Clear tubing that does not cloud?

[schoolslave]

After reading through another thread, I realized that the 20ft of Tygon r3603 I bought were probably a bad investment because it tends to cloud.... :down:

Does anyone know of a brand of CLEAR tubing that does not cloud up? Ever?
As an alternative I was thinking of just setting up a loop with just the Tygon tubing and continuously cleaning the tubing of plasticizer in the hope that eventually it will remain clear.

[lowfat]

I would definitely like to know the answer to this as well. I bought a whole lot of Tygon B-44-4X because I was told it would not cloud, but it has already started to get a little hazy after a few days.

[penguins]

I would be in the same boat, with both types of tygon, I was nearly guaranteed that it wouldn't cloud.

I just got some Primochill Pro LRT and if it clouds I'll tell yall about it.

[schoolslave]

Yeah, I see everyone using 3603 and that other thread pretty much opened my eyes to the whole clouding issue.....

[lowfat]

3603 is definitely no good. It will plasticize. The interior of the B-44-4x is at least plasticizer free, however it still clouds.

[CrazyNutz]

Good luck finding one that doesn't cloud up, I've used a lot of different types of tubing, and well they never stayed crystal clear for long:shrug:

[matari]

D.n.e.

[matt220]

Its a lost cause, I think its impossible for clear tubing not to cloud. I dont know how long tygon takes to cloud up but its one of the best tubings either way.

[Fatfool]

Gonna remove my B-44-3 (yes 3 not X) tubing soon. Maybe I'll post a picture here comparing a new tube. (gotta remember to do it somehow)

But It definitely clouds less than R3603

Here's the R3603 after much use:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v140/Fatfool/TubeGunk2.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v140/Fatfool/TubeGunk6.jpg

Compared to new tubing (think it was the B-44-3)

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v140/Fatfool/TubeGunk1.jpg



(yes if you're wondering what kind of diameter that is, it's 1/4" ID 3/8" OD. I happen to be one of the few who use that size for my loop)

[Sparky]

My Masterkleer stayed clear for quite some time. I've got Duralene in my quad socket right now, been running for a few months with nothing but distilled + killcoil and so far it isn't clouding yet.

[flutie98]

My Masterkleer stayed clear for quite some time. I've got Duralene in my quad socket right now, been running for a few months with nothing but distilled + killcoil and so far it isn't clouding yet.

I second the MasterKleer. Ive been running it on my main loop since 2008 without a liquid change and it still looks brand new. Distilled + a touch of Pentosin G11.

[schoolslave]

What about that completely plasticizer free Tygon?
Such as this one -> http://www.frozencpu.com/products/10692/ex-tub-664/Tygon_2375_Ultra_Chemical_Resistant_Tubing_-_38_ID_58_OD_-_Clear_AJK00029.html?tl=g30c457s1169#blank

Expensive, but has anyone ever used it? Does it cloud?

[DangerIsGo]

At $4 a foot, I don't think many would venture to try but a select few, though I do wonder how it is with clouding as well.

[eskamobob1]

theoretically all tubing will cloud eventually... it just depends on how long it will take... from my experience it more of depends on what you put through it, not the tubing its self... distilled water + a little bioside clouds slowest for me... as for after marker coolants, those almost always cloud up fast for me... considering the cheaper price and no noticeable performance hit, i dont understand why everybody doesn't use just distilled water and bioside

[CrazyNutz]

+1 for distilled&biocide and if you want color then colored tubing would be a good option.

I've seen alot of folks with the white crud, and I've had it myself. I dont think it's plasticiser as much as I think its flux or perhaps from some additives. When I first setup my loop I tried several different additive/liquids and eventually the white crud was all through my loop. I flushed it out really well, and replaced the tubing (tygon) with new tygon. Since then I've used fluid XP+ ultra diluted 1:4 with distilled water, and for the last 3 years I've had 0 problems, yes the tubing is slightly cloudy (not crystal clear like new) however it is very acceptable.

