|
Post by BigMoose on Mar 7, 2018 20:14:52 GMT -5
|
|
|
Post by stevem on Mar 7, 2018 20:39:15 GMT -5
That actually looks clean! My local Rockler store has a AR6 Pro the use to demonstrate and they have never changed the liquid. They have had the machine on display for over 2 years. It's a dark brown color , so I don't know what toe actual color of the fluid should be. The machine seems to work just fine. If you don't use the machine much, maybe you should just turn it on and let the fluid circulate for a few hours at a time.
|
|
|
Post by BigMoose on Mar 7, 2018 21:09:19 GMT -5
That actually looks clean! My local Rockler store has a AR6 Pro the use to demonstrate and they have never changed the liquid. They have had the machine on display for over 2 years. It's a dark brown color , so I don't know what toe actual color of the fluid should be. The machine seems to work just fine. If you don't use the machine much, maybe you should just turn it on and let the fluid circulate for a few hours at a time. Yea the fluid is clean but the tubes are coated in algae with bits breaking off and flowing though the system. Algae in a cooling system will clog the radiator or the cooling passages in no time. I do cooling in computers and have seen this destroy stuff. It is not a lack of use issue. If this system was filled with antifreeze like it is supposed to be algae wont grow in antifreeze.
|
|
|
Post by ricphoto on Mar 7, 2018 21:17:48 GMT -5
Well that sucks...It'll be interesting to see how they try and explain that away...
Too bad it'll be something else you have to do to fix something they should have caught/done right...
in the middle of an extended/overnight run...gotta run out and check my system now.
|
|
|
Post by stevem on Mar 7, 2018 21:19:04 GMT -5
You cold flush it with distilled water and then put new RV antifreeze in it. Who knows what is in there from the factory!
|
|
|
Post by BigMoose on Mar 7, 2018 21:38:45 GMT -5
You cold flush it with distilled water and then put new RV antifreeze in it. Who knows what is in there from the factory! Problem being flushing it wont clean the lines so it will still be in the system and potentially clog something. I dont know about you bit I dont have brushes to clean the insides of all the tubes and who knows what has built up or clogged in the spindle.
|
|
|
Post by cletus on Mar 7, 2018 22:41:19 GMT -5
I also noticed brown fluid with sediment in the ar6pro at Rocklers in St. Louis. I wondered at the time if that was supposed to be like that.
|
|
|
Post by BigMoose on Mar 7, 2018 22:53:55 GMT -5
I also noticed brown fluid with sediment in the ar6pro at Rocklers in St. Louis. I wondered at the time if that was supposed to be like that. Nope shouldn't be like that at all. That is just lack of maintenance.
|
|
|
Post by cletus on Mar 7, 2018 23:24:14 GMT -5
Ill definitely check mine out when I get it.
|
|
|
Post by stevem on Mar 7, 2018 23:46:22 GMT -5
With a machine being only a few months old, that shouldn't happen.
I don't remember where I saw it, but there was a video I watched about how to clean that stuff out. I think it was a algaecide of some sort. If I remember correctly they suggested putting it in the system when changing the fluid so it will stay clean. I just looked online and they use vinegar and distilled water to flush the cooling system for a PC. This spindle cooling system is almost the same as used on PC's, so I am sure it will work just fine. With the machine only being a few months old, I would be on the phone to Chad tomorrow and see what they are willing to do. The manual says to change the system about every 6 months. Since you just got the machine a little over a month ago, there is no excuse for this happening.
|
|
|
Post by stevem on Mar 7, 2018 23:59:29 GMT -5
After looking at your pick's again, I think the stuff you're looking at in the cooling is probably coming from the radiator. Kinda small flakes that break loose. The flakes aren't the problem, it's the algae that needs to be flushed out. It reminds me of what my cooling system on my motorcycle looked like when it was changed. I flushed the system out using vinegar and water to get all that crap out of the system. The CNC system only holds about 14-20 oz. according to the manual. The big difference is I didn't need to do it for 2 years of running the bike.
