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Thought experiment, how viable would a water cooled system that trades a radiator for a large buffer tank be for a system that's only on for a couple of hours per day? A Kaby Lake i7 has a listed Thermal Design Point of 91W and a GTX 1080 about 180W, so 271W for CPU+GPU. Let's say an even 300W of heat that needs dissipating, and that we want to shut off at 70C to be on the safe side. Someone tell me if this math is correct. Water has a specific heat capacity of 4.184 Joule per gram, meaning it takes 4.184 watt to heat one gram of water by one celsius in one second. A litre of water is 1000 grams, so to heat our buffer from an ambient of 24C to 70C it would take 46*4184/300 = 641 seconds per litre of water in the system. So you would need a buffer of about 5-6 litres per hour of run time, and that's assuming we have no natural convection of heat from water to air.
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Jan 23, 2017 01:44
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| # ¿ Apr 27, 2024 00:32 |
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Deuce posted:I'm not sure your CPU will properly dissipate heat if the water is that hot but I am not a science man. And I realized after posting I basically just said "Reserator" in more words.
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Jan 23, 2017 09:40
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Just treat your water cooling system like your car and flush the liquids once a year. 
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Mar 10, 2017 11:10
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Making slow progress on my Nano S rig. Ran into a small snag when mounting the M2 drive. The M2 slot on the Gigabyte GA-H270-WIFI motherboard is on the back and the cutout in the motherboard mount isn't quite big enough. It fits, but can't be installed or removed with motherboard in the case. Fingers crossed it doesn't break.  Test fitting the rad and a fan to measure the maximum DIMM height. Corsair LPX modules are 33.5mm tall, so they should just about fit with a few mm to spare, though I'll probably need to remove the fan to install them.  Test fitting the CPU block.  Next up, buy and install graphics card, gpu block, tubing, reservoir and pump, then test the loop. Then I'm ready to dismantle my current PC and move the PSU and storage hard drive over.
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Oct 30, 2017 23:26
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So apparently EKWB lists the heigh of their res/pump combo without including the height of the rubber feet, meaning the pump combo I bought won't fit standing up in my Nano S. Would it be fine to mount it like this, or will it cause issues with flow and/or vibration? 
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Nov 22, 2017 20:04
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It's done!  Fractal Design Nano S case. Entire loop is EKWB parts. Corsair ML fans, 140mm in the front and 120mm on the rad. The loose SATA connector on the bottom is for a media drive I'll install later. I really like the pump. It's so quiet even at full speed that while I was bleeding it I thought it had stopped working. I thought I was going to have to PWM the pump and had issues figuring out how to hook four fans and a pump up to two fan headers, but I think I'll just let the pump run unregulated off one of the SATA connectors. e: I'm thinking I should cover up the bottom and rear intakes to force most of the air to exit through the radiator and make sure I have positive pressure inside the case... Good idea or bad idea? Collateral Damage fucked around with this message at 00:08 on Nov 27, 2017 |
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Nov 26, 2017 23:56
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I'm cooling a 7600k and a 1060 with a 240mm rad with the fans never going above 40% (1000 rpm) even under load, so a 360 will have no problem keeping up.
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Dec 3, 2017 17:03
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Man I so wanted a Reserator back in the day. Too bad it sucked.
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Jan 30, 2018 00:00
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I bought a Fractal Design Nano S for my current PC. It's nice and roomy for an ITX case without being too big.
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Jan 30, 2018 15:24
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I can highly recommend using angled fittings where it makes sense even if you use soft tubing. It makes routing tubes much easier. e: You can look at my post on the previous page for an example. Collateral Damage fucked around with this message at 19:24 on Feb 5, 2018 |
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Feb 5, 2018 19:22
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My ekwb tank/pump combo came with the tank crossthreaded into the pump base. It was pretty easy to clean up the threads and fix it, but it was was a good thing to discover before I mounted it in the case. 
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Sep 3, 2018 18:19
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It can lead to air getting into the loop. And yes the foam is garbage because it will trap air instead of allowing it to bubble to the top of the reservoir. Mine came with an anti vortex baffle which works pretty well, didn't yours? It's just a piece of perforated plastic you put in the middle of the reservoir.
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Sep 11, 2018 11:57
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One thing I never tried is to put the foam at the top of the water level, which should prevent the surface from spiralling, and air trapped there shouldn't matter.
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Sep 11, 2018 12:05
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VostokProgram posted:Would it be a bad idea to use stuff like Novec and other fancy coolants in standard water cooling equipment? Aside from cost (I assume they cost a lot?) Any more exotic coolant fluids trade cooling capacity for other benefits such as being dielectric which we generally don't care about.
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Oct 26, 2019 18:32
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I'll make a note to check the tightness of all the fittings when I get home. I think it's about time I flush and change my coolant anyway, it's been two years since last time. Haven't seen any indication of fungal or algae growth though.
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Nov 4, 2019 14:35
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A custom loop gets pretty expensive, but most of the components can be reused through many computer upgrades. Especially nowadays when you don't have a new style of cooler mount with every CPU generation. So it's more of an investment than a cost.
