I've Google this and have found conflicting information. I would like to use a car radiator inside a Mini fridge as a Is chiller. Because the radiator is used for a car the aluminum should be the grade that stands up pretty well to being oxidized right. I could get a universal radiator for under $60 I know it will work. Otherwise the stainless steel tubing is expensive and will not work as good. If I have to use the tubing I probably will just use alot of plastic tubing in a bucket of water. I would Rather use the radiator as I feel that would be the most efficient. Or a transmission cooler same things
Is a Car radiator safe for fresh water?
- Thread starter Tj203
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Should work, I don't know why it wouldn't. How are you planning to fit a radiator in a mini fridge? Maybe a heater core or a trans/ power steering cooler.
I turned a small fridge into a cooler. I used a coil of pex, a power head attached to a temp controller to make it work. It worked ok not great. You need a ton of surface area and a pretty strong fridge to really drop the temp.
I turned a small fridge into a cooler. I used a coil of pex, a power head attached to a temp controller to make it work. It worked ok not great. You need a ton of surface area and a pretty strong fridge to really drop the temp.
We I was going to use a Trans cooler inside the fridge in a 5 gallon bucket of water with salt in it.
But now I used 60 feet of 3/8 copper tube in the 5 gallon bucket and that work but a little to good it was bringing the temp of the water in the bucket up about a A degree every 30 seconds to a minute. So now I am going to use a Trans cooler or something cheap and some Peltier on that to help cool the bucket of water in the mini fridge my fridge is 24 x 17 so it fit the bucket nice. Also that way the Trans cooler dose not touch the tank water. I had the mini fridge and the copper tube so all I am in to this for is some Is compression fittings. Way cheaper then a chiller the size I need.
I did not think the thermal transfer would be that good.
But now I used 60 feet of 3/8 copper tube in the 5 gallon bucket and that work but a little to good it was bringing the temp of the water in the bucket up about a A degree every 30 seconds to a minute. So now I am going to use a Trans cooler or something cheap and some Peltier on that to help cool the bucket of water in the mini fridge my fridge is 24 x 17 so it fit the bucket nice. Also that way the Trans cooler dose not touch the tank water. I had the mini fridge and the copper tube so all I am in to this for is some Is compression fittings. Way cheaper then a chiller the size I need.
I did not think the thermal transfer would be that good.
Copper tubing is what I would have used as well. Can you just plug the pump into a temp controller so it only turns on as needed?
Great minds think alike lol but because of my setup and size of my system I am going to use two I have one wifi temp controller now that I am going to use for my heaters and pump from the tank to mini fridge, then I am going to use another one to control the temperature of the water in the 5 gallon bucket. I am going to probably use A cars radiator because I don't have to worry about size and put Peltier on it. I found one for $59. The way I am looking at it is a chiller for my size tank is around $1200 so far I am in to this for $50 and probably another $100 for the rest of the parts. I'll take that ?
The aluminum will coBut more of an issue is scale
the interior of the radiator will scale up until the radiator is no longer useful. This is why you have to use coolant and distilled water only in you car radiator.
how you combat scaling over time I don’t know other than buyperiodically taking the radiator out of the system and flushing with CLR or equivalent.
The other side of this- the amount of heat trying to be removed is way way less than with an engine so the reduced efficiency won’t show up like it does driving
the interior of the radiator will scale up until the radiator is no longer useful. This is why you have to use coolant and distilled water only in you car radiator.
how you combat scaling over time I don’t know other than buyperiodically taking the radiator out of the system and flushing with CLR or equivalent.
The other side of this- the amount of heat trying to be removed is way way less than with an engine so the reduced efficiency won’t show up like it does driving
Well it is a closed loop for the radiator so I could use distilled water. I am just brain storming about where to place the radiator. I am thinking of using a 8 inch exhaust fan to suck the humidity and heat out of my basement and I would put the radiator in front of that so it will suck the heat out. Otherwise I need to place it somewhere where it won't transfer the heat back to the tank.