Cascade users - don't use food coloring!

[MikeTimbers]

Thread (http://forums.overclockers.co.uk/showthread.php?s=&threadid=102343) at overclockers.co.uk with pictures of what can happen :eek:

[WejRepus]

that sucks... is there any news on how UV dyes and stuff work?

[Seal]

where can i buy a cascade?

[altec]

http://www.employees.org/~slf/lrwb/

[SemiCycle]

Man that sucks. I hope it cleans up nice, cause that is a lot of money to go down the drain.

[thorilan]

i sure hope uv dye and water wetter are ok =)

[rmonster]

Originally posted by thorilan
i sure hope uv dye and water wetter are ok =)

Me too, been running mine that way for a few days :eek:
If anything adverse happens I'll make a post, but so far so good :D

[bigben2k]

I think it might be possible that something else clogged the works, then picked up the coloring.

[wannaoc]

That makes me wonder what else the food coloring is building up on or around.

[cypher_138]

Originally posted by bigben2k
I think it might be possible that something else clogged the works, then picked up the coloring.
I'm with you on this one. Food dye has a very very low solid content. Looks more like dyed algee or something else.

[PalominoBURN]

NEVER use food coloring, it is organic and will always find a way to screw things up. Your lucky it got your block and not your pump. I would recommend using only DISTILLED WATER, and maybe some water wetter or other type of SAFE COOLANTS. UV dye is a waste in my opinion, it could only lead to bad things. Think about the steps you guys are taking.. You are willing to chance the CPU overheating or a pump failing, so that water will look cool with it's additives? All my logic says... WHY bother..

[rmonster]

....WHY bother..

Speaking for myself, the UV dye is only for leak detection. I have an external rig and no window mod, so the dye is purely for function ;)

[PalominoBURN]

Leak detection? By the time you realize you have a leak.. it's probably too late man. So once again.. WHY bother

[rmonster]

Originally posted by PalominoBURN
Leak detection? By the time you realize you have a leak.. it's probably too late man. So once again.. WHY bother

Maybe by the time you realize you have a leak it's too late. Not in my case, though, as I added the dye before firing up the system for the first time during leak testing, and actually caught a leak that I would have otherwise likely missed (leaking about a teaspoon or so over a few hours from a hose-barb).

To each their own, I suppose, but I consider the $3 investment well worth it, imho.

[cypher_138]

I like the idea of using it for leak testing. I never thought of that.

[PalominoBURN]

Well I don't doubt the idea, it just seems if it takes UV dye to detect a leak then you already didn't test it well enough, IMO.
I would dry dock test for 24 HOUR first. If it's gonna leak it do so in that time period (all things constant, you didn't cut a hose installing stuff,etc).

... Does that sound wrong? I guess I am confused why you would be looking for a leak why the comp is running. I mean if your that concerned then you probably shouldn't have it. Believe me I am OCD about some things, so I understand your concern. I was referring to the fact that a leak while running will more then likely do it's damage before you can react to prevent the disaster.

[rmonster]

I think I see where you're coming from. No, I didn't intend to leak test my system all the time while in operation... I'm careful, but not quite that paranoid :D

I just mixed in about a capful of Rit (a teaspoon or so) in my setup after I installed it in both my comp and the external box. My sytem holds a little over 1 and 1/2 gallons total, so the amount of dye was minimal, and not likely to have any major effect on my liquid's cooling efficiency one way or the other, imo. I then ran a leak test after installation with my computer off and caught the aforementioned leak on a hosebarb located on my northbridge block, using a portable uv.

Every now and again I turn on the little battery-powered uv lamp and do a quick check over my connections, but it's not not a regularly scheduled routine.

The UV served it's purpose during the initial leaktest, and it was merely easier to leave the dye in than to flush my system to remove it.

I just found the addition of the dye to be a convenient and inexpensive way of making an efficient leaktest. By no means am I an authority on any of this, but am just passing along info pertaining to what seemed to work well for me :cool:

[PalominoBURN]

OK I get what your saying now. Makes sense, I like it.