Silver Kill Coil
A commonly recomended product among watercoolers. It is claimed to prevent organic growth in watercoolingsystems.
We are tempted to call it "trollium X-2000". Those who recomend this product usualy have faith in the effects of silver themselves, so at least they arent intentionaly fooling anyone.
The story behind is that in ancient rome, the wild west and many other cultures silver was used to controll the growth of algae and bacteria in the drinkingwater. That is correct, however silver is more intended against bacteria(ie. E. coli and salmonella) than against algae. Against algae, wich is what you want to prevent, copper is to prefer and copper is a usual material to encounter in a watercoolingsystem.
A definate difference between a cowboys drinkingwater and the water you are using in your watercoolingsystem is the purity. Silver do not disolve in pure water. The destiled water you use however wont stay pure for long. As soon as it comes in contact with air, it will start taking up CO2 and become slightly sour. Some silver will then disolve , but in wery low consentrations and likely not enough to have any effect.
Are there any documented evidence that silver prevents organic growth in a watercoolingsystem? No, absolutely nothing. On any forum you will find users that claims to have good experiences with silver and those that claims that it doesnt have any effect at all.
For organic growth to occur you have to have mocroorganisms present in your watercoolingsystem. If you use new and unused components and only destiled water you can get a watercoolingsystem that is free of organic growth. You may also use silver, but the absence of organic growth should be because of the absence of microorganisms and not the precense of silver.
What about galvanic corrosion, will silver represent a danger in any way? Those that side with silver will say that there is no danger and show to the galvanic table. The galvanic table only aplies to metals that are in contact with eachother, and will therefore be unrelevant. For 2 metals submerged in electrolysis(coolant) the danger must be evaluated from the Standard Electrode Potential. On this table silver is far away from other metals such as aluminum, chrome, nickle and copper.
Copper Sulfate
Copper is like pure poison to algae, in other words it prevents organic growth. 1-2 drops per liter should be enough. The catch is that it makes your coolant conductive and it makes the ideal circumstances for galvanic corrosion, something you definately dont want.
Corporations such as Optishield put a lot of resources into developing additives for water that prevents galvanic corrosion and organic growth in equipment used by military, hospitals, research and industry. Before you chose to use copper sulfate in your watercoolingsystem, ask yourself the question; does the company that produces this know anything Optishield or any other experts know?
EK waterblocks tested 10 different systems. In 3 of the systems they used copper sulfate, and in all 3 there was damage to the waterblock. The remaining 7 contained destiled water, and in all 7 the waterblock was described "as new".
Silver Kill Coil AND Copper Sulfate
If you want to make it extra difficult for yourself, then follow the advice given on many american online stores. "It (IandH Dead-Water Copper Sulfate) can be used alone, or as extra insurance against growth in conjunction with silver killcoils in Pure-silver or other pre-mixed coolants." In other words, first you make the coolant conductive with copper sulfate, then you put a pice of pure silver in the coolant. You might as well sit down and wait for the destruction to become a fact.
"Jožef Stefan" Institute in Slovenia got in to analysis a waterblock that was damaged from use by destiled water and silver kill coil. The recomandation was "Corrosion can be avoided by the use of a low-conducting, anti-corrosion liquid (which, in principle, is also distilled or deionized water).....The introduction of additional metals into the system (silver, etc.) or the use of ionic algaecides (copper sulfate, etc.) even in minor concentrations can trigger the corrosion processes."
I did not write this, I just translated it(should be relevant to your interests). If you see any obvious translation errors please report back so that I can fix it.
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A commonly recomended product among watercoolers. It is claimed to prevent organic growth in watercoolingsystems.
We are tempted to call it "trollium X-2000". Those who recomend this product usualy have faith in the effects of silver themselves, so at least they arent intentionaly fooling anyone.
The story behind is that in ancient rome, the wild west and many other cultures silver was used to controll the growth of algae and bacteria in the drinkingwater. That is correct, however silver is more intended against bacteria(ie. E. coli and salmonella) than against algae. Against algae, wich is what you want to prevent, copper is to prefer and copper is a usual material to encounter in a watercoolingsystem.
A definate difference between a cowboys drinkingwater and the water you are using in your watercoolingsystem is the purity. Silver do not disolve in pure water. The destiled water you use however wont stay pure for long. As soon as it comes in contact with air, it will start taking up CO2 and become slightly sour. Some silver will then disolve , but in wery low consentrations and likely not enough to have any effect.
Are there any documented evidence that silver prevents organic growth in a watercoolingsystem? No, absolutely nothing. On any forum you will find users that claims to have good experiences with silver and those that claims that it doesnt have any effect at all.
For organic growth to occur you have to have mocroorganisms present in your watercoolingsystem. If you use new and unused components and only destiled water you can get a watercoolingsystem that is free of organic growth. You may also use silver, but the absence of organic growth should be because of the absence of microorganisms and not the precense of silver.
What about galvanic corrosion, will silver represent a danger in any way? Those that side with silver will say that there is no danger and show to the galvanic table. The galvanic table only aplies to metals that are in contact with eachother, and will therefore be unrelevant. For 2 metals submerged in electrolysis(coolant) the danger must be evaluated from the Standard Electrode Potential. On this table silver is far away from other metals such as aluminum, chrome, nickle and copper.
Copper Sulfate
Copper is like pure poison to algae, in other words it prevents organic growth. 1-2 drops per liter should be enough. The catch is that it makes your coolant conductive and it makes the ideal circumstances for galvanic corrosion, something you definately dont want.
Corporations such as Optishield put a lot of resources into developing additives for water that prevents galvanic corrosion and organic growth in equipment used by military, hospitals, research and industry. Before you chose to use copper sulfate in your watercoolingsystem, ask yourself the question; does the company that produces this know anything Optishield or any other experts know?
EK waterblocks tested 10 different systems. In 3 of the systems they used copper sulfate, and in all 3 there was damage to the waterblock. The remaining 7 contained destiled water, and in all 7 the waterblock was described "as new".
Silver Kill Coil AND Copper Sulfate
If you want to make it extra difficult for yourself, then follow the advice given on many american online stores. "It (IandH Dead-Water Copper Sulfate) can be used alone, or as extra insurance against growth in conjunction with silver killcoils in Pure-silver or other pre-mixed coolants." In other words, first you make the coolant conductive with copper sulfate, then you put a pice of pure silver in the coolant. You might as well sit down and wait for the destruction to become a fact.
"Jožef Stefan" Institute in Slovenia got in to analysis a waterblock that was damaged from use by destiled water and silver kill coil. The recomandation was "Corrosion can be avoided by the use of a low-conducting, anti-corrosion liquid (which, in principle, is also distilled or deionized water).....The introduction of additional metals into the system (silver, etc.) or the use of ionic algaecides (copper sulfate, etc.) even in minor concentrations can trigger the corrosion processes."
I did not write this, I just translated it(should be relevant to your interests). If you see any obvious translation errors please report back so that I can fix it.
