How To Clean Pc Water Cooling System

How To Flush Your PC Water Cooling Loop

Cleaning Things Up

PC water cooling is an amazing tool and a neat hobby. It keeps our hardware safe, our noise levels low and it lets u.s.a. reach clock speeds nosotros could never achieve without information technology. Every bit useful equally a water cooling system is though, information technology must be maintained to perform at its all-time.

Keeping the parts of your loop clean is essential to top performance. A shot of canned air beyond your radiator fins and fans every and then often will keep the air flowing well, but how do you lot clean out theinside of your h2o loop?

There are a couple of different processes that tin can be used to clean the within of your h2o cooling system. We're going to focus on the easier of the 2 in this article – the system flush. The system flush is a lighter cleaning procedure than a full-teardown cleaning, but information technology'southward much simpler and faster and is frequently all that's needed for periodic maintenance or coolant color replacement.

In a organization flush we effectively replace everything that's in your cooling arrangement with nothing just fresh new coolant to go along the organisation working at its best, all while leaving the h2o loop intact and installed.

There are ii dissimilar methods for flushing your water cooling system. Method ane is a lighter flush, used for routine maintenance or when you're changing the colour of your coolant to something close to what you already accept, so full removal of the previous color isn't every bit critical. Method 2 is a deeper cleaning, used for complete removal of previous coolant if needed, and if contaminants such as algae are suspected. Method one should as well be used subsequently Method 2 to remove the flushing amanuensis.

Tools Needed

Nothing out of the ordinary is needed for the process of flushing your loop, but at that place are some requirements.

Waste matter container – some sort of container into which you can put your quondam coolant. A simple bucket works well if you have the infinite, just whatsoever sealable container will practice.

Filling aid – a container to utilize to add the flushing fluid. Many options are available, from purpose-made make full bottles and syringes to a simple loving cup-and-funnel combination. Anything that will let you to add coolant to your reservoir without spilling it will work.

Tubing and fittings – a length offlexible tubing that can run from your drain valve to your waste matter container and a fitting to connect it to your drain valve. A short length of tubing and a fitting to attach it to your fillport can also be useful depending on its location.

Power supply – something to power the pump in your system. Two options be: your existing power supply in your PC or an external power supply. Both will be covered beneath.

Flushing fluid – For method 1, distilled water will do the job just fine. For method 2 you'll need theMayhems Blitz Kit and distilled water.

Cardinal Parts of Your Loop

Before we go into the bodily process of the loop flushing, we demand to place a few primal parts of the loop that will be used.

Drain valve – Youdid install a drain valve when you built your loop, right?  If not, choose the plug or plumbing fixtures that'due south at the everyman point in your loop and become lots of disposable towels on manus. This is going to get messy. If your cleaning isn't urgent, this is the perfect time to lodge a drain valve for your organization. It's entirely possible to add it to your loop while filled. If the fillport is left closed very little coolant will escape while the valve is installed.

Fillport – This refers to any port on your organization y'all utilise to add liquid. Nigh are located on tiptop of the reservoir, merely some systems will have a dedicated fillport elsewhere, above the reservoir.

Pump – We volition need to power the pump independently of your PC. Take note of the blazon of power connector your pump uses: 4-pin power (AKA Molex), SATA ability or a smaller motherboard connector.

The Procedure

Powering Your Pump

Caution – Never try maintenance on a h2o loop (filling, leak checking, flushing) with the system powered on. Delicate PC components that are actively powered are highly susceptible to damage from liquids. Those same components can suffer contact with liquid unharmed if they're powered downward and the liquid is thoroughly dried before repowering.

Power Method i: Internal power supply

If you're using the power supply in your PC to run the pump for the flushing procedure, there are a few things you volition have to practice.

Beginning, disconnect the ability cord from the power supply and turn the switch to the off position.

Second, disconnect all power connections to the motherboard and video cards to avoid putting power to your components while working with fluids.

Third, you volition need to brand your power supply retrieve it's connected to a motherboard earlier information technology will power on. There is a plug adapter sold for this purpose (included in the Alphacool Eisbaer Refill Kit or a standalone version from EK).

If you don't have a plug adapter you'll take to make a jumper wire for your 24-pin cable. A paper clip bent into a U shape works best.

Wait at the wires going into your 24-pin cablevision. Older power supplies with colour-coded wires volition take a single green wire that tells the power supply that it has a motherboard connection. Newer power supplies have switched to all blackness wiring, making identification of the right pin a little more hard. Check the pinout diagram below for reference. Slide one end of the newspaper clip into the pin where the light-green wire enters the 24-pin connector and other finish into the pin for whatsoever of the black wires. From that indicate, when you turn on the switch on the power supply information technology will power on.

For the technical, here is a pinout diagram of a typical 24-pivot connector with the green-wire pin position highlighted.

