Is it OK to use DI water only as temporary coolant?

R.C.Anderson · 24 Jan 2014 at 06:03

I just got a got new gfx cards, and I was planning on switching my coolant out, as it's been in for about 2 years now anyway. When switching though, I noticed the tubing is all fairly stained, so I want to replace that. Due to me needing my PC for Uni work at the moment, I don't want to leave it non-operational for a while whilst I get new tubing, and I also don't want to switch all the tubing out now anyway, as I need to spend my time revising/doing coursework.

So, my plan, was just to fill the loop with DI water for now, then drain it, clean the blocks & replace the tubing as I was planning to do, but when I have a little more time. I expect the DI water to be in the loop for 1-2 weeks max, is that likely to cause any problems, as I'm going to be cleaning out the blocks anyway?

i5aces · 24 Jan 2014 at 08:27

I dont know if its advised but i did exactly this.
i had the DI water in there for 2 weeks then emptied it out and refilled with coolant.
didnt notice any ill effects.

Mayhems · 24 Jan 2014 at 08:36

Its fine for maybe 7 to 14 days but i would not take it any longer than that as your pushing your luck. When doing that though make sure you keep your system out of direct sunlight and do not run any UV lights in there.

R.C.Anderson · 24 Jan 2014 at 12:06

Thanks for that

The PC is facing away from the window, and I don't have any UV lights in the case.

Out of interest, what starts to go wrong? Is it just stuff starts to grow within the loop? If I'm replacing all the tubing, and cleaning out all the blocks anyway, does that matter?

Kaynar · 26 Jan 2014 at 18:12

Well even if you use super-pure water or just DI water you can still have algae or microorganisms growing in there if you don't flush your rads well (happened to me).

And yeah direct sunlight on non-treated water just helps algae grow fast in the reservoir.

Some biocide helps keep this to a minimal/invisible level, but if it starts growing to the point you can see it in the reservoir, you're gonna have a bad time!

R.C.Anderson · 26 Jan 2014 at 18:24

Ah, I didn't think about the radiator, as I was thinking I could take everythign apart to clean it out in a couple of weeks anyway, but I can't really do that with the rad!

I'll just buy a bottle of biocide, and put a couple of drops in for the time being!

GefGz · 26 Jan 2014 at 18:26

R.C.Anderson said:
Ah, I didn't think about the radiator, as I was thinking I could take everythign apart to clean it out in a couple of weeks anyway, but I can't really do that with the rad!

I'll just buy a bottle of biocide, and put a couple of drops in for the time being!

Yeah you'd be surprised how skanky water can get after 2 weeks

Avenged7Fold · 26 Jan 2014 at 18:50

Weaker UV lights used for decoration will aide algae growth without biocides. Very strong UV lights which are not really safe for decorative purposes can do the opposite and kill algae and bacteria.

DI is fine as a temp coolant for a few weeks. Any longer and you should put some biocide in it.