Need help deciding Coolant for a water cooler?

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Yu_Jin_X5

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Jul 31, 2013
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Sorry I have looked over the forum several times but I do not know what kind of coolant to add to my bigwater 760 plus. I got it as kinda a used gift and it has some coolant left in it. But I have read that distiled water and biocide works too... Should I empty it out and add distilled or keep the amout in and add more, mix and match, or what. Also It has a aluminum radiator if that changes anything... specs are right here
http://www.thermaltake.com/products-model.aspx?id=C_00001791
Btw will any-other coolant work?
 
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rubix_1011
Thermaltake Bigwater kits aren't really the best options out there, but since you already have it, I'd recommend the glycol mixture route. Just FYI, give the watercooling sticky a good, thorough reading to help you get acquainted with a lot of the ins and outs of the hobby. One of the biggest no-no's we try to avoid is mixing anything with aluminum into the loop.
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MagR

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Hi

I'm in the UK and we have trouble getting distilled water cheaply. I use deionized water from my local car spares shop. Deionized is not the same as distilled - it has minerals removed only. I then use a biocide based on Benzalkonium Chloride to prevent algae. I don't use any dyes etc as these can clog radiators - keep it simple. This works fine for me. Other biocides based on Copper Sulphate are fine.

However I notice your radiator is all aluminium. This is a big no-no - you should avoid mixing copper/brass etc with aluminium as it causes galvanic corrosion. Unless your radiator is coated with a different metal you will also need a corrosion inhibitor to prevent this happening.

Hope this helps

Mag
 
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Yu_Jin_X5

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What do you suggest?
Because I can't use just distilled water right?

 
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MagR

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Fom what I've read you use glycol mixed in with the water. I think this is what they use as a corrosion inhibitor in car radiators. I've never needed to use it so can't tell you how much to use. I suggest you contact the manufacturer of your cooler and find out if the aluminium is coated because they must know about galvanic corrosion - the Statue of Liberty suffers from it even! Or if not ask them what inhibitor they recommend and in what proportions.

Regards

Mag
 
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Buzz247

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Mar 18, 2013
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mag.... read my above answer... everything you said is already contained in there - not sure why you are pointing to things that are alredy addressed....

coating internal of a rad?...a)no one does this b) negates the purpose of a rad by providing barrier to metal conatct for thermal xfer.


......*facepalm*
 
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rubix_1011

rubix_1011

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Thermaltake Bigwater kits aren't really the best options out there, but since you already have it, I'd recommend the glycol mixture route. Just FYI, give the watercooling sticky a good, thorough reading to help you get acquainted with a lot of the ins and outs of the hobby. One of the biggest no-no's we try to avoid is mixing anything with aluminum into the loop.
 
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MagR

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Sorry I didn't see your answer.
 
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Dan Hyl

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Was looking for advice on mixing water with the Thermaltake UV coolant, and found this thread. I have a thermaltake bigwater kit in a desktop for 9 years now. I recently took it all out of the case and flushed it, replaced the clear tubing, and reassembled the whole thing. Still works very well, and have never had a leak, just the normal fill up every few months. Sometimes it goes almost a year, dependiing on use. I recently ran out of the factory coolant (stuff is not cheap) so I mixed a little distilled water in it (a few ounces), and ordered more.
My system has aluminum radiator, aluminum VGA block, and Brass CPU block, and what I think is plated steel fittings. I understand the concerns about dis-similar metals and galvanic corrosion. But I have not had any issues with this system. My newly built desktop will get a large air cooler, just because of the annoyance of maintaining a water based system. To each his own. I know this an old thread but I just wanted to help the overall understanding.
 
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