[Frag_Lord]

I've run Nulon Ultracool with distilled water through swiftech and masterkleer tubing without an issue, slight cloudiness but thats after a year + of running, am gonna try som tygon in a couple weeks.

[penguins]

I've been running Tygon B-44-X with only distilled and kill coil, when I got my second hand videocards/blocks they had some chalky white crap in them, used them for a while in a look with the cpu on stock cooling.
they clouded up, I was pretty sure it was from the chalky stuff.
since then I've used the same brand tubing, replaced everything on the cards ( refurbish kit ) cleaned it reallly well, nickel plated the Cu, flushed the rads ( Swiftech MCR ) and added a completely separate loop with another mcr, supreme HF, and tygon b-44-x. and it's clouded again.

2 completely separate loops, I doubt in my case, that it is flux or additives.

if it only clouded in the first loop and not the cpu loop I would figure it's flux or whatever got in the res. but if the other loop without a joining res clouds I've got to think it's the tubing.

and this happened quickly a month or two.

[matt220]

What about that completely plasticizer free Tygon?
Such as this one -> http://www.frozencpu.com/products/10692/ex-tub-664/Tygon_2375_Ultra_Chemical_Resistant_Tubing_-_38_ID_58_OD_-_Clear_AJK00029.html?tl=g30c457s1169#blank

Expensive, but has anyone ever used it? Does it cloud?

I would love to know about 2375 also, I would be willing to spend (even though it is a rip) $4/ft if it lasts a long time without clouding.

& Crazy, how does the Diluted Fluid XP handle with colored gunk in the blocks? Ive heard bad things about Fluid XP used when not diluted.

[lowfat]

I've been running Tygon B-44-X with only distilled and kill coil, when I got my second hand videocards/blocks they had some chalky white crap in them, used them for a while in a look with the cpu on stock cooling.
they clouded up, I was pretty sure it was from the chalky stuff.
since then I've used the same brand tubing, replaced everything on the cards ( refurbish kit ) cleaned it reallly well, nickel plated the Cu, flushed the rads ( Swiftech MCR ) and added a completely separate loop with another mcr, supreme HF, and tygon b-44-x. and it's clouded again.

2 completely separate loops, I doubt in my case, that it is flux or additives.

if it only clouded in the first loop and not the cpu loop I would figure it's flux or whatever got in the res. but if the other loop without a joining res clouds I've got to think it's the tubing.

and this happened quickly a month or two.

Well that sucks. Considering I paid a rather large amount of money to get B-44-4x shipped up here. Have you tried cleaning the tubing out to see if it cleared up at all?

[penguins]

Well that sucks. Considering I paid a rather large amount of money to get B-44-4x shipped up here. Have you tried cleaning the tubing out to see if it cleared up at all?

That's this weekend's project hopefully, going to go to 1 Loop and transfer a pump to a new project.. I've got extra tubing that i will most likely use instead.. but :\

and yes I did the same thing, ordered a bunch of this because I was told it wouldn't cloud D:

[eskamobob1]

lol... honestly you could just use 1/2 in radiator tubing considering what all you guys are saying about the tygon... i have always just used straight up nock of brand tubing, and i dont get much cloud (though i clean my loop every 2-3 months)... but is tygon realy that bad? and its expesive too

[lowfat]

lol... honestly you could just use 1/2 in radiator tubing considering what all you guys are saying about the tygon... i have always just used straight up nock of brand tubing, and i dont get much cloud (though i clean my loop every 2-3 months)... but is tygon realy that bad? and its expesive too

Other brands of tubing are never super clear to begin with. Brand new Tygon can't be beat in terms of clear tubing. Now only if we could find a type of Tygon that was resistant to clouding. :shrug:

[Red M]

Hi, I've been using the same Tygon 2075 for the last 4+ years and its still clear, apart from the scratches that were on it when i ordered it (looks like rubbing from the box or something) and the accumulation of dust (I'm caseless :p:), I live in New Zealand and I find the water here very clean compared to what I've seen around so it may be a factor but in my experience 2075 is the one to go with if you want your tubing clear :)

To give you an idea of the water here I have a possideon water cooling kit (my first WC, fantastic value at the time ~$120NZ) that I filled with boiled tap water ~8 years ago and it still hasn't grown anything - its been sitting in my cubboard for the last ~6 years.

