Bob, do you really thing all this chemistry is needed? I asked my guy where I bought all my watercooling, he said just exchange the whole water every now and then, it's way cheaper and more ecological. He said not to use any cleaners or whatever, since it does not make parts last longer and if you exchange water on regular basis (once a year), you are good to go for many many years.Beside, most insides of my watercooling are copper. Copper is just below silver, when measured in electrical conductivity (wikipedia). Now I know why I was buying high quality stuff ;-)Though you say that water will pick contaminants, just over how long the period? As said, exchanging water regularly keeps me away from such problems...I know Bruce said no liquid change interested, but I just wanted to clarify this point.

I disagree with the guy at your store if he's telling you not to use anything at all but distilled water. There's really not a lot of chemistry involved here...all I add to the distilled water in my system is a few drops of benzylkonium chloride biocide (the stuff I use is sold under the brand name PT Nuke). That keeps algae and bacterial growth from occurring in the system, which can be a real problem if it grows on or clogs up the extremely fine microchannels in the water block heat sink or develops a film over the insides of the radiator. I agree on avoiding the use of dyes and other additives, and regular exchanging of the cooling fluid is a generally good preventative measure. But biological growth in a system, if it occurs, can take off pretty rapidly--and if it happens, your water block at least is probably going to be permanently hosed.As far as electrical conductivity, I measured it with a meter after a month in the system, and the water had clearly picked up considerable conductivity just in that time--from 0.8 microSiemens/cm to over 30. I would not be at all comfortable with that water leaking onto a powered motherboard--I think it's conductive enough to be a big problem. Not that anyone is going to pour water onto their mobo, but I do challenge the idea that use of distilled water in a water cooling system makes it motherboard-safe in the event of a leak.RegardsBob ScottColonel, USAF (ret)ATP IMEL Gulfstream II-III-IV-VColorado Springs, CO

Hey, Col. Bob!! Good to see you back here!! What is your opinion on the so called *maintenance free* type system that Hondabuff mentioned above? I'm not into chemistry, so I need simple!Bruce

Hi Bruce; I am not a believer in the prefab internal water cooling kits I've seen...most don't have either a big/efficient enough radiator or a high quality water block, and the pumps aren't usually all that great, either. A good air cooler like the previously mentioned Noctua or a Prolimatech Megahalems will generally do at least as well. But that said, if you are going to run an aggressive overclock, or operate in a hot ambient temp environment, or don't like the noise of a couple high-flow fans running in your PC (or some combination of the above) then a well-designed water cooling system will outperform air. A water block will also fit into nearly all cases, where the good air coolers are generally enormous and require a large/deep case to accomodate them. Day-to-day I run my i7-975 at 4.4 GHz with temps in the mid 40s under load, and the system is very quiet.CheersBob ScottColonel, USAF (ret)ATP IMEL Gulfstream II-III-IV-VColorado Springs, CO

Col. Bob -Good grief! I don't have a clue about most of this stuff, but I sure do enjoy reading your posts. It reminds me of when I first saw *Q* in From Russia With Love (1965) explaining to James Bond about the gadgets he concocted for him! Mind boggling stuff! I can just imagine how you are outfitting your new motor home!I think I'll switch to bowling or crocheting! :( Bruce

Col. Bob -Good grief! I don't have a clue about most of this stuff, but I sure do enjoy reading your posts. It reminds me of when I first saw *Q* in From Russia With Love (1965) explaining to James Bond about the gadgets he concocted for him! Mind boggling stuff! I can just imagine how you are outfitting your new motor home!I think I'll switch to bowling or crocheting! :( Bruce

Aw, c'mon, it's not really that cosmic. I use pure distilled water with a few drops of a chemical biocide added to kill any bugs that might want to grow in the system. All the rest is just the confirmatory details...As for the land yacht, you're on the right track! I just outfitted it with an HF radio transceiver, so now I can talk to my friends on other continents while at cruise in the flight sim, all while breathing the fresh air in a campground high in the Rockies. :-D CheersBob ScottColonel, USAF (ret)ATP IMEL Gulfstream II-III-IV-VColorado Springs, CO

Aw, c'mon, it's not really that cosmic. I use pure distilled water with a few drops of a chemical biocide added to kill any bugs that might want to grow in the system. All the rest is just the confirmatory details...As for the land yacht, you're on the right track! I just outfitted it with an HF radio transceiver, so now I can talk to my friends on other continents while at cruise in the flight sim, all while breathing the fresh air in a campground high in the Rockies. :-D CheersBob ScottColonel, USAF (ret)ATP IMEL Gulfstream II-III-IV-VColorado Springs, CO

I am running only with distilled water. My cooling is entirely inside my windowless case and I'm using black hoses. If anything grows I'm hoping its a new species like around those underwater volcanic vents. :( Besides being ultra quiet, it adds to my bling lol http://i278.photobucket.com/albums/kk86/WC...mp/HPIM1099.jpg