My $6 solution to TMIC heat soak: DIY TMIC water sprayer
05-06-09, 05:30 PM
#1
My $6 solution to TMIC heat soak: DIY TMIC water sprayer
Parts used:
EF9 Honda front windshield washer reservoir and 2 pumps. (unsure of pressure rating-engine vacuum gauge confirmed 10psi+)--free from a buddy
Misc windshield washer/vacuum tubing, zip-ties--free lying around in garage
Butt connector, eyelid, male connector, stereo wire--free lying around in garage
Home depot fogger nozzle (hardware section) $5, tee's $1
Labor:
Cut off long neck from reservoir (used a relay boot as a cap
)
Grounded motors to the battery.
Drilled hole in battery duct to route washer tubing
Used the signal wire for the horn (removed for previous FMIC)
Cut holes in rubber TMIC surround under hood for nozzles (you should probably drill a hole and stretch the rubber around the nozzles)
Moved relay mounts to clear room for reservoir
All in all it cost me about two days of easy work, less than 1 hour google-ing different DIY setups and the home depot nozzles. As for the reservoir mount it is wedged between the relay bracket and radiator support, seems to fit well but I will probably eproxy/plastic weld a bracket onto it and screw it into the closest bolt hole. I was hoping to be able to run a duct but decided against it due to the radiator airflow obstruction it would be. For autocrossing or street racing I will probably throw some ice cubes in it, lol.
This setup can be duplicated for anyone with interest to do this mod (google it to see if you'd benefit). You can get a reservoir/pump setup from a junker and wire it to your own switch or a disabled or removed stock component to reduce wiring (switch, relay, fuse). Under hard driving one of the Subaru guys saw a 40*+ difference in intake temps. In normal driving he noticed very little, ~3-7 I think.
Inspiration and ideas taken from:
http://subaru-offroad.blogspot.com/2...spray-diy.html
EF9 Honda front windshield washer reservoir and 2 pumps. (unsure of pressure rating-engine vacuum gauge confirmed 10psi+)--free from a buddy
Misc windshield washer/vacuum tubing, zip-ties--free lying around in garage
Butt connector, eyelid, male connector, stereo wire--free lying around in garage
Home depot fogger nozzle (hardware section) $5, tee's $1
Labor:
Cut off long neck from reservoir (used a relay boot as a cap
)Grounded motors to the battery.
Drilled hole in battery duct to route washer tubing
Used the signal wire for the horn (removed for previous FMIC)
Cut holes in rubber TMIC surround under hood for nozzles (you should probably drill a hole and stretch the rubber around the nozzles)
Moved relay mounts to clear room for reservoir
All in all it cost me about two days of easy work, less than 1 hour google-ing different DIY setups and the home depot nozzles. As for the reservoir mount it is wedged between the relay bracket and radiator support, seems to fit well but I will probably eproxy/plastic weld a bracket onto it and screw it into the closest bolt hole. I was hoping to be able to run a duct but decided against it due to the radiator airflow obstruction it would be. For autocrossing or street racing I will probably throw some ice cubes in it, lol.
This setup can be duplicated for anyone with interest to do this mod (google it to see if you'd benefit). You can get a reservoir/pump setup from a junker and wire it to your own switch or a disabled or removed stock component to reduce wiring (switch, relay, fuse). Under hard driving one of the Subaru guys saw a 40*+ difference in intake temps. In normal driving he noticed very little, ~3-7 I think.
Inspiration and ideas taken from:
http://subaru-offroad.blogspot.com/2...spray-diy.html
05-06-09, 05:32 PM
#2
More pics:
If you have done a similar setup please share. Edit: I also forgot to mention a MUCH simpler setup would be to use your STOCK windshield washer stuff and run the nozzles. It is mounted in a cooler place and is much more convenient. I removed all my stuff and threw it away because I'm retarded so I had to redo everything.
If you have done a similar setup please share. Edit: I also forgot to mention a MUCH simpler setup would be to use your STOCK windshield washer stuff and run the nozzles. It is mounted in a cooler place and is much more convenient. I removed all my stuff and threw it away because I'm retarded so I had to redo everything.
05-06-09, 06:11 PM
#3
Nice! There's a guy around here in the Dallas / Fort Worth 7club that's got a similar set up using the windshield misters on his 10th anny. He just repositioned the misters so that they would spray onto the intercooler whenever he twisted the **** to mist. He says it works great, but after a while heatsoak is inevitable... he estimated about 15mins of driving before he couldn't notice anything after spraying.
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05-06-09, 11:22 PM
#8
If you mean from the horn fuse (whichever one that is) that is more wiring that would look more ghetto and be another possible short when the horn signal wire is right under the reservoir..The ground looks fine to me so I have no plans to change it, it certainly is a better connection than a chassis ground. This may be a good suggestion to someone who doesn't want an extra wire going to the (-) terminal for whatever reason.And I thought about the distilled water thing and there's no way in hell I am running it. The water goes through the IC fins and pools in the shroud under it, I am probably going to have this setup for like 20k max and that's pushing it. Running distilled water would not be worthwhile since I am not worried about the shroud rusting.
About the nozzles, more atomization = more heat transfer. I thought four nozzles were a good balance between flow and effectiveness. Thanks for the suggestions...I guess lol.
05-07-09, 07:07 AM
#10
Try this-
Take a piece of glass (a mirror will work) and pour a small puddle of your tap water on it (glass is laying flat obviously).
