is it safe to paint your intercooler
 

is it safe to paint your intercooler? if so which paint should i use? i want it black

Re: is it safe to paint your intercooler (lv6l)
 

You can get it annodized, but spray painting it will make it less reliable.

Re: is it safe to paint your intercooler (lv6l)
 

Forced Induction forum for a better answer

Ive seen them painted before. As to what kind of paint.. cant help ya there

Re: is it safe to paint your intercooler (dohcdelsol)
 

I would not paint it if I were you. Get it anodized. https://honda-tech.com/forums/images/smilies/emthup.gif

its been done, and you can actually purchase black anodized FMIC's, but just everyday spray paint i would think would actually hold the heat of the air in instead of letting the air cool down as much. look into anodizing it, duplicolor has a anodizing paint out now in a variety of colors. hope that helps

Re: (eg2wes)
 

http://www.we-todd-did-racing.com/we...ZkMzF5NTQx.jpg

not my car, but props to who's ever it is

Re: (turbodreamz0385)
 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by turbodreamz0385 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote"> http://www.we-todd-did-racing.com/we...ZkMzF5NTQx.jpg

not my car, but props to who's ever it is</TD></TR></TABLE>

I thought that was the grill for a second! https://honda-tech.com/forums/images/smilies/emthup.gif

awesome sleeper look

Re: (TTM)
 

very clean look. i like how he painted his manifold as well. he got a two tone look in there. mad props https://honda-tech.com/forums/images/smilies/emthup.gif

Re: is it safe to paint your intercooler (lv6l)
 

Yeah, it's cool to do it... the cops won't get all dicky about it... Black is the way to go anyway, if you do it any other color... looks whack =D i'd say do it dude!

Re: (JDMFreak)
 

Wow. That is nice.
I've seen intercooler-specific flat-black paint...?
Maybe heat-resistant (though if your intercooler gets that hot, you probably got problems).
Maybe more-durable to resist rock-chips etc...?

just thinking out-loud

Re: (mwieczorek43)
 

http://www.coolingzone.com/Gue....html
some explanation for you of heat transfer in a anodized heat sink

http://www.focuser.com/atm/anodize/anodize99.html
wtf anodizing is and home kits for sail.

There, read! I am too lazy to do all the math with the numbers I found to give you a true answer of what will happen. but it looks like anodizing puts a layer of lower conductive material on the outside, this will change the temperature gradient ever so smaller. Anodizing puts aluminum oxide on the outside (k= 36-48W/mK, not to sure, I don't know what the crystal stucture is in this case.) and aluminum has a "k" value of 237W/mK for pure aluminum and around 170 for the alloys (most likely what your intercooler is. However Anodizing changes the emisivity from around .4 or something to almost .9 (black anodized of course) so you will lose a lot more heat in radiation then if it weren't anodized. As for your convection seeing as the anodizing layer is so small it will make almost no impact (again, why i didn't do the math) In the real world you are not really going to see much of a difference in performace, but it will look nicer. So in other words it will look cooler but it won't be cooler......oh, what a geeky horrible pun! https://honda-tech.com/forums/images...es/emsmile.gif

My suggestion go to a shop, get it anodized for cheap (almost any colour you want) and rock that shit.

any questions just ask.

Re: (old man neri)
 

If you are painting it spray at an angle so you only get the front.


You could also wrap it in panty hose, might help with bugs/rocks.

subscribed for later use....

Re: (94hatchling)
 

https://honda-tech.com/forums/images/smilies/emthup.gif clean eg

Re: is it safe to paint your intercooler (lv6l)
 

what about powder coating...just wanna know if its even possible...cuz that coating is preety thick so i doubt it ....

Re: is it safe to paint your intercooler (lv6l)
 

my friend spray painted his. he used high temp and i think it was enamel paint but i am not positive. he did it really light just enough to get it black. worked fine

Re: is it safe to paint your intercooler (JDMrps13)
 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by JDMrps13 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">what about powder coating...just wanna know if its even possible...cuz that coating is preety thick so i doubt it ....</TD></TR></TABLE>

You can powder coat them, but it would be a dumb thing to do. https://honda-tech.com/forums/images/smilies/emwink.gif

Re: is it safe to paint your intercooler (Fenrir51)
 

http://www.eastwoodco.com/images/us/...ail/p13708.jpg

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by http://www.eastwoodco.com &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">
Radiator Black 12 oz Satin Finish

Radiator Black Satin - Many have asked for a lower sheen radiator black. The lower satin sheen resembles the gloss level of modern plastic tank radiators and some imports.

