Cleaning beer from a Corsair H100? What do I do?

[Huddo93]

Hi everyone,

If you saw the Computer + Beer thread then this sort of follows on from the same matter.

Basically alot of beer got caught up in the radiator and its causing it to stick BIG TIME! Is there a good way to be able to clean inside the radiator itself with out doing much damage?

Maybe submerge it in some dish soap and warm water? or something like a tooth brush and some soapy water?

Any guidance would be much appreciated! Thanks guys

[lilhasselhoffer]

A radiator is a bunch of aluminum fins coated in paint. As the paint is a plastic (not to mention alcohol's interaction with aluminum), don't soak it in alcohol. The best solution is water and a good deal of dish soap.

The water reconstitutes the beer, and the dish soap acts as a surfactant to bubble the solids away from the radiator surface.

Soak, rinse, then repeat until the radiator is clean.

Sorry the RMA process didn't work out. It's also too bad nobody wanted to read any of the previous posts, and decided that you were trying to work the system, ~sigh~. I would hope that this thread has a little more respect, but would not count on it.

[eidairaman1]

You have two topics pertaining to the same situation on this site. that really isnt allowed here.


http://www.techpowerup.com/forums/sh...d.php?t=165501

[Yo_Wattup]

1. Radiator fins usually aren't painted
2. Paint is not plastic

Personally I would spray it with alcohol or brake cleaner if you have any, but its up to you... soapy water would probably do.

[eidairaman1]

Originally Posted by Yo_Wattup

1. Radiator fins usually aren't painted
2. Paint is not plastic

Personally I would spray it with alcohol or brake cleaner if you have any, but its up to you... soapy water would probably do.

carb cleaner heh

[micropage7]

Originally Posted by Huddo93

Hi everyone,

If you saw the Computer + Beer thread then this sort of follows on from the same matter.

Basically alot of beer got caught up in the radiator and its causing it to stick BIG TIME! Is there a good way to be able to clean inside the radiator itself with out doing much damage?

Maybe submerge it in some dish soap and warm water? or something like a tooth brush and some soapy water?

Any guidance would be much appreciated! Thanks guys

give little soap and warm water, submerge it for a while so it would be easier to remove

[lilhasselhoffer]

Originally Posted by Yo_Wattup

1. Radiator fins usually aren't painted
2. Paint is not plastic

Personally I would spray it with alcohol or brake cleaner if you have any, but its up to you... soapy water would probably do.

What?

Paint, at least the type used in mass manufactured parts, is plastic. It is cheaper to use plastic based paints than spray paint. An electrostatic charge is applied to the metal part, then a sprayer filled with oppositely charged plastic pellets is used to coat the metal. The part is then heated up, melting the plastic into a "paint" layer which protects the part.

How, may I ask, do you think that radiators aren't painted. The H100 has black fins on its radiator. No metal is black, so the only two options are paint and anodization. As anodization is expensive, and would be difficult to complete on such a complex surface, it has to be painted.



Edit: DO NOT USE CARB CLEANER or ALCOHOL! You will void the warranty, damage the radiator, and make small problem into a huge one.

[craigo]

why don`t you just RMA the cooler?
SORRY, I COULDN`T HELP MYSELF

[Mr McC]

Isopropylic alcohol, normally available in pharmacies.

[Kreij]

Hot water, dish soap. Lather, rinse repeat.
No need for anything else unless you have hard water (calcium) deposits you are trying to remove also. In that case you would need a different type of cleaner.

You should be able to use a soft brush (like one for cleaning drinking glasses) to get to some of the harder to reach areas.

If you're careful you could use a pressure washer, but that a little extreme.

[DigitalUK]

cant believe you got beer in your H100, dont use alcohol as you have already applied 1 coat..lol. warm water and soap (washing up liquid) will do a great job just be careful not to bend any fins or damage the pipes, i use it on mine when it needs cleaning.