|
|
|
Post by BigMoose on Mar 8, 2018 8:50:38 GMT -5
With a machine being only a few months old, that shouldn't happen. I don't remember where I saw it, but there was a video I watched about how to clean that stuff out. I think it was a algaecide of some sort. If I remember correctly they suggested putting it in the system when changing the fluid so it will stay clean. I just looked online and they use vinegar and distilled water to flush the cooling system for a PC. This spindle cooling system is almost the same as used on PC's, so I am sure it will work just fine. With the machine only being a few months old, I would be on the phone to Chad tomorrow and see what they are willing to do. The manual says to change the system about every 6 months. Since you just got the machine a little over a month ago, there is no excuse for this happening. Yea an algaecide will kill it but to clean it off the tubes and stuff will take mechanical means like brushing it out. Bad algae in PC cooling normally warrants just replacing the lines because it is tough to clean out of the lines. Yea I will be calling later today. I emailed yesterday with the pics but I don't want to wait to long. Chad has been good at replying to my other emails so maybe he will beat me before I call. It looks as if the flakes are the same stuff on the lines but you never know. Anything floating in it is not good because cooling passages are tiny a lot of the time and easily clog.
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Mar 8, 2018 10:15:41 GMT -5
Make sure you use distilled water with the anti-freeze as tap or filtered water can cause problems like this.
|
|
|
Post by BigMoose on Mar 8, 2018 10:36:05 GMT -5
Make sure you use distilled water with the anti-freeze as tap or filtered water can cause problems like this. That is what I plan to do but this is from the factory so that tells me they didnt take their own advise. The unit is 2 months old so not even due for its first change yet.
|
|
|
Post by stevem on Mar 8, 2018 10:56:24 GMT -5
BigMoose: Don't forget, you have had the machine for 2 months, but it was on a cargo ship for another 3 weeks and who knows how long it just sat in a container before it ever got to Axiom. Still that should have never happened.
|
|
|
Post by arsystems on Mar 8, 2018 13:27:18 GMT -5
I just looked at mine.. had it only a few months as well and have same issue... wonderful.
|
|
|
Post by ricphoto on Mar 8, 2018 14:06:27 GMT -5
I just looked at mine.. had it only a few months as well and have same issue... wonderful. Well mines a new A8Pro+ too (less than a month) and no signs of the issue...yet can't even tell if the "coolant" is circulating but the spindle is cool to the touch after running 20 hours now...
|
|
|
Post by BigMoose on Mar 8, 2018 14:16:48 GMT -5
I just looked at mine.. had it only a few months as well and have same issue... wonderful. Well mines a new A8Pro+ too (less than a month) and no signs of the issue...yet can't even tell if the "coolant" is circulating but the spindle is cool to the touch after running 20 hours now... Yea mine has been running all morning because I have a deadline but it is still cool. I just dont want issues to show up like after the warranty ends down the road.
|
|
|
Post by Greg H on Mar 8, 2018 22:39:57 GMT -5
we have a similar issue with our machine
|
|
|
Post by branson on Mar 9, 2018 7:44:58 GMT -5
Mine constantly gets a brown rust color. I’ve had the machine for 2+ years and it doesn’t seem to bother it. I’ve tried flushing the system, swapping lines and it just keeps happening. I use the RV antifreeze they suggest but it turns brown after a couple weeks, so I’ve decided to just go with it.
|
|
|
Post by gerry on Mar 11, 2018 2:26:25 GMT -5
I changed my coolant today and it was very easy. I've had my AR8 Pro+ about 6 months. The tubes looked brownish, but the fluid came out bright blue. Just the tube had changed color. I did a long flush, about 2/3 of a gallon of water, then replaced it with RV anti-freeze. All in all, it took me about 15 minutes.
|
|
|
Post by BigMoose on Mar 12, 2018 21:24:01 GMT -5
Well I was in contact with Chad and he says that they have over 5000 units out there and have never had an issue like this but because it is possible that something could have happened he will be shipping me new tubing this week. So I will be replacing all the lines and flushing the system and refilling it with new coolant. I don't hold this against Axiom because things happen in manufacturing and not all of them can be caught in QC checks. This is probably a case that the coolant was not exactly right and unless they where to do lab tests on each unit I doubt they would be able to see that. But they are standing by the product and trying to make it right.
|
|
|
Post by BigMoose on Mar 19, 2018 14:14:31 GMT -5
Well I got the new hoses today so this week I will tear it apart and replace all of them. When I started to look around I found it has been leaking a bit from where it exits from the radiator and two brass fittings reduce the hose size. So now that is another thing I will have to fix.
|
|
|
Post by Axiom Tool Group on Mar 22, 2018 14:51:01 GMT -5
The coolant is added to the machines, undiluted (not diluted by us)...no water either filter or otherwise is ever used. However, if it is algae, there simply is no way of knowing what spores etc. are present on any of the components that are otherwise clean in appearance.
