How to clean clogged GPU and CPU blocks

[@johnnywoolen1453]

I like how Phil still snuck in a small explosion when Jay's hand hit the table

[@dennismathew9124]

What time?

[@MrJdm2000civic]

@@dennismathew9124 1:57

[@FHL-Devils]

@@dennismathew9124 1:57

[@TheTechnoPilot]

Same!!! I had a great chuckle on that!

[@SullySadface]

Phil a treasure

[@TheRogueWolf]

One of the downsides of being a responsible adult: Having to clean up the mess you made when you were having fun.

[@phydeux]

Unless you're a wealthy adult and can hire someone else to do it for you. (I'm not, so I'm making assumptions.)

[@TinchoX]

Yeah, it's always a bummer...

[@integratedhatespreader]

@@phydeux I follow the "Wise old geezer" method instead and never make a mess in the first place.

[@SlyTreeRat]

Sounds like you're still young if you don't enjoy cleaning.

[@phydeux]

@@integratedhatespreader - As do I. I was simply pointing out another possibility.

[@joehurst3495]

Fun fact: your iFixit ads are the only time an ad ever swayed my decision on making a purchase. I was like this guy knows his stuff and liked this brand enough to make his own crazy ads for it, so I went with theirs when I was looking for an anti static mat

[@alreed2434]

Between him and steve at gn, glad I did got the manta. Quite an excellent purchase end up shearing those little torx on everything else.

[@TheDestroeris3000]

Same here :D 1st and maybe last my purchase from yt ad

[@Atlessa]

Same here... except I had JUST gotten a tool kit just before I saw the first ifixit ad from Jay. But if I need some more, or new tools I will for sure get an ifixit kit!

[@PepeTheJonkler]

Pro Tech Toolkit has absolutely been one of the best investments I've ever made. It comes in handy for tech and other random repairs. Used it to fix a door last week.

[@JanJanJanJanJanJanJanJanJan2]

Same here. I went for ifixit kits for our workshop at work.

[@mariolongford2336]

Jay constantly bringing up his iFixit tool because his wife bought him for his father's day everytime ❤️❤️❤️❤️

[@crustygrognard7403]

Remember guys, if your lady ain't happy, nobody is happy.

[@danielwalker8212]

Because of his sponsorship*

[@malarz7488]

@@danielwalker8212 he was doing ifixit ads before being sponsored

[@glmchn]

Oh really did she ?? 😆

[@leonardsmith82]

Give credit where credit is required 😅

[@gabrielsiolari4646]

Jay: No explosions today Taps on table: EXPLOSION I laughed hard. I would definitely buy an iFixit.

[@AKStovall]

i have 2 kits... the first one he grabbed, that he said was too big... and the biggest kit they sell (I used to work at a phone repair shop, and that big kit saved my bacon a few times.)

[@NotTheHeroStudios]

100% worth it, I use mine in computer / arcade repair, best tool kit I have ever owned. I use it for all of my pc / small electronic repair work, even repair / refab monitors

[@jamiemahoney2446]

You forgot the interesting part. Cleaning the radiator of all that gunk.

[@bowdiddly6172]

Damn it, I had forgotten about that, now it's going to haunt my dreams!

[@kaldogorath]

For that you'd mostly just run a bunch of water through it, then alcohol - it couldn't hurt to try to coagulate any remaining chocolate milk and the alcohol will clean it out. Then more water to get the alcohol out.

[@Bill-lt5qf]

would be funny if he forgets, plums it all up, then it just spaffs out a buncha choco chunks into the clean loop.

[@SvenD80]

Radiator and Pump! Radiator may be able with much water or Alcohol but the issue is, if channels are blocked.

[@rottenspice190]

Hmmm, why not hot water and dish soap? After all it's designed to clean that stuff and not mess with various plastics.

[@dominikbeitat4450]

Jay: "No iFixit explosions today!" Phil: ᵗᶦⁿʸ ᵉˣᵖˡᵒˢᶦᵒⁿ

[@benjaminoechsli1941]

Phil's always got our backs. :')

[@oreo1749]

Smol boom

[@JMUDoc]

Me; Christ - what did they do? Put chocolate milk in it, or something?! Previous video: yes.

[@c3pu333]

21:27 As Louis Rossman says "don't put the long screw in the short hole."