Standard engine paints are too thick for radiator use because they can interfere with heat transfer and block air flow between the cooling fins. Also, standard paint tends to flake off radiator tanks. Radiator Black helps solve this problem. Durable Enamel formulation resists temperatures up to 250ºF, gas and chipping. One can covers 6 square feet (most radiators require 2 cans). Net wt. 12 oz.</TD></TR></TABLE>
Item# 10340 Z Radiator Black 12 oz Satin Finish $10.99

http://www.eastwoodco.com/shop...paint

I painted mine black....rust-o-leum...VERY THIN paint and very light coats. Just enough to have a smooth, even paint job. came out great I thought

Re: (specv5150)
 

A buddy of mine has a subaru impreza RS with an STi engine in it, and his shop dyno'd it before and after spraying the intercooler flat black. It had no effect.

Re: (coquitlamEG)
 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by coquitlamEG &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">A buddy of mine has a subaru impreza RS with an STi engine in it, and his shop dyno'd it before and after spraying the intercooler flat black. It had no effect.</TD></TR></TABLE>

Sport Compact Car has pretty much said the same thing. About a year ago, they featured a bunch of sleeper cars, and had tips on making your own. One of them was to spray your intercooler black. They said it has no adverse effects on the intercooler.

Re: (Ghetto Civic HX)
 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">

Sport Compact Car has pretty much said the same thing. About a year ago, they featured a bunch of sleeper cars, and had tips on making your own. One of them was to spray your intercooler black. They said it has no adverse effects on the intercooler.</TD></TR></TABLE>

That's right, i remember reading that article too. https://honda-tech.com/forums/images/smilies/emthup.gif

Re: is it safe to paint your intercooler (Radical_Edward)
 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Radical_Edward &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">= but spray painting it will make it less reliable.</TD></TR></TABLE>

Explain that one to me please

Re: (Ghetto Civic HX)
 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Ghetto Civic HX &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">

Sport Compact Car has pretty much said the same thing. About a year ago, they featured a bunch of sleeper cars, and had tips on making your own. One of them was to spray your intercooler black. They said it has no adverse effects on the intercooler.</TD></TR></TABLE>

Pretty much. The fins are what dissipate heat, and by painting it you cover so little of the surface area of the fins that the difference is negligble.

Re: is it safe to paint your intercooler (Tap Dancing Jesus)
 

Painting shouldn't have much of an effect if you keep it thin, if you use some thick shit and it starts clogging and bridging between fins it won't run as cool (as to how much and what effect it has on HP I don't have a clue). Anodizing would be more durable.

Re: is it safe to paint your intercooler (old man neri)
 

How much am I looking at to get my intercooler anodized flat black? Turbo d sleeper is in the works https://honda-tech.com/forums/images/smilies/emthup.gif .

Re: (coquitlamEG)
 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by coquitlamEG &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">A buddy of mine has a subaru impreza RS with an STi engine in it, and his shop dyno'd it before and after spraying the intercooler flat black. It had no effect.</TD></TR></TABLE>

I'm not saying that the difference would be huge, but I doubt that it would have "no" effect in everyday use. It's pretty tough to judge intercooler performance on a dyno.

