refreshing a 2 year old loop

[Memphis Raines]

I built a PC for a mate 2 years ago and we are going to replace the gfx card so will also clean out the loop..

couple of quick questions on this..

1, is the de ionised water we bought with it 2 years ago no good now? even for flushing?

2, i used a silver coil in the water, will that need replacing?

3, if we wanted to add a colour (probably a green.. ) which is best? and most have additives included so i wouldnt need the coil?

4, is it fine to just remove the compression fittings from the old card / pipes and transfer them straight onto the new card/block?

cheers for your help guys.

Andrew

some pics of the system in here

Spoiler

 

[Greebo]

De ionised water picks up contaminants in the loop and slowly over time becomes more conductive. Flushing will be fine though.

http://www.overclockers.com/pc-water-coolant-chemistry-part-i/

 

[Memphis Raines]

Sorry wasn't very clear there.. I meant the water still in yer bottle.. We got 5 litres and only used 1 hah

 

[Bryan Kortez]

It should be fine, as long as it's been out of direct sunlight so you don't have any nasties growing

Although by the time you've spent money on dye and a new kill coil, spending £15 on a premixed 1L bottle of either Mayhems or X1 range is a better idea.

 

[Greebo]

Is mayhem so better cooler than water though?

 

[Bryan Kortez]

I would say so yes. Not by much, but I personally would rather pay £15 for proper coolant that is a lot more pure than some battery water, over paying £10 for a kill coil and dye.

 

[andybird123]

You can re use the kill coil and the di water will be fine
Coolants are, if anything, slightly worse for temps than pure water

So really you are looking at £15 per litre vs free if you use what you've already got

 

[Memphis Raines]

Hah well that was all going well til the last reply lol

 

[Glanza]

1, is the de ionised water we bought with it 2 years ago no good now? even for flushing?

If you mean what you haven't used and stored so long as it's been in a cool dark area it'll be fine for flushing.

2, i used a silver coil in the water, will that need replacing?

For the cost of one I would if you want to put another in.

3, if we wanted to add a colour (probably a green.. ) which is best? and most have additives included so i wouldnt need the coil?

Mayhems is good stuff, I run their pastel white and a lot of people on here use his other colours. You wouldn't need a coil with it also.

4, is it fine to just remove the compression fittings from the old card / pipes and transfer them straight onto the new card/block?

Indeed it is.

 

[Memphis Raines]

1, is the de ionised water we bought with it 2 years ago no good now? even for flushing?

If you mean what you haven't used and stored so long as it's been in a cool dark area it'll be fine for flushing.

2, i used a silver coil in the water, will that need replacing?

For the cost of one I would if you want to put another in.

3, if we wanted to add a colour (probably a green.. ) which is best? and most have additives included so i wouldnt need the coil?

Mayhems is good stuff, I run their pastel white and a lot of people on here use his other colours. You wouldn't need a coil with it also.

4, is it fine to just remove the compression fittings from the old card / pipes and transfer them straight onto the new card/block?

Indeed it is.

thanks for all the replies people!...

the Water has been behind my desk since i got it.. so not much light down there..

my mates already ordered the TechLabs 980ti today and another kill coil, so would just the straight forward dye be the best option here? or the pre mixed coolant and not use the existing water/coil?

he's ordered the nickel block so i assume thats the clear top one looking like this?

I have just been reading there where some problems with the nickel coating? esp with water and silver coils.. is it a mistake to buy these ones over the plain copper? or does it just need the pure coolant instead?

 

[andybird123]

The nickel problems were basically a dodgy batch from EK, they have since stopped cheaping out on their plating so its fine with water and a kill coil

If it was me, and as you already have a coil, just get plain dye, not premix

The only time I've ever had problems with sludge in a loop is using premix, so I now stay well clear, never had problems with plain water

 

[Memphis Raines]

is it ok to use old dye? I have some leftover from back in the day.. (10 years+)

its been sealed and stored in a box ..

Also will a dye leave permanent discolouation to the nickel plating? if i wanted to change the colour later ?

 

[Deathjester]

is it ok to use old dye? I have some leftover from back in the day.. (10 years+)

its been sealed and stored in a box ..

Also will a dye leave permanent discolouation to the nickel plating? if i wanted to change the colour later ?

I know that the Mayhem's dyes have a 2-3 year shelf life.

I wouldn't use one that's been kicking around for 10+ years.
If you flush them correctly afterwards it shouldn't really leave anything.

 

[Memphis Raines]

i thought as much .. just hate throwing stuff out!

new card is installed.. fresh water and kill coil .. now to see if it fires up!

 

[CoolHotCold]

Jesus, those tubing still clear after 2 years? What brand/model of tubing did you use, mine have gotten funky (though no deposits in the CPU or GPU block fins), no colourant in my loop, usual antibacterial, anti-corrosion stuff.

 

[Memphis Raines]

Jesus, those tubing still clear after 2 years? What brand/model of tubing did you use, mine have gotten funky (though no deposits in the CPU or GPU block fins), no colourant in my loop, usual antibacterial, anti-corrosion stuff.

no such luck mate! thats a pic from new.. this is what the pipes looked like now

Spoiler

a wide shot of it on the desk.. up and running silent psu and idle fans on the rad.. 980ti load temps 40 degrees

Spoiler

 

[CoolHotCold]

Ah, that looks a lot more with what I'd expect, thought you might have discovered some sort of holy grail I missed.

 

[Memphis Raines]

Ah, that looks a lot more with what I'd expect, thought you might have discovered some sort of holy grail I missed.

its gonna get some dye in there as soon as the lad decides what colour lol.. then no one will be able to tell.. plus from the window all that can be seen is the flashy new gfx card block mmm

 

[BluD]

Ive used about half a dozen types of pipes over the years and not found one that doesnt stain yet, i figure as long as its cooling well who cares, ive got some pipes still i probably bought 13 years ago, i dont even have a window in my case though so nobody gets to see it

 

[Memphis Raines]

its a bit strange atm... the GPU is quite stable most of the time, even overclocked to 1460/7800 106% the temps hover around 40 - 45 degrees

but the cpu seems to be spiking up to 50 - 60 degrees when its getting 50%+ usage ( 4770 @ 4Ghz ) i dont recall it getting that hot before.. it does drop back down again as soon as the usage drops away..

I know the water cooling doesnt respond well to sudden temp spikes.. but i dont remember it getting that high before.. I have tried re seating the cpu block and checking the paste coverage, and all seems well..

i dont have any way of monitoring the water temps unfortunately.. but as the cpu idles around the same temp as the gpu is running (40 - 45 degrees load) i would guess that the water isnt far below that ?

would adding an extra 120 / 140mm rad make a sizable dent in the general temps?.. i also guess thats a stupid question.. 50% more cooling is going to help... but how much? not 50% cooler?