[@cnaisbitt5013]

"we dump all this junk in accordance with regulations" Shuts off camera and immediately dumps it in the toilet.

[@bengrogan9710]

I mean, in fairness, it is all stuff that's food produce so it can

[@filanfyretracker]

kind of like how on Top Gear they were always going the posted speed limit ;)

[@cnaisbitt5013]

@@filanfyretracker Exactly 😅

[@cnaisbitt5013]

@@bengrogan9710 yeah there's really no reason not to that I can see.

[@easley421]

Trying to act all PC. Since when can't alcohol, milk and other various food products go down a drain? Da fuq?

[@broklond]

That little explosion when he hit the table just cracked me up. Nice one Phil!

[@goforbrokefilmstudios]

8:55 - You can also put the parts in a ziplock bag with the alcohol in it, then seal the bag and put it in an ultrasonic cleaner and add water to cover the bag. Just make sure the bag is sealed to fully contain the alcohol.

[@Hackimaster]

We actually use iFixit kits at my workplace for our service technicians. I personally would also buy one if I didn't already have another screwdriver kit.

[@AKStovall]

I have the super large carry bag kit from my days as a technician. best 350 bucks i have ever spent IMO

[@besweeeet2]

Jay is quite calm and pleasant to listen to when he's doing an instructable like this.

[@the_hamrat]

A chemist here, the term Jay is looking for at 15:43 is an aziotrope. It has a different boiling point compared to the components

[@JeffBastian]

*azeotrope

[@the_hamrat]

@@JeffBastian damn autocorrect 🤣

[@Knattertun]

Just happy to see him still doing the watercooling, he was the first channel i was looking for while installing my own watercooling :3

[@jamesgervais7613]

You're quite fortunate that you didn't let it sit. I made cheese and what you ended up doing was mixing the milk with a coagulant that created the curding process. fortunately you didn't let it sit for long. If you did your loop would have turned into a giant thing of cheese; which is a pain to clean. Also if I recall correctly the basic properties of milk cause it to stick to metal surfaces and will persist to where you have to devote some major elbow grease to get rid of it(this is why companies use really strong chemicals like caustic and nitric acid).

[@brianm9223]

Jay I recently took on doing a custom water cooling loop for my system. It was a lot of fun learning how to do it and putting it together. I am an avid flight simmer and custom water cooling produced amazing results , wish I had this years ago. You were my inspiration and I really appreciate your videos on the subject . Thank you so much and your maintenance videos I find extremely helpful!

[@ragetist]

"You can get it replaced if not for free then for a very small fee." "Hey Phanteks wanna send me new parts because the old ones are ruined?" "How did the damage happen?" "I cooled my CPU with vodka and choccy milk!"

[@quint2568]

I use any ultrasonic bath as the final cleaning step on loop parts. Makes them come out beautiful

[@LoneTiger]

10:10 You want to use just plain water, and add a bit of dawn dishwasher detergent. Put your parts in there, tubing, etc and move them. Instead of a toothbrush, use an electronics cleaning brush, the strands are thinner and brush them under the water as Jay did. After that rinse them under running water, but shake them or use canned air to blow any excess water quickly to avoid stains, or residue, or calcium build up, then put them on shop towels to let them dry fully. If you have a small fan to blow air over them on the towels it would be better.

[@kaydog2008]

Jay I run distilled water with a tea spoon of iodine in it and haven't had to clean it for 4 yrs, But the color of iodine doesn't mix well with liquid cool colors for sure so I tried a drop of magenta ink for printer cartridge's and couldn't believe it worked so happy I never ever had to clean it again.

[@Bamahut]

I've always been a bit scared to go full custom water cooling because I never really knew if it was going to be a pain to clean or not but it's not to hard if you can empty it safely! I guess I might try to do this for my next build.

[@sgartner]

I've had great luck with distilled white (clear) vinegar. I put it in about 5 parts distilled water to 1 part vinegar and run the loop for several hours. Then I run several gallons of distilled water, both directions, through the loop under pressure to get all the loose gunk out (I use a hand water pump, the kind used to transfer gas between containers). I keep cycling until I see no more gunk. Works a charm. Never had to deal with curdled milk though...

[@tehBob]

Kind of looks like Jay needs a ModMat from GamersNexus to keep his screws together when doing the tear down.