Re: is it safe to paint your intercooler (old man neri)
 

yeah from what ive heard, painting an IC black really has no effect on performance. Dyno numbers wont really change and ive read stuff from tuners saying they show no to extremely minimal changes in intake air temps while datalogging. i think you would only run into problems if you used too much paint and clogged the fins. like someone else suggested use thin coats and spray at an angle

any flat or semi-flat black should work. i used BBQ grill paint (hi-temp), it turned out good.

https://xs53.xs.to/pics/05444/DSC00715a.JPG

Re: is it safe to paint your intercooler (Radical_Edward)
 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Radical_Edward &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">You can get it annodized, but spray painting it will make it less reliable.</TD></TR></TABLE>

i dont see how spray painting something makes it less reliable

Re: is it safe to paint your intercooler (built562)
 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by built562 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">i dont see how spray painting something makes it less reliable</TD></TR></TABLE>

The only conclusion I could draw as to why it would decrease its perfromance is if some asshole just gunked the shit out of it. Might affect flow but you would have to have ZERO skills...shit NEGATIVE skills painting to gunk it that much. I cant paint for shit but I bought one of those turn a spary can into a spray gun nozzle deals and kept the coats light and it didnt looked all gunked up. Rust-O-Leum is light though

Re: is it safe to paint your intercooler (specv5150)
 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by specv5150 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">

The only conclusion I could draw as to why it would decrease its perfromance is if some asshole just gunked the shit out of it.</TD></TR></TABLE>

Attend college (or advanced highschool) physics classes and learn about thermodynamics. Then draw a new conclusion.

Re: is it safe to paint your intercooler (Falqon)
 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Falqon &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">
Attend college (or advanced highschool) physics classes and learn about thermodynamics. Then draw a new conclusion.</TD></TR></TABLE>

Lets take a look at the defintion of reliable
1 : suitable or fit to be relied on : DEPENDABLE
2 : giving the same result on successive trials

So tell me, how is an intercooler going to be less dependable when its painted black ? Maybe less efficient but I really don't think paint is going to hurt anything.

Re: is it safe to paint your intercooler (lv6l)
 

I dont know if this has been said or not already, but i have also heard of people puttin black pantyhose over their intercooler and it has the same effect.

Re: is it safe to paint your intercooler (Falqon)
 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Falqon &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">

Attend college (or advanced highschool) physics classes and learn about thermodynamics. Then draw a new conclusion.</TD></TR></TABLE>

https://honda-tech.com/forums/images...s/emthdown.gif

A very light coat of paint or anodizing would "maybe" increase the operating temp by something like less then one Kelvin (so not inclined to do the math cause I am suck of doing this shit right now and all the theoretical stuff is never that accurate in real life). This would reslut in a negligable HP difference.

Some else mentioned some tests that a magazine did, I would trust those imperical results.

We designed heat sinks in school a while ago out of aluminium, we all spray painted them black to increase performance........it worked but not by much.

And as for the pantyhose idea, well it's creative but I personally would consider how much airflow it restricts and how do you get panty hose over an intercooler without getting a run in it.....LOL

just my 2 cents.

Re: is it safe to paint your intercooler (old man neri)
 

Then again black paint radiates heat from the object better than no paint.
Ever wonder why the SR-71 is black? https://honda-tech.com/forums/images/smilies/emwink.gif

Re: is it safe to paint your intercooler (Flashmn)
 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Flashmn &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Then again black paint radiates heat from the object better than no paint.
Ever wonder why the SR-71 is black? https://honda-tech.com/forums/images/smilies/emwink.gif </TD></TR></TABLE>


to absorb radar?

Re: (turbodreamz0385)
 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by turbodreamz0385 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote"> http://www.we-todd-did-racing.com/we...ZkMzF5NTQx.jpg

not my car, but props to who's ever it is</TD></TR></TABLE>

thats sick... https://honda-tech.com/forums/images/smilies/emthup.gif https://honda-tech.com/forums/images/smilies/emthup.gif https://honda-tech.com/forums/images/smilies/emthup.gif https://honda-tech.com/forums/images/smilies/emwink.gif

Re: is it safe to paint your intercooler (ToasterOven)
 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by ToasterOven &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">


to absorb radar?</TD></TR></TABLE>

um....no. It's to disipate heat. The SR-71 has to sit on the ground for an hour before the pilots can get out because it gets so hot.

Re: is it safe to paint your intercooler (coquitlamEG)
 

If you do some searching, there is a guy who has IAT sensor readout and datalog.
He uses some BBQ grill paint in lowes or in advance auto parts, flat black (this is what I use)

Guess what the difference is? 10 deg F? 5F?

NOPE, the difference in intake temp at the manifold is ZERO, NIL, NADA....
I trust him because the numbers don't lie.