Now, let the water evaporate.
Depending on your locale, you will have residue left when the water has dried...minerals, etc.
Repeat with distilled water.
Your tap water will eventually coat the fins of the intercooler with these deposits and reduce the ability of the fins to shed heat.
It's that simple.
Distilled water only costs @ $1 per gallon, seems like a minor expenditure even for a ghettofab mod.
05-07-09, 08:28 AM
#11
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those little nozzles have a pretty nice spray pattern. would be good for any intercooler setup. But yea I would run distilled just to keep the core clean. Maybe even run a little windshield washer fluid for the alcohol content. 
05-07-09, 11:06 AM
#12
It's not a question of rust- any water will cause bare metal to rust- but rather, the deposits the water will leave behind.
Try this-
Take a piece of glass (a mirror will work) and pour a small puddle of your tap water on it (glass is laying flat obviously).
Now, let the water evaporate.
Depending on your locale, you will have residue left when the water has dried...minerals, etc.
Repeat with distilled water.
Your tap water will eventually coat the fins of the intercooler with these deposits and reduce the ability of the fins to shed heat.
It's that simple.
Distilled water only costs @ $1 per gallon, seems like a minor expenditure even for a ghettofab mod.
Try this-
Take a piece of glass (a mirror will work) and pour a small puddle of your tap water on it (glass is laying flat obviously).
Now, let the water evaporate.
Depending on your locale, you will have residue left when the water has dried...minerals, etc.
Repeat with distilled water.
Your tap water will eventually coat the fins of the intercooler with these deposits and reduce the ability of the fins to shed heat.
It's that simple.
Distilled water only costs @ $1 per gallon, seems like a minor expenditure even for a ghettofab mod.
05-07-09, 11:14 AM
#13
If it's not evaporating off the fins it's not doing its job! Its job is to evaporate and remove heat by doing so. It will remove much more heat that way than it will by just splashing off and removing a little heat while it's in contact. Plenty will be evaporating off the fins. If it's pooling you're using too much.
05-07-09, 12:52 PM
#14
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Very creative. I haven't seen the video, but in general, you will want little bits of water, atomized really fine spray. So, when it hits the IC, it "steams" up and pulls that heat away.
Have you considered hooking it to a WoT switch? Then, you could have a master arm / disarm, and then it will trigger only when you are at wide open throttle. Which, is usually when it is needed most, racing or something. spirited driving.
If you need help on how to rig that up, let me know. I'll help ya.
Props for the creativity. You should use the air intake temp sensor for some readings. Like, drive around without using it, having readings taken while driving around, and then use your system to see how much it drops intake temps.
I think an OHM meter and some long wires will accomplish this.
Have you considered hooking it to a WoT switch? Then, you could have a master arm / disarm, and then it will trigger only when you are at wide open throttle. Which, is usually when it is needed most, racing or something. spirited driving.
If you need help on how to rig that up, let me know. I'll help ya.
Props for the creativity. You should use the air intake temp sensor for some readings. Like, drive around without using it, having readings taken while driving around, and then use your system to see how much it drops intake temps.
I think an OHM meter and some long wires will accomplish this.
05-07-09, 01:08 PM
#15
If it's not evaporating off the fins it's not doing its job! Its job is to evaporate and remove heat by doing so. It will remove much more heat that way than it will by just splashing off and removing a little heat while it's in contact. Plenty will be evaporating off the fins. If it's pooling you're using too much.
Sadly I haven't driven the car yet, I'm waiting for my new plates. Not like it matters since I don't have an IAT gauge to compare readings to. I'll probably start it up and drive it around the block in a little bit.
05-07-09, 01:12 PM
#16
How long do you guys seriously think it's going to take the fins to completely gum up with deposits? Maybe a few of decades or so? Give me a break. Just use any water and be done with it. This isn't water injection into the engine. Most of the water is going to pass through the fins having never evaporated anyways. If you see any buildup in a few years time, take 10 minutes and carefully take a scrub brush to it. Better yet, with all those dollars you saved over the years by not using distilled water, you could easily afford to submerge the cooler in some CLR and let it clean itself with no scrubbing. Don't overthink these things.
05-07-09, 03:35 PM
#18
A combination of nerdy internet-knowledge and practicality and out going-ness will yield the best results in any project. It is important not to get carried away with either one.
Tyreburna: Thanks, I might look into that in the future but as of now I'd rather not spend money on the system which I think will only yield minimal gains. And according to the RTEK users apparently the stock IAT is very slow to respond to temperature changes so it would probably be difficult to monitor changes from the system. I might get an aftermarket gauge in the future though.
btw for anyone doing this mod, make sure you tape or cover any open connectors that carry a source voltage like the solenoids and the TPS connector if you're not running one.
I went for a drive with the TPS unplugged since mine is bad and sprayed the IC once the engine got nice and hot, shortly after the car started to buck under throttle. Got it home and it wouldn't rev over 2k at WOT. I found that the TPS connector had water all inside it, I used the keyboard cleaner spray to dry it and electrical taped it. Good to go now but it gave me a scare, lol.
05-07-09, 04:13 PM
#20
If it's not evaporating off the fins it's not doing its job! Its job is to evaporate and remove heat by doing so. It will remove much more heat that way than it will by just splashing off and removing a little heat while it's in contact. Plenty will be evaporating off the fins. If it's pooling you're using too much.