[@MrJohnnyCrock]

Saltwater has a faster heat absorption rate than pure water, so it may work better than distilled. No idea what damage it would do to the loop though over time.

[@Bendigo1]

It will corrode metal very fast. It will also boil at a lower temperature. If for some reason it reaches boiling temp it can cause serious damage.

[@madffx1986]

Two things I have learned from this: *how to clean your loop *never use a loop, use air coolers.

[@NotTheHeroStudios]

Or just use an AIO and replace it every like 18 months 😅

[@bvoyelr]

I did this a few days ago to an acrylic distribution plate. I couldn't for the life of me get some of the more caked on stuff off the plate, so I resorted to using isopropyl alcohol. Not only did it not etch the acrylic, it seems to have gotten rid of any clouding that I would have expected to naturally occur. I was, needless to say, pleasantly surprised. It's worth noting that I applied the alcohol to a shop towel and then used that to scrub off the residue, so it may be that I simply just didn't have enough alcohol contact for enough time to really damage the acrylic, or it may be that the scrubbing action just left a nice even surface rather than allowing the plastic to "melt" naturally as it did here.

[@joer8854]

When he put the alcohol in to clean the milk I thought, "well anyone who's ever put milk in lemon tea knows where this is going."

[@izakomandaz2895]

What happens? I've never done it (I don't even own any lol)

[@joer8854]

@@izakomandaz2895 The milk curdles like sour milk that's been left out too long.

[@izakomandaz2895]

@@joer8854 ewwww! Thx for telling me!

[@utkarshkamat8150]

Great to be back, almost 2 years I haven't watched a computer talk (or whatever you want to call it) video

[@shamsalfaisal]

The pump still works is a miracle on its own

[@iseverynametaken]

Jay I love these tear down videos. Reminds me of the early days. Wish you would have more of these.

[@tededonthugback]

You can tell they've never tried drinking chocolate milk while drinking alcohol. It's even worse coming up, out of your stomach. Lol

[@tededonthugback]

@@PistolPete1251 I wonder how many people have done this too?

[@duelgundam]

Similar experience: When I was working in a restaurant years ago, during a wedding event, the owner came up with something for the event(with the groom and bride's acknowledgement); a chocolate martini. The first sip was alright-ish, but the subsequent sip had this nasty aftertaste. I worked through the whole thing with a strong heartburn that subsided by the time things calmed down. Worst cocktail, ever. At least the bride liked it.

[@tededonthugback]

@@duelgundam lol. That's crazy!

[@Qalibrated]

I have the same iFixit kit, bought it during black friday for 25€. Seriously, one of my better purchases. I use it for small allen key tasks, phone/laptop/tablet assembly & disassembly and generally any task that doesn't require a lot of force/torque. Recommended!

[@dope002]

Try pouring some Baileys (coffee-alcohol liquor) and tonic, from gin-tonic, in a glass and see what happens, trust me ;)

[@pupyasko1233]

Bailey's is an Irish cream liqueur, nothing coffee to it.

[@racistpandagod]

Baileys is a cream liqueur, not a liquor

[@FHL-Devils]

@@racistpandagod - Bailey's is frequently put into coffee to make it 'Irish'... Probably where the confusion comes from.

[@racistpandagod]

@@FHL-Devils it is exactly why that confusion occurs lmao

[@dside_ru]

In a glass?! What kind of amateurs do you take us for? Pump reservoir is the only way.

[@glmchn]

The little blast on jay touching the ifixit kit absolutely killed me. Thx Phil 😆😆

[@hannez001]

You should have tried milk system cleaner for coffee makers. Readily available and dissolves coagulated milk very good (that's what it's designed for). Maybe an idea for another video just for the vast amount of users, running milk (chocolate or other) in their loop :D

[@cjceeez9897]

Doesn't that use heat to clean the lines?

[@damienlahoz]

never cleaned blocks except used ones i have bought but after installing a new gpu and gpu block, i noticed a huge drop in water pressure and after testing, low and behold the cpu waterblock was clogged beyond belief. I learned two lessons: thoroughly flush new blocks and tubing and always keep flex tubing and fittings around for diagnosing where in the loop issues might occur. I was able to eliminate the gpu block and the pump itself before moving to the cpu without a total tear down but connecting soft tubing between the parts. Just thought id share that, might save people time.