[GeorgeStorm]

Hey I recently setup my first loop, using just tap water, so was wondering, would a silver coil, pt nuke, or something like : http://www.chilledpc.co.uk/shop/product_info.php?cPath=67_79&products_id=162 be needed?
As far as I'm aware Pt Nuke and a silver coil do the same job no? Whereas the g11 is for corrosion, and will also add colour to my loop which might be cool.

[Waterlogged]

Hey I recently setup my first loop, using just tap water, so was wondering, would a silver coil, pt nuke, or something like : http://www.chilledpc.co.uk/shop/product_info.php?cPath=67_79&products_id=162 be needed?
As far as I'm aware Pt Nuke and a silver coil do the same job no? Whereas the g11 is for corrosion, and will also add colour to my loop which might be cool.

Get the tap water out of there. . .NOW! Replace it with something much cleaner like distilled (preferred) or deionized. Also do a good flushing before getting it back up running, there is so much crap in tap that can cause problems it isn't funny.

Of course, if you live in the north west US (say Washington or Or-e-gon*), disregard what I've just said.

*Yes I did that on purpose annnnd, I'm trying to be funny. :p:

[GeorgeStorm]

I live in the UK.
If I can't replace the water for a while, what would you recommend out of the 3 options, would any of them be any use?

[.Logic]

We've been having this same conversation for years and you should be able to find some useful advice/opinions here:

http://www.xtremesystems.org/forums/showthread.php?t=184979

[lowfat]

Hi, I've been using the same Tygon 2075 for the last 4+ years and its still clear, apart from the scratches that were on it when i ordered it (looks like rubbing from the box or something) and the accumulation of dust (I'm caseless :p:), I live in New Zealand and I find the water here very clean compared to what I've seen around so it may be a factor but in my experience 2075 is the one to go with if you want your tubing clear :)

To give you an idea of the water here I have a possideon water cooling kit (my first WC, fantastic value at the time ~$120NZ) that I filled with boiled tap water ~8 years ago and it still hasn't grown anything - its been sitting in my cubboard for the last ~6 years.

2075 isn't all that clear to begin with though.

[NaeKuh]

Feser Tubing isnt bad.

Been using it for a year, and the tubing is still passable.

Primochill is also great.

[Volkum]

I've tried a few types of Tygon and also tried Masterkleer, but it all ended up cloudy. I've read lots of good things about the Primochill LRT tubing being less susceptible to clouding compared to other commonly used WC tubing. I have some on order that I'll be using with my rebuild that I'm in the process of working on.

[brammers]

I live in the UK.
If I can't replace the water for a while, what would you recommend out of the 3 options, would any of them be any use?

At a push, get a few litres of battery water from halfords. Better than tap water. Should only cost a fiver for a gallon (ish).

Proper distiller is probably about £20 a gallon now after the tax rise!

http://sortlifeout.co.uk/catalog/product_info.php?cPath=45_43&products_id=77 has it if you're interested.

HTH
J

[Red M]

2075 isn't all that clear to begin with though.

This is true, it's definitely not as Crystal as say 3603 but is not far off and is definitely not cloudy, but i guess thats where you start to get trade offs you can ether re-tube every now and again or, like me, never ;)

Then again, as I say, the water here seems to stay very clean with just a boil so if you're flushing your system regularly re-tubing might not be so much of a hassle.

The other noticeable difference is the stiffness, its definitely not as soft as 3603 but I believe this helps it turn tighter corners as the walls have less of a tendency to collapse. However the tighter corners and stiffer material will put more force on connecting components.

My experience with tubing isn't huge as I've only used vinyl, silicone, 3603 and 2075 but for the time being I will be sticking with 2075 as it looks nice and is the only one I've used that doesn't require maintenance.