This will allow you to ability on your PCs power supply without powering anything else, a critical step in the procedure.

Fourth – Plug the power string dorsum into your ability supply just leave the power switch in the OFF position.

Power Method ii: external ability supply.

This is the easiest and fastest way to ability the pump in your system to motility the coolant. The pump in your PC is a 12-volt DC device. Any simple external 12-volt power supply will power it so long every bit it has a compatible connector and supplies at to the lowest degree 2 amps of power. These are inexpensive tools and volition save you time not simply in this flushing process but also any fourth dimension the system needs to exist filled and checked for leaks. Look for one with its ain toggle switch also, as this is much easier and safer than using the plug on your pump to control it.

Information technology's also possible to use this aforementioned method with a spare PC ability supply if y'all have 1. Merely follow the bridging process outlined above and go on below.

First, plug the external power supply into the wall outlet.

2d, unplug the power connector on your pump from your PC.

If your power supply has its ain switch, make sure it's in the "off" position and plug information technology into your pump. If not, you lot'll have to plug and unplug the pump to control it since it will start running as soon as information technology'southward plugged in.

Simple Drain and Flush - Method 1

Stride ane – Drain your loop. Attach the plumbing fixtures and tubing to your bleed valve and put the finish in your waste product container and open your drain valve. Some fluid will come up out, only most will remain in the system. Slowly remove the plug from your fillport and most of the rest of the fluid will drain equally air comes into the system to replace it. *Be sure to exit some fluid over the top of your pump so it doesn't lose prime*

If you don't have a drain valve the process is the same, merely your coolant will be leaking out while you connect the bleed tube and plumbing equipment to the port you've chosen as a drain. One time the fluid is drained, install a drain valve.

Footstep 2 – Close the drain valve and refill the reservoir with your flushing fluid.

Filling tip: Using a funnel or hose that is as large as the fillport opening can crusade vapor lock – the fluid can't get into the system considering the air within can't get out. If possible, employ a fill method smaller than the port diameter. A filling canteen or fill syringe are perfect options.

Step 3 – Turn on your pump to beginning filling the organization. As before, do not permit the fluid level in the reservoir drib below the pump. Running dry can damage a water pump and keeping the pump primed will make the filling process much faster.

Repeat the reservoir-filling and pumping procedure until the system is total of your flushing fluid.

Stride 4 – Reinstall the fillport plug and turn on your pump. Permit the flushing fluid to circulate in the system for 4-5 minutes. At this betoken y'all will probable see bubbles in various places in your organisation, usually water blocks and menses indicators. It may be necessary to tip the instance side to side or fifty-fifty lay it down to get these air pockets out of the system. This is a necessary step to ensure that your affluent is reaching everything it should.

Step v – Repeat steps 1-iv a minimum of three times. If you are removing colored coolant, continue the process until the affluent fluid is articulate. If you program on replacing the old coolant with a colour that's close to the old colour, total removal isn't necessary.

Note – If y'all are using a vinegar solution for your flush, ii more than flushing cycles should exist performed afterward with pure distilled water.

Pace half dozen – Drain one last fourth dimension and fill with the coolant of your choice.

Deep Cleaning Drain and Flush - Method 2

If yous've opted for a deeper cleaning with Mayhems Rush Kit, the process is slightly different than the lighter cleaning. Again, this process if performed prior to method i.

credit: Mayhems Solutions Ltd

Step 1 – Mix the Mayhems Part 2. Add the entire 25ml bottle to an empty 1-liter container. Summit off the bottle with distilled h2o. This volition give y'all i liter of properly mixed flushing fluid.

Step 2 – Drain your loop equally described in Method ane.

Step 3 – Shut the drain valve and refill the reservoir with your flushing fluid. Add together slowly as the product will produce foam. This is normal. Replace the plug on your fillport equally cream may escape when the pump is powered on.

Step four – Plough on your pump to commencement filling the organisation. Again, don't allow the fluid level in the reservoir driblet below the pump.

Repeat the reservoir-filling and pumping process until the system is full of your flushing fluid.

Pace five – Ability on your pump and allow to circulate continuously for 24 hours.

Pace 6 – Perform the Method 1 organisation flush.

Circumspection – some cooling fluids cannot be disposed of in a household drain. Note the contents and disposal instructions on your coolant of choice.

Though this cleaning procedure may seem complex by the number of steps involved, information technology's unproblematic and completely effective if there are no signs of performance issues or deep contagion in your system. Either of those issues will likely need a full teardown cleaning to fix, but normal maintenance is thankfully much easier.

Done regularly, a simple system flush-and-fill will go along your h2o loop looking and performing its best. TITAN RIG has everything you need to make the process easy and constructive.

Source: https://www.titanrig.com/blog/post/how-to-flush-your-pc-water-cooling-loop

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