower shipping costs, I generally prefer them.
I can consider using cheap alternatives like glycol/citric acid/anti-freeze but I don't want to destroy my blocks and radiator. So it must be safe at first.
How about buying from here?

https://www.custompc.com.cy/watercooling/coolants/ek-water-blocks-ek-ekoolant-evo-concentrate-clear-100ml/
 
#23 ·
Just use distilled and get a simple biocide (petra's, mayhems, silver, citric, etc). Avoid nickel if you are worried about companies with shoddy plating trying to put the blame on their customers.
 
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