At a push, get a few litres of battery water from halfords. Better than tap water. Should only cost a fiver for a gallon (ish).

Proper distiller is probably about £20 a gallon now after the tax rise!

I'd be careful with battery water, I used some a few years back thinking its was clean as a whistle however it was only deionized which at the time I didn't realise meant it had only been treated for minerals NOT organics and I found after a couple of weeks/months (cant remember exactly) I had little sea monkeys floating around in there :( If your buying water, distilled is the way to go but as brammers mentioned it comes at a premium (as all good things in life seem to ;)) however it may also come down to brand, in my case perhaps "super cheap auto's" wasn't the best place to be shopping lol.

[Quad-Damage]

Anyone ever use any tubing they get at Ace Hardware? Just Clear Vinyl tubing? I went ahead and just bought some. For 8 bucks it's cheaper then cleaning my current tygon tubes.

BTW how are people cleaning their tubes?

[lowfat]

Anyone ever use any tubing they get at Ace Hardware? Just Clear Vinyl tubing? I went ahead and just bought some. For 8 bucks it's cheaper then cleaning my current tygon tubes.


No because that tubing is generally pretty bad. It has extremely thin walls and will kink extremely easy.

[Quad-Damage]

I brought in my same tubing and it looks identical to it, size for size. I'm going to see what happens, if it's leaks I can always fix it and get different tubes I have local stores near by.

[BeepBeep2]

Primochill LRT clear doesn't cloud. Had my loop 7 months now, looks like day one.

[GeorgeStorm]

Argh, the point is I don't have the time to completely bleed and redo my entire loop at the moment
What's so bad about tapwater?
Algae growth? If so surely a silver coil will help that?

[DangerIsGo]

I ran distilled + PT nuke with Tygon R-3603 for ~2 years now and had to bleed, clean out, replace tubing, all that good stuff around 3 times because of crap in the water and cloudy tubing. I'm not sure if its too much PT nuke or too little but Ive tried two drops, 6 drops..10 drops..all clouds. Right now I just went to Feser tubing with Feser's coolant (which my friend has had running for ~2 years now with absolutely no issues or clouding)...also noteworthy is that my temps are the lowest they've ever been along with getting a delta of 1C on my 5870 (yes, 1C), I can't complain :) Let's just see how it stands the test of time. I also have a MCW30, MW60, Apogee (1st gen), MCP355, XSPC RX360 and XSPC Dual Res Split Bay (used to have 2 loops with my 4870x2 but since have reverted to 1).

[penguins]

Minerals in the tap water mostly. you'll get a coating on everything in your loop, your tap water doesn't go through only copper pipes also there could be the starts of corrosion faster than you'd think.

Thermally it's the same.
Skinnee did a great test on thermal capacity of different coolants.
If you really want to use Tap water, tell us how your pump is in a couple months time.

otherwise, the battery top off fluid ( De Ionized aka De mineralized ) is your best bet in the UK and cheap.

What I don't get is why Distilled water is going up in price.
last year it was 99¢ / Gal
now it's $3.00 / Gal.

and the UK has never had cheap Distilled water as far as I remeber ( in this hobby and Chile Pepper Growing )
<sienfeld> What's up with that?</sienfeld>

[lowfat]

You could always use RO water as well. That is all I have been using since ~ 2004.

[Fatfool]

What about that completely plasticizer free Tygon?
Such as this one -> http://www.frozencpu.com/products/10692/ex-tub-664/Tygon_2375_Ultra_Chemical_Resistant_Tubing_-_38_ID_58_OD_-_Clear_AJK00029.html?tl=g30c457s1169#blank

Expensive, but has anyone ever used it? Does it cloud?
2075 is stiff. Watch out for it. If you're used to 3603, this will be a pain to route.

[Utnorris]

I like my Masterkleer, but I use just distilled water and change it out frequently compared to others because I am always swapping out my gear.

