CLR to the rescue! cleaning a used gtr 240.

[maxfly]

just to burst your bubble, i didnt take any pictures. sorry, it would have been a great tutorial in cleaning a copper cored rad. oh well maybe next time.
soooo i just bought a used hwlabs gtr 240 from ppcs ebay site. the listing said that it had water run through it but that was it(as far as they knew). so being that ive bought alot of used gear from ppcs and had great luck i grabbed it. externally it looks new AND it was $40 cheaper than a new one! after getting it in my hands i checked out the ports and saw that there was indeed some green gunk in it. i knew i would have to clean the rad going in but man, i wasnt expecting this. i filled the rad with clr and let it sit in the sink for 10-15 mins. drained the clr and it had gone from a mt.dew color to a dark dark green, yikes. it usually comes out slightly darker but not nearly that bad. but cool! i know its doing its thing! the next fill/drain the water comes out almost black. eesh, yep they must have run some kind of colored fluid thru it bleh. next one is slightly lighter black and now onto the third its starting to look greyish black. i added a little more clr to the last refill because theres still some discoloration in one port. im just going to run some hot tap water thru it until it comes out clear. the fill/drain process will take to long. anyhow this is a testament to always flushing your new or used rads! if that crud had made it into my loop i would have been scrubbing gear for a week!

 

[GTXJackBauer]

I don't understand the obsession of colored fluids when they gunk up and stained ones gear. I still scratch my head till this day but too many are misinformed and naive.

 

[caddi daddi]

I remember this one.

https://www.overclockers.com/forums...-and-refill-my-sysem-right?highlight=radiator

 

[EarthDog]

Cool story!

 

[Silver Surfer]

Use at your own risk!

I am extremely hesitant in using CLR on computer water cooling anywhere as I have seen that crap eat chrome off of faucets from being left on too long, even after thinking it was neutralized but it wasn't.

You better be sure that crap is completely flushed out of that radiator, cause it can attack rubber seals and pump bearings.

CLR has 2 acids and an Oxidizer in it's chemical makeup, there are much safer ways to clean your copper.

 

[maxfly]

I don't understand the obsession of colored fluids when they gunk up and stained ones gear. I still scratch my head till this day but too many are misinformed and naive.

i hear ya man. there have been so many stories about colored fluids going bad you would think a simple google search would set the hard headed ones straight. too many people that just dump what ever into their loop without reading the directions. over and over it happens.

I remember this one.

https://www.overclockers.com/forums...-and-refill-my-sysem-right?highlight=radiator

that is some serious nastiness! did you guys ever find out what caused it?

Cool story!

i know, i know. by the time it struck me to take a picture it was too late. all the goo was mostly cleared out! it looked like runny black mud coming out the first time i flushed it. man i shouldve taken a picture of it.

Use at your own risk!

I am extremely hesitant in using CLR on computer water cooling anywhere as I have seen that crap eat chrome off of faucets from being left on too long, even after thinking it was neutralized but it wasn't.

You better be sure that crap is completely flushed out of that radiator, cause it can attack rubber seals and pump bearings.

CLR has 2 acids and an Oxidizer in it's chemical makeup, there are much safer ways to clean your copper.

oh i know believe me. i treat the innards of my loop like im performing surgery on one of my grand children! seriously, if i didnt know how to use it id be in the same league as the colored fluid abusers haha, too lazy to read the directions! ive been using it for a long long time to clean out crud from rads and sometimes blocks. when used properly it is bar far the fastest and cheapest way ive found to clean off copper cores and blocks. ten to thirty minutes and they are usually spotless. vs scrubbing and shaking for friggin hrs bleh. ill stick with clr. tbh i havent looked at other options in years. ive found rads to be by far the hardest to get completely clean. what other methods do you use for dirty rads? im sure people reading this are going to be interested as well.

 

[GTXJackBauer]

My cleaning for a CPU block involves ketchup. Takes a bit of time if things look nasty but it does a fine job.

I think CLR is a good option but have to be uber cautious as you don't want to leave it on too long or you might have just created a slow leaker or damaged gaskets. I don't think CLR is for the masses as ketchup would be since it's much simpler and less lethal given the timing on it.