[@widowmakerdesign]

Clearly you didn’t have cruel friends on your 21st birthday giving you a cement mixer

[@bogotstogoskiing]

Power sprayer on the metals (15 degree?) followed by alcohol. Alcohol is fine on plastic as long as it's not prolonged exposure. As Jay did, alcohol on anything water hit. As long as it's dry afterwards it's fine. DON'T use alcohol on o-rings. It will dry them out too much. You nailed it. Waiting an extra day for everything to dry is always a good idea. It'll never look brand new again but cars don't either when exposed to the elements. You either see scratches or you're taking off material. Main thing is avoiding oxidation on the metals as that drastically reduces cooling ability. And who cares about the plastic. If it gets brittle and starts breaking buy a new one.

[@petehalsey4529]

Mrs. Jay: "Honey, have you seen my tooth brush"?

[@Apollo-Computers]

Dawn dish soap and water is what I use, then a good rinse with distilled. And the nickel can be polished with elbow grease and cotton cloths.

[@LEVELMotorsports]

"Let's do shots!" PC: "I want an Irish car bomb."

[@sswoope]

cement mixer

[@Lex_Cheesington]

Pro-tip from a heavy use restaurant kitchen dishwasher: Dawn Dish Soap will eat through almost anything stuck on metal or dish type materials almost immediately if you scrub it in with warm water (unless its literally baked on then you need dawn and steel wool)

[@Spriggen1337]

why not used a watered down KP thermal paste as loop fluid?

[@bengrogan9710]

The paste would quickly separate in the loop an clock in the microvanes

[@fernbobbio]

Loved the flame when Jay hit the table :-P I got myself an Ifixit pro tech toolkit this week, couldn't be happier!

[@garnakkiller9466]

Can you make a liquidmetal loop? It will be interesting to see the temperatures with Liquidmetal and I have not seen anyone do it.

[@bengrogan9710]

Because the cost to do it would be huge for little benefit and you'd need to be 100% certain there where no alumium fittings

[@Dreaddeamon]

this kind of vid always makes me happy since i learn more and more about each part and how to do it, sadly i'm still not that big into the tech side of it and dont want to end up ruining my pc

[@sympetrum667]

Wonder how's the custom engine pc doing?

[@jackalovski1]

I'm 8 minutes into this vid and want to add some things. The chocolate milk and alcohol form a precipitate but mixing different types of collant can do similar things. Don't use acetone to clean anyhting! Acetone causes enrironmental stress cracking and can cause plastic parts, espesially plexyglass (Acrylic) to crack or shater. that's what the discolouration on the CPU block is. When putting it back together you can put a thin layer of silicone grease on the o-rings and seals to help them seal better, don't use kerosene or WD-40 as it will cause the rubber to swell or perish.

[@blinkernolfaria]

IFIXIT! yeah got 2 of them and they really help me with the pc, my scooter, smartphones, even my watches and glases so really a fan of them bdw just a question, does the alchohol breaks the tubes or something? like breaks the chemical compositition of any parts? thanks.

[@MsSgent]

Alcohol can dissolve some types of rubber and plastic parts. Same reason that cars / boats / lawnmowers have to be compatible to use with 10% ethanol fuel.

[@blinkernolfaria]

@@MsSgent wow, had no idea thanks a lot for the answer

[@stephenmerrins5910]

My wife to be got me an ifixit kit for father's Day this year, can't wait for it now! Just wish I could have used your link but I don't live in America so... Great videos btw, live the content!

[@persechini]

What about the radiator? That must've been nasty to clean

[@Knaeckebrotsaege]

I'd honestly just throw it out after something like this tbh, since it's just a standard 240 or 280 rad, nothing ridiculously huge or expensive. All the tiny channels are gonna be fcked. One might be able to get some of it out with compressed air or high(-ish) pressure water but even then i still wouldn't fully trust it afterwards

[@stoddern]

Yes rubbing/isopropyl alcohol strips the oils out of plastics causing etching, cloudiness

[@alreed2434]

Some plastics, if in doubt find that area nobody will see try a little there just like carpet.

[@dflower6]

California: Pooping on the sidewalk: ok, pouring alcohol in the drains: not ok. 🤔

[@zack9912000]

CA is a shit hole. Glad I moved

[@danielu.4957]

@@zack9912000 please, do not vote for the same policies that turned CA into that. Leave that commie sh!t in CA.