[fullinfusion]

Shit, just run it under tap water! Really it don't take a rocket scientist to figure that out.

You need advice on wiping *********

I'm calling the troll patrol

[TheMailMan78]

How much F#$king beer did your buddy spill on your rig? I mean really I would report him to the cops for alcohol abuse. That much wasted beer is a crime.

[Mussels]

dish soap, HOT water, then blow dry it with cool air (hot could cause rust, you just want the water out)


make sure you shake it around to get water droplets off every now and then, while its blow drying. i've fixed a few tea filled keyboards this way.

[Mindweaver]

If that guy drinks beer at your house again.. Put a nipple on it! as for cleaning.. put it in the dishwasher.. If you use soap... use a very small amount. then let it dry for a couple of days. You can blow it out with air to speed up drying.

EDIT: I always keep a can of "CFC Free NU LVC Contact Cleaner" (Brand= LPS) close by. I would spray it down with that before using to ensure all moisture is gone.

[Yo_Wattup]

Originally Posted by eidairaman1

carb cleaner heh

Im a mechanic, that stuff is worth its weight in gold.

[1freedude]

OK, don't put that in the dishwasher, at least not with detergent. Water only or dish soap.

(Look up aluminum and dish detergent). Don't use Windex either.

[eidairaman1]

Originally Posted by Yo_Wattup

Im a mechanic, that stuff is worth its weight in gold.

i know cuz of vapor rate, I just wonder if electrical contact cleaner is exactly the same or what hah

[cadaveca]

It's beer.



Run the tap with warm water, dunk rad in it.

Rinse thoroughly.

Shake water out from between rad fins.

Rinse again.

Let air dry.


Make sure the pump head does not get wet. I dunno what all the fuss here is for. Soap not required. Paint will protect metal from any possible issues. Warm water and mild soap (1/2 tsp per 3 gallon water) is perfectly safe.


However, if the pump head gets wet inside, it may literally take weeks to dry properly.

[eidairaman1]

The Motor correct since its pretty much a coil inside

Originally Posted by cadaveca

It's beer.



Run the tap with warm water, dunk rad in it.

Rinse thoroughly.

Shake water out from between rad fins.

Rinse again.

Let air dry.


Make sure the pump head does not get wet. I dunno what all the fuss here is for. Soap not required. Paint will protect metal from any possible issues. Warm water and mild soap (1/2 tsp per 3 gallon water) is perfectly safe.


However, if the pump head gets wet inside, it may literally take weeks to dry properly.

[stinger608]

Originally Posted by Yo_Wattup

Im a mechanic, that stuff is worth its weight in gold.

Very true! However Carb cleaner would most likely take the paint off the radiator.

[Batou1986]

Carb cleaner works great for stuff that doesn't have a finish but with the all the paint, plastic and who knows what else on the H100 I would bet it would eat something else up like the tubing.

Pain ole soap and water should be fine if you feel the need to clean the fins with something make sure its a soft tooth bush or similar
Whatever you do don't submerge the block or let water run down the lines into the block/pump.

[Huddo93]

Originally Posted by fullinfusion

Shit, just run it under tap water! Really it don't take a rocket scientist to figure that out.

You need advice on wiping *********

I'm calling the troll patrol

The main reason for asking is, I am not sure how rust resistant radiators are, or how prone they are to rusting and if using stuff like water hot water can effect the radiator due to metal + water = rust in some cases.

I'm just being cautious, I didn't want to just go ahead and possibly risk ruining my $150 cooler because I was to stupid to check :P sorry for the dumb question

[Huddo93]

Just thought I'd let you guys know that I gave the radiator a good clean using warm/hot soapy water twice and then rinsing with water. Definitely has defeated that "lovely" stale beer smell that I had going on in my case



Thanks for all the input guys, and sorry once again for what seemed like a silly question, but I just wanted to be better safe than sorry

Cheers guys