Coolant
The coolant in a hydro ASIC is not water from the tap. Distillate with glycol and inhibitors decides how long the water blocks and the pump will live.
What proper coolant is made of
The base is distilled or deionized water. Tap water carries salts and leaves scale in the thin channels of the water blocks: the loop clogs up, temperatures creep, the pump grinds itself down. Saving on distillate ends with flushing the whole loop.
Glycol goes in for two reasons: freeze protection and lubrication with anticorrosion properties. The proportion follows the climate: the colder the loop might sit idle, the higher the share. The price is slightly worse heat capacity, glycol holds less heat than water.
Corrosion inhibitors are mandatory wherever different metals meet in the loop: copper water blocks, aluminum radiators, brass fittings. Without inhibitors that crowd runs an electrochemistry experiment, and within a year the loop blooms with flakes.
Ready-made mixes for hydro mining and industrial loops settle the proportion question: glycol, inhibitors, and biocides against algae are already in there. Costlier than a homemade blend, cheaper than replacing water blocks.
The short version
| Base | distilled water, not tap water |
| Glycol | against frost and corrosion, share set by climate |
| Inhibitors | mandatory with mixed metals in the loop |
| What the loop fears | scale, electrochemistry, algae |
| Replacement | on schedule, not when it turns green |
How to service the loop
Fill with a ready mix or distillate with additives, and write down the fill date: coolant has a service life.
Check color and clarity at every service: haze, flakes, and green are a signal to flush, not to top up.
Do not mix different blends and do not top up with tap water "just for now": additives conflict, and salts stay forever.
Keep a reserve of the mix for top-ups: a loop loses volume over time through evaporation and microleaks.
A case from practice
A hydro ASIC ran a year on tap water "for the time being". The result: temperatures up eight degrees at the same settings, water blocks crusted with scale, a noisy pump. Flushing the loop, new seals, and a ready mix cost noticeably more than jugs of distillate for three years ahead.
Related terms
Where to go next on the site
Hardware
- ASIC Miner knowledge base
Numbers
Questions and answers
Can I pour in regular automotive antifreeze
Better not: automotive additives are designed for other materials and temperatures. Mixes for electronics cooling loops exist and cost about the same.
How often should the coolant be changed
Per the mix's schedule, usually once every one or two years. Sooner if haze or flakes show up: the chemistry has already gone off the rails.
How does coolant differ from the liquid in an immersion tank
Fundamentally: in a hydro loop the liquid never touches the electronics and can be water-based, in a tank the board floats in the liquid, and there you need a dielectric.
How the terms connect
Every link in the chain is clickable. Orange marks where you are now.
Looking for an ASIC miner
The catalog holds 212 models. You can compare them by hashrate and by joules per terahash, then plug your own rate into the calculator and see what stays in your pocket.
Page written and checked by Denys Klimchuk. Updated .