Effective Way To Clean HSF

[KleoZy]

A few days ago, someone posted on how you clean your HSF as his HSF fins are stained with dirt.. and someone was pming me asking my method.. how was it done. ok this is what I have been doing and just to share..

Disclaimer first lol.. I bear no responsibilities if you get hurt in the process and hence.. please only apply to HSF that are of no color coated. Copper and Aluminum is ok for this.

Demo on how dirty HSF can be

I know very dusty.. and staining on those fins.

Preparation

• Washing Detergent (for clothes no need branded)
• A Deep and Wide Bucket
• Hot Water
• Ice
• Aluminum Foil
• Some rags (deep with water shall explain later)

Steps

before you proceed make sure all fans are detach and no electrical wires dangling around.. just the heatsink / fins

place the Fins in a bucket.

place washing detergent, no need so much, just 1/2 scope from the spoon that comes inside the detergent bucket.

Pour hot water

dip a rag onto rinse water (WARNING THE FINS WILL BE SUPER HOT) this is to hold the top of the fins while you rotate clockwise and anti-clockwise for a few minutes (normally 50 seconds will do and the rag is to protect you from getting burn)

 

[KleoZy]

Look at the bucket of hot water lol

pour away the hot water

Throw ice into the bucket, fill it with water.

deep the Fins into the cold water and do the same motion as in rotate clockwise and anti-clockwise.

It's clean now.. but the color is pretty dull lol

throw away the water in the bucket, put piece of aluminum foil and put detergent again. this time 1/4 scope.

pour hotwater again.

and using a rinse rag, rotate again.. 30 seconds or so.

 

[KleoZy]

pour away the hot water and throw away the aluminu, now fill it with normal water and soak your fins,
do the same motion about 30 seconds clockwise and anti clockwise. raise it at least two times, then throw away the water.
leave your fins to dry

results after rinse, still abit wet lol

completely dry, btw I use hairdyer to heat up the Fins to evaporate the water, please becareful when you use hairdyer as the Fins will be hot too.
so make sure you use a dry rag to move the fins around while drying it.

well that's all folks.. simple easy and no need to go buy another heatsink.. I used this method all these while and most of my HSF still in good condition. overall the color will fade. I mean it will be shining but not as the original shine.



Practical and Theory of this
dust that stain on the fins does contain certain grease which permanently bite to the fins, when you deploy hotwater with detergent, the fins expands and with the help of the soapy detergent, the grease just peals off. using ice water is to break the grease even future, if you look at the surface of ice water with the fins inside, you will see one lay of stain on the surface (you dont believe me you can order from coffee shop for kopi or tea, when it's hot, you dont see anything but when it gets cold you will see a lay of oil, thats the milk that contains oil floating on the surface of your kopi or tea). next the final round is to make it cleaner and as why aluminum, well this is how hotel folk and spoon maintain their shine (you don't expect them to use braso or autosol to polish every single one of them right.. plus is meant to be use in your mouth lol. anyway these are being dip into buckets of hotwater with aluminum foil, the detergent of course is for utensils washing and not for clothes lol.. so that's how I maintain the shine on the HSF.

 

[leongws]

very detailed & informative. SO its not advice to do this for nickel plated HSF?

 

[hg_wng]

AMAZING!
but how does the aluminum foil help make the hsf shiny?

 

[hg_wng]

very detailed & informative. SO its not advice to do this for nickel plated HSF?

its ok
10 char

 

[Kzhan00b]

AMAZING!
but how does the aluminum foil help make the hsf shiny?

Im guessing aluminium ions from the aluminium foil will coat over the heatsink lol

 

[KleoZy]

Im guessing aluminium ions from the aluminium foil will coat over the heatsink lol

Theoretically yes.. it does coat but is harmless coat lol.. before you throw the aluminum, you will notice that it's not as shining, infact is abit greyish.. the shine goes to whatever that's aluminum

very detailed & informative. SO its not advice to do this for nickel plated HSF?

I have tired on nickel black.. it ends up turning brown intead of black.. but without the use of aluminum foil..

 

[koikoe]

very detailed & informative. SO its not advice to do this for nickel plated HSF?

hahas alkaline electrolysis huh. heat + basic medium (detergent in hot water)...

then put aluminium hsf + aluminium foil to do Al coating?

 

[KleoZy]

a better picture on how clear it is.. i mean the fins not as in how shinning it is.. basically can see through no dirt no dust lol

 

[ionicle88]

lovely.

care to do it on a megahalem?

 

[Ah_Yong]

good method.. will try during weekend

 

[terence52]

looks like i better dont try on my black
later become true brown

 

[KouAnKyuuKa]

very informative post. But what with we use coke after the whole cleaning process is completed? Will coke (being acidic) be able to restore more shine to the HS on top of the aluminium foil treatment earlier?

 

[tecnica]

thanks for sharing

 

[ov2rey]

put piece of aluminum foil and put detergent again. this time 1/4 scope.

i dont understand this part, why do u need to put aluminum foil? for

 

[KouAnKyuuKa]

put piece of aluminum foil and put detergent again. this time 1/4 scope.

i dont understand this part, why do u need to put aluminum foil? for

The aluminiumn foil is to transfer part of it's shiny surface to the HS....

 

[jarred1223]

Theoretically yes.. it does coat but is harmless coat lol.. before you throw the aluminum, you will notice that it's not as shining, infact is abit greyish.. the shine goes to whatever that's aluminum



I have tired on nickel black.. it ends up turning brown intead of black.. but without the use of aluminum foil..

Try on Noctua's nickel plated hsf??


Hope won't turn brown or what..

 

[KleoZy]

very informative post. But what with we use coke after the whole cleaning process is completed? Will coke (being acidic) be able to restore more shine to the HS on top of the aluminium foil treatment earlier?

maybe should do this step without the last step of putting it to hotwater, detergent and aluminum foil..

the way I see it will be clean off the dirt first.. then follow by using coke.. maybe that will bring back the shine, but I wont advise to do it on nickel black. also side effect.. if this process that we keep doing it.. i affraid it might just bite off more metal, ended up with pot holes on the fins.. lol

 

[ghillie]

very very nice guide bro. imo tis shud be a sticky lawl!