Question Ethanol glycol is it antifreeze?

[ruanwagenaar27]

I have an corsair H150i cooler it was leaking so replaced the o - ring and want to refill again there is still coolant left (orange color) can i just add distilled water till its full or can i use normal antifreeze that is used in automotive?

 

[Lutfij]

If the AIO was within your warranty period, you should've RMA'd it. As of this moment, you've voided your warranty. That being said, the radiator is aluminum while the cooling block is made of copper, you can use pretty much any watercooling premix that's off the shelf. The keyword here is premixed coolant(with additives) to prevent galvanic corrosion.

As for your refilling point, if you want to top it up, you must use the same premix that was used initially. In your predicament, you will need to flush the fluid and replace it completely. Mixing the premix with distilled will only dilute it and cause bacterial growth over time.

If you want to go with the anti-freeze route, due to the pump being weak, you should go with a 20% anti-freeze and 80% distilled water mixture but that mixture would still add restriction to the pump.

 

[ruanwagenaar27]

If the AIO was within your warranty period, you should've RMA'd it. As of this moment, you've voided your warranty. That being said, the radiator is aluminum while the cooling block is made of copper, you can use pretty much any watercooling premix that's off the shelf. The keyword here is premixed coolant(with additives) to prevent galvanic corrosion.

As for your refilling point, if you want to top it up, you must use the same premix that was used initially. In your predicament, you will need to flush the fluid and replace it completely. Mixing the premix with distilled will only dilute it and cause bacterial growth over time.

If you want to go with the anti-freeze route, due to the pump being weak, you should go with a 20% anti-freeze and 80% distilled water mixture but that mixture would still add restriction to the pump.

thanks for the info i bought the cooler 2nd hand so no warranty, ok will flush the system and see if i can get a pre mix coolant somewhere,mostly when i search forit on google it pops up as antifreeze

 

[BFG-9000]

Technically, the highest performance coolant is plain distilled water with a biocide additive/wetting agent. I would just top it up with the water as who cares if it's more dilute than before? Are you going to store your PC where it's freezing?

Of the automotive antifreezes, conventional green IAT coolant lasts longest if open to the atmosphere (the extended drain interval types are only so in truly sealed systems + never feature an overflow bottle where coolant can be sucked back into the system as it cools) but the silicates will erode away any plastic pump impellers. I'll suggest an Asian vehicle coolant such as PHOAT Zerex Red or Blue, or Peak Asian Vehicle is the same with no nitrate (so is a POAT) and comes in Red, Green or Blue

I do not suggest pink Toyota Super Long-Life or orange GM Dex-Cool as they contain high concentrations of plasticizers such as Sebacate or 2-EHA which can melt plastics not designed to handle them.

Note that the ethylene-glycol in antifreeze never wears out, but the acid-neutralizing corrosion-inhibitor additives get depleted. That is likely to take a very long time at low PC temperatures

 

[Paperdoc]

Auto anti-freezes of various types are built for particular metal components in certain cars AND for very high temperatures. All contain additives to prevent corrosion in the metals of the engine. But especially they are to be used for conditions that include temperatures BELOW freezing for water, so they must NOT freeze at temps as low as -40 (C or F - same temp), sometimes lower. Your computer does not need this latter feature.

What you AIO system does need besides just plain water is two types of additives, in just the right amounts. One is to prevent corrosion of the metals in your system, and the other is to prevent growth of biological micro-organisms (slime mold) in the water loop. For this you can buy a concentrated additive mix to add to your own distilled water to make up the required filling solution OR just a pre-mix suited to your particular system - depends on the metals in it. Look for info from Corsair or from the pre-mix makers as to which mix is suited for your AIO system.

By the way, the auto antifreeze base is Ethylene Glycol, not Ethanol Glycol. Small difference in spelling, important difference on chemical structure and physical properties.