[@odahithedubious]

When putting in multiple screws, remember the saying, "Start them all before you tighten any." I learned this with a fairing that had 19 screws. If you didn't leave them all partially loose to start, the thin fiberglass fairing would move enough that you'd never get the last couple of screws in without going back and loosening the others anyway.

[@aftermax01]

Jayz OK, now let's get the cheese off the loop

[@Edgarpac2007]

Use flame to make etched poly clear if acrylic

[@Dexter101x]

I hope that EVGA card isn't part of the global giveaway 😂

[@depth386]

I saw a sick clean-job on reddit and the guy showed a tube of what he used, a product called “Autosol” meant for cars. He said you use just one drop! Very strong stuff.

[@sympul]

This makes me feel way less gross about my pc. Thanks LOL

[@mikepeter1323]

The graphic card watercooling part remind me when i cleaned an EVGA 980 Ti i bought on ebay with a waterblock almost completely clogged and which looked rusted. I think the guy had sell it at low price because he didn't knew it was possible to clean it. But after using soap and toothbrush long enough, i got it almost like new. Now this card is even better than my Asus 980 Ti Poseidon and she's the primary card in my SLI. :)

[@nicholascain1123]

Curdle, that's the word you're looking for Jay. That's what happens when alcohol touches milk

[@Dan-yq8lf]

Ever hear of a White Russian? The heat had a lot to do with the curdling.

[@GH05T18]

@JayzTwoCents i just use glass cleaner and that is aggressive enough to break down the gunk but harmless enough to not damage the metal. same on plastics. and you get a beautiful shine and clarity.

[@snds2236]

Have these guys never tried an Irish Car Bomb drink? Come on.

[@HowDidThisHappenNow]

Jay mention his wife's IFixIt present!, have not head that one for some time now :P

[@HTHAMMACK1]

I've always wondered why people want to put up with that level of maintenance on a PC, or have that many points of failure. We all have hobbies I guess.

[@tj71520]

Same here, air cooling has always worked fine for me tbh

[@CamperCroftTecnoTips]

I LOVE IT !! NOW CLEAN THAT MESS :V

[@johnnypay]

fun fact milk pretty much curdles when mixed with anything, it even starts to curdle in your stomach.

[@soyo]

Did he disconnected PSU cables from gpu and motherboard without turn off the system? 👀

[@JeffBastian]

Why would you think that? He literally flicked off the switch on the PSU, which was off-screen, right before he unplug anything.

[@woocheap9983]

Jay Jay Jay, Thank you for CC!!! as watched it approx. 30 min after it was released. Again thank you !!!

[@Luiscofield.]

The only thing that got me really anxious was the use of so many papel towels :( and going to the trash with little use

[@edmund740]

Man..I love to see that iFixIt Ad!! .....Who thinks there should atleast the ad at @1:49??

[@smartgorilla]

Love this doctor j. Sounds like the top gear presenters.. sorry I have to do stuff j..bye..

[@mylittlepwny3447]

I'm lucky in the fact I'm always upgrading parts so I'm constantly needing to drain and clean my loop multiple times a year,, but if you have good fluid I typically reccomend changing fluids yearly. Can you go longer? With appropriate fluid sure but better safe than sorry. Distilled water with a biocide ftw! It's cheap and super effective!

[@ethicalcollective]

Who else feels like their day is incomplete without watching his videos💕

[@blindeyegaming8032]

No

[@SomeshSS]

Have to watch every time I'm eating.

[@JesseGaming7593]

Are you the same as me? I always press like immediately as soon as the video starts?

[@TidusfromZanarkand]

1:55 This is why I love Phil

[@jonasriliskis996]

Looks to me like an awesome air cooler commercial :)

[@Sideburns235]

Love this kind of "maintenance vlogs" and all the odd videos that lead to it. It is very fun to watch.

[@nukestation4277]

👉♥️❣LIKE❣♥️👈

[@bullettube9863]

Now all we need is to see how Jay cleans the radiator!

[@techchannel3337]

absolutely loved the educational part of this video, I feel more comfortable to try upgrading my pc to a water loop.