We do not produce the coolant either, it arrives pre-diluted and is installed. Again, if it is algae then it could be present in the coolant from the start.
Dye staining the tubing, or turning brown as a reaction to the brass, or from lack of maintenance are all things that we have encountered before. However, algae is a new one and not something that we really have an answer for just yet.
|
|
|
Post by BigMoose on Mar 22, 2018 17:16:57 GMT -5
The coolant is added to the machines, undiluted (not diluted by us)...no water either filter or otherwise is ever used. However, if it is algae, there simply is no way of knowing what spores etc. are present on any of the components that are otherwise clean in appearance. We do not produce the coolant either, it arrives pre-diluted and is installed. Again, if it is algae then it could be present in the coolant from the start. Dye staining the tubing, or turning brown as a reaction to the brass, or from lack of maintenance are all things that we have encountered before. However, algae is a new one and not something that we really have an answer for just yet. The important thing is you stood behind your product and got me the parts. They got installed today and other than the system being pink from the new RV antifreeze it is great. All clean and back up and running. Thank you for the great support and standing behind your product.
|
|
grg
Junior Member
Posts: 140
|
Post by grg on Apr 4, 2018 11:59:41 GMT -5
I was going through my new (to me...used 5yr old) AR8 Pro and the cooling system was NASTY with brown particulate in it. I was terrified it was rust but it definitely seemed like an algae - it was not gritty. My cooling pump also wasn't working either and it was FULL of the same stuff in the bottom of it (presumably because it had been sitting for a prolonged period). I couldn't resurrect the pump so I bought a new one. I flushed it with distilled water, bought a new water pump, pumped just water through everything, flushed it clean again, then filled with antifreeze and it's been crystal clear for a couple of weeks. If it does develop another growth problem in the cooling system, there's an antimicrobial silver coil that the guys running liquid cooling systems for their computers use to deal with microbial growth in the coolant. I have no idea if it works but should be easy enough to drop it in the reservoir and let it do its thing. www.amazon.com/Silver-Coils-Antimicrobial-999-Strip/dp/B00A66HMRC/ref=pd_sim_147_3?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=B00A66HMRC&pd_rd_r=66PFS552R38WHEZ0HWER&pd_rd_w=Hh4K4&pd_rd_wg=fMVsV&psc=1&refRID=66PFS552R38WHEZ0HWERPS - given that this pump at failed at some point, having the cooling pump fail again and never knowing about it is also a concern - so I'm adding a paddle wheel flow indicator and cutting out the pump cover to make it visible. Then I can see that the coolant is moving and sleep better. ;-)
|
|
grg
Junior Member
Posts: 140
|
Post by grg on Apr 24, 2018 9:51:08 GMT -5
A cheapo Ebay Flow indicator now installed! - gives a good quick visual indicator of cooling system health. Video link follows. If you can figure out how to mount inverted compared to how I mounted it (or so the tubing enters and exits vertically), it will self purge air bubbles. I have to rotate mine 180 to get the initial air out of it. flic.kr/p/25pC29bflow indicator by Jake Kohl, on Flickr
|
|
|
Post by savannahdan on Apr 25, 2018 7:14:00 GMT -5
I've found some stuff in my coolant lines. Started to remove one of the lines at the spindle and the tubing twists. Is there a better way or method of doing it? I don't want to damage the tubing. Other than distilled water and antifreeze has anyone used something else to flush the system? Thanks.
|
|
|
Post by BigMoose on Apr 25, 2018 17:01:31 GMT -5
I've found some stuff in my coolant lines. Started to remove one of the lines at the spindle and the tubing twists. Is there a better way or method of doing it? I don't want to damage the tubing. Other than distilled water and antifreeze has anyone used something else to flush the system? Thanks. I only had an issue with twisting when I was installing the new lines. When I removed the old ones I just held the tubing with one hand and used a wrench on the fitting and I was able to prevent it from turning. But the new lines where much tighter in the fittings and I could not keep them from turning but I had not connected the other ends so it was not much of an issue. As far as flushing the system they recommend the distilled water to flush out the old and refill with the RV antifreeze. And since my unit is new and well within warranty I wont be doing anything else.
|
|
|
Post by savannahdan on Apr 25, 2018 18:00:13 GMT -5
BigMoose, I decided earlier today to just use a distilled water flush. Sort of wish there was some type of filter that could be put in-line to capture the crude. I've been so busy with taking care of my wife after her operation that I haven't had time to even plug it in. Found out that I need an extension cord so off to Lowes I'll go tomorrow to pick one up.
|
|