 

[maxfly]

My cleaning for a CPU block involves ketchup. Takes a bit of time if things look nasty but it does a fine job.

I think CLR is a good option but have to be uber cautious as you don't want to leave it on too long or you might have just created a slow leaker or damaged gaskets. I don't think CLR is for the masses as ketchup would be since it's much simpler and less lethal given the timing on it.

thats what i usually use for copper blocks. the first time i used it was on a danger den tdx block(full copper) and was amazed at how well it cleaned it up! surprisingly ive found that the little packages of ketchup seem to work the best. no idea why but found that it was true as i didnt want to use the ketchup in the fridge once(i hoard the extra packages for a rainy day har har) and it shined my cpu block up like it was new.
i hear ya, clr may not be for everyone. i agree you should never leave gaskets or orings on when you clean up your blocks. those tiny buggers are the only thing between your components and a watery grave.
ive tried the usual homebrews for cleaning rads but havent had any luck with them.

 

[Silver Surfer]

thats what i usually use for copper blocks. the first time i used it was on a danger den tdx block(full copper) and was amazed at how well it cleaned it up! surprisingly ive found that the little packages of ketchup seem to work the best. no idea why but found that it was true as i didnt want to use the ketchup in the fridge once(i hoard the extra packages for a rainy day har har) and it shined my cpu block up like it was new.

You are right about the little ketchup packages and I think the fact that they are not refrigerated accelerates the cleaning process, plus they may have more acidic acid than the bottles for extended preservation, maybe?

You can also use white vinegar and table salt, the table salt increases it's aggressiveness, but I don't know why and it might be giving off some fumes as well, so don't breathe it, just to be safe.

You don't still have that old Danger Den TDX water block do you?

 

[maxfly]

as a matter of fact i do! i just did a clean up of my old wcing gear and there it was haha. altho i dont have any of the mounting hardware for it. it should be easy to find something to make it work. its a tdx-a64 with the super thick acrylic top. not full copper sadly. i think i have another tdx somewhere but i cant find it. ive got another square, blocky, type copper cpu block but i cant remember what its called and theres no markings on it(its in two pieces/ no hardware either). if you want either of them you can have em. found a maze 4 top but no block haha. wow found some ek 8800gtx full coverage blocks too! tiny compared to todays full coverage.
haha found the directions for the 8800gtx! ive got to go through the rest of my old parts boxes.

 

[Nebulous]

I've never had any issues washing out old used rads with CLR. I've done it countless times with zero effects. Just gotta use common sense and if in doubt, RTFM! I've posted numerous times to people that are thinking of using colored fluids/Dyes, I don't recommend that and if you want color to use colored tubing and distilled water with biocide. People will still use colored fluids/Dyes. Oh well..

Nice grab Max! I would do exactly what you're doing to clean it out.

 

[Silver Surfer]

as a matter of fact i do! i just did a clean up of my old wcing gear and there it was haha. altho i dont have any of the mounting hardware for it. it should be easy to find something to make it work. its a tdx-a64 with the super thick acrylic top. not full copper sadly. i think i have another tdx somewhere but i cant find it. ive got another square, blocky, type copper cpu block but i cant remember what its called and theres no markings on it(its in two pieces/ no hardware either). if you want either of them you can have em. found a maze 4 top but no block haha. wow found some ek 8800gtx full coverage blocks too! tiny compared to todays full coverage.
haha found the directions for the 8800gtx! ive got to go through the rest of my old parts boxes.

I actually need the DD MC-TDX which is the Intel mount, Thanks Anyway.

 

[maxfly]

I've never had any issues washing out old used rads with CLR. I've done it countless times with zero effects. Just gotta use common sense and if in doubt, RTFM! I've posted numerous times to people that are thinking of using colored fluids/Dyes, I don't recommend that and if you want color to use colored tubing and distilled water with biocide. People will still use colored fluids/Dyes. Oh well..

Nice grab Max! I would do exactly what you're doing to clean it out.

thanks Neb, if your in the market for wcing gear definitely check out ppcs ebay page! ive gotten more sweet deals than i can count. alot of time i get gear for the minimum bid hehe.

I actually need the DD MC-TDX which is the Intel mount, Thanks Anyway.

no problem