[@petejones6827]

jay that little metal water block would be effectively cleaned with a jewelry cleaner. using that electromagnetic vibration thingy would clean those fins extremely well. me personally i know a master jeweler and can just ask him if i need to but for anyone else all you gotta do is just go in and ask them to hit it with the jewelry cleaner most wont have a problem at all. the high pressure steaming, cleaning solution and the electromagnetic cleaning thingy would do an amazing job cleaning those metal blocks with those micro channels

[@FireFoxBancroft]

15:45 it's an Anhydrous solution. It evaporates any moisture on the surface. Don't use it on PU Leather though or Rubberized Game controllers. Doing that will cause the PU Leather or rubber coating to crack and peel.

[@kennethfribert6074]

You should have used acetone for the metal (NOT FOR THE PLASTIC), as the problem for you 'blend' is that you mixed polarized and non-polarized fluids. Acetone works on both. That is also why sulfo or soap will release the tension in the water contained in the coco.

[@spadeybugadunusa3190]

Can you make a video about what you think a PC building shop should look like/ what items are required/recommended? I know a iFix it tool kit will be most useful - but a guide to building your own PC workshop or a "most useful/used tools" video would be interesting

[@snakylevrai7476]

Ultrasound bath works wonders without the need for chemicals. Cleaned a completely clogged up fountain pen with it. Just don't plunge the entire card with it, it may destroy electronics... just plunge the purely mechanical parts.

[@robertboyer6466]

Quad 0 steel wool might be better than a brillo pad. You can clean glass without scratching it and it's more often used to clean and lightly polish metal. Worth a test.

[@jwalden91lx]

To clean the clear plastic, get some Novus #2 cleaner and an acid brush, and an ultrasonic cleaner to clean out the nooks and crannies.

[@TheAa2000]

This video reminds me of the day after a frat party....all the cleaning up and regret of the last night! :D Have you thought about using an ultrasonic cleaner (like the ones designed for jewellery) with distilled water for block cleaning?

[@jamiemahoney2446]

You mean like the one he got a while ago for cleaning components?

[@DevernAdams]

You need to get some powdered brewery wash (PBW) to clean up difficult messes like this. Safe on plastics, rubber, metals, etc. and is crazy effective (basically oxiclean)

[@UrsusMagna]

I use car detaling brushes and diluted non-solvent degreasers (I recommend "surfex hd") when cleaning gunk out of loops, and then I finish with isopropyl. Works well for me.

[@oleg_aka_djmeg]

Buying a replacement shower head with adjustable water pressure was one of the best decisions of my life, now i have a jet cleaner at home, cleans literally everything to look brand new.

[@chazdevereaux6258]

This is why you don't pour milk into booze, but it's okay to add booze to milk. The moment pure alcohol hits milk it separates the casein (protein) because the pH is lower than 4.6. So what you're looking at are chunks of pure protein floating in the alcohol. I learned this by watching a video on how protein powders are made. :)

[@AniHajderaj]

I like how you have a whole collection of ifixits

[@zerog5551]

I'm not even interested in water cooling a system, but thumbs-upped because that was just interesting and satisfying to watch.

[@Charun1982]

I did this to my loop just few days ago. Almost 3 years running clear EK without changing it, and nothing that actually required the cleaning - just some slight discoloration. I upgraded my PC, and the old one is going to be a HTPC, so i had to do some changes in it, and figured i'd might as well clean everything while i'm at it.

[@Jsteeezz]

You should buy some 3m novec and play around with cooling the die directly with the liquid. No copper cold plate connected to micro fins connected to a water block. Just liquid on silicon. Would love to see that stuff!

[@makiwa]

I bought one of those ifixit sets because of seeing your Ad..... Great bits of kit! Thanks.

[@rather-reverend]

How about THIS for a cool DAD thing to do with iFixit kits: I gave my daughter her very own kit about three weeks ago. We've built soooo many PCs together, following guides from guys like you and that Canadian guy with the socks and sandals. She's 24, and she's been studying Material Sciences at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology for several years now - look it up: It's basically the MIT of continental Europe, but it's also so close that she never had to leave home. Three weeks ago, she finally had to pack her stuff and move to the campus in Lausanne to start work on her Masters project. My goodbye gift was that ifixit kit - all pretty and new, just for my little girl. (My little freaking GENIUS girl, that is.)