[GeorgeStorm]

Right, so looks like I'm going to have to completely take apart my loop and redo it all?
With either distilled water (if i can afford it) or atleast deionized, or possibly some coolant, as it may actually be cheaper :p
Then use a silver coil, and maybe some of that g11 stuff just to be safe
Then I should avoid corrosion, and reduce tube clouding etc?

[lowfat]

Here is my B-44-4X. It has seen less than a month of use so far. Water is reverse osmosis, 2 drops of PT nuke, w/ a silver coil. Water in the res is still perfectly clear. Can't say I am all that impressed for tubing that is $3/foot plus outrageous amounts of shipping to get it up here.
http://hostthenpost.org/uploads/a9bce35fa99249badd5dc0b292d5e3a5.jpg (http://hostthenpost.org)

[Sparky]

PT nuke and a killcoil? isn't that overkill :p:

[Sparky]

Right, so looks like I'm going to have to completely take apart my loop and redo it all?
With either distilled water (if i can afford it) or atleast deionized, or possibly some coolant, as it may actually be cheaper :p
Then use a silver coil, and maybe some of that g11 stuff just to be safe
Then I should avoid corrosion, and reduce tube clouding etc?

Distilled costs like a buck for a gallon or something like that at the local supermarket. Surely if you have watercooling gear you can afford a couple bucks :p: Deionized still can have stuff in it and isn't all that great for watercooling.

Don't use antifreeze. No reason for it at all if you don't use aluminum anywhere. If all you have is brass, copper, nickel, and silver, nothing will corrode. You only need the killcoil + distilled water.

[matt220]

I want to try Primochill but Im confused as to which type is antimicrobial and which is just normal, because Ive heard bad things about antimicrobial primochill tubing when used with pre-mixes or additives like ptnuke. Could anyone enlighten me as to which primochill tubing is NOT antimicrobial?

[lowfat]

I want to try Primochill but Im confused as to which type is antimicrobial and which is just normal, because Ive heard bad things about antimicrobial primochill tubing when used with pre-mixes or additives like ptnuke. Could anyone enlighten me as to which primochill tubing is NOT antimicrobial?

All Primochill LRT is antibacterial.

[GeorgeStorm]

Really? Never seen distilled water at any supermarket
I think it's easier to get over in the states, much more expensive here.
But will probably give in and just get it anyway.

[BeepBeep2]

I want to try Primochill but Im confused as to which type is antimicrobial and which is just normal, because Ive heard bad things about antimicrobial primochill tubing when used with pre-mixes or additives like ptnuke. Could anyone enlighten me as to which primochill tubing is NOT antimicrobial?

ALL of it IS, disregard it and feel free to run 1-3 drops PT-Nuke or killcoil anyway. Been running 6 months since last flush here, no growth in tubes or res though I didn't check the block yet.

[Waterlogged]

I want to try Primochill but Im confused as to which type is antimicrobial and which is just normal, because Ive heard bad things about antimicrobial primochill tubing when used with pre-mixes or additives like ptnuke. Could anyone enlighten me as to which primochill tubing is NOT antimicrobial?

There is still some of the older Primochill tubing available but it's very limited color/sizes. I'll take the feel of the LRT over the older stuff any day, it's sticky as hell and attracts dust like a magnet.

Red 3/8" x 5/8" (http://www.primochill.com/primoflex-red-tubing-3-8in-id-x-5-8in-od.html)

Clear 3/8" x 5/8" (http://www.primochill.com/primoflex-clear-tubing-3-8in-id-x-5-8in-od.html)

Green 1/2" x 3/4" (http://www.primochill.com/primoflex-uv-green-tubing-1-2in-id-x-3-4in-od.html)

[Sparky]

Really? Never seen distilled water at any supermarket
I think it's easier to get over in the states, much more expensive here.
But will probably give in and just get it anyway.

Ah I didn't realize you weren't in the states. Sorry about that. Not sure why it is so much harder to find elsewhere, makes little sense to me.

[Frag_Lord]

Demineralised \ Distilled is pretty much the same, your local supermarket should have it. It's generally used for cleaning Iron's.