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Dec 5, 2019 08:06
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I have a custom loop in a Fractal Design Nano S. It's worked pretty well for two years, but I've been annoyed at how hard it is to bleed and there isn't a lot of clearance around the top of the case where I mounted the radiator. So I've been thinking about putting the radiator outside the case by building a box that the PC can stand on top of, where I'd have the radiator standing on its long edge with a side to side airflow. As a bonus I'd be able to use a thicker 360 rad instead of the slim 240 I have now. Anyone done an external rad setup like this before?
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Jan 14, 2020 12:29
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I still want it to be somewhat compact, otherwise I could have just gotten an ATX case with a radiator chamber to begin with. 
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Jan 14, 2020 21:58
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The colorant usually contains an antibiological agent to prevent algae growth as well. I didn't flush my loop for 2 years and it was perfectly fine.
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Jan 27, 2020 13:44
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I should add that the only reason I flushed it is I was replacing the GPU and needed to dismantle the loop anyway.
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Jan 27, 2020 15:02
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Yeah once the bearings in the pump start to fail it's not going to get better and it's just a matter of time before it seizes up completely.
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Jun 1, 2020 22:48
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The theory is that as water heat it expands. If there's no air at all in the system, this will stress fittings and other potential leak points in the system. Having a little bit of air at the top of the reservoir allows the air to compress and relieve that stress. This is why you have an expansion tank in water heating systems and as nollij says the radiator of your car has a relief valve.
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Dec 23, 2020 09:43
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Brave going hardline for your first build. Good job!
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Dec 24, 2020 01:16
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Warmachine posted:Add plumbing to your office with G1/4" threads and put a heat exchanger somewhere else.
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Feb 19, 2021 13:54
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Are there any ITX cases with or supporting distribution blocks?
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May 7, 2021 12:40
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Probably depends on the length of the tubing too, and how much vacuum you're running. In the video it looks like there's a setting for how much pressure differential it should strive for.
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Jun 15, 2021 13:02
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Moved my pump/res unit outside the case. The EK pump angled bracket normally doesn't allow you to run the connectors through the back of it, the hole is a mm or two too small, but that was easily fixed with a dremel and grind bit. Then I cut out a matching hole in the rear fan grille on my Nano S and presto:   With a long graphics card there was no room for a standing reservoir so I originally had it mounted sideways behind the front fans, but that made it really hard to fill and bleed the system. The bracket and its screw gets in the way of the side panel though, so I'll need to make a small cut there later to clear the screw head. 
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Sep 7, 2021 13:04
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Running dry for a few seconds won't harm anything. And the piping looks great. I haven't bothered with hard tubing because I know I'd gently caress it up.
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Jul 28, 2022 06:57
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I ran my loop for 3 years with nothing more than occasionally topping it up. Just like Truga, the reason I changed it was replacing the GPU which required me to drain the loop anyway. I use distilled water and Cryofuel.
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Jul 31, 2022 16:37
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Decided my Fractal Design Nano S is too big for an ITX case and went shopping for something smaller. Bought a SSUPD Meshlicious. Very nice case at first fondle. Solidly built, pretty configurable. I very much appreciate that the panels have metal pegs going into replaceable plastic clips rather than having plastic pegs that break after a few removals. Supports a 280mm rad in the front though you have to double check the exact fit of your intended radiator. I had intended to use an EK Quantum radiator but after some cardboard templating it turned out to just slightly too long so I went with an Alphacool instead which is 9mm shorter. Well see if this comes back to bite my rear end later. GPU and block choice will basically come down to what fits because the space between the PCIe slot and the radiator fans is a mere 15cm (~6 inches). Unfortunately founders edition cards are unobtainium nowadays or it would be the obvious choice as the EK blocks for those have the connections on the short edge. An EK reference 3080 water block is 12.4cm wide and should work assuming it sits about 1cm over the actual slot. Power connectors might also be an issue, may have to see if someone makes angled PCIe connectors.
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Aug 26, 2022 13:26
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Got the Alphacool DC-LT pump and their Solo Top along with an in line temperature sensor. Combined with a swivel fitting from EKWB it just about clears the edge of the fan on the radiator. The Alphacool radiator has a nice feature that it has a fill port on the opposite side from the ports, so my plan is to run tankless and just fill the loop through the radiator, essentially using the radiator as my reservoir. Only slight annoyance is how the power cable for the pump comes out on the same side as the outlet, which isn't the most aesthetic look. Any suggestions? 
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Sep 11, 2022 10:57
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Crosspost from the SFF thread: Finished my build in the SSUPD Meshlicious a month ago. I got lucky and found a Gigabyte 3080 WaterForce on sale for about $950 back in January which was both the cheapest 3080 I could find at the time and saved me another $150 on having to buy a water block. On the downside not being able to get a FE card meant I had some additional space constraints due to the width of the card with the water ports on the long side. The CPU is an i5-13600K on a Gigabyte B760i-D4 motherboard.   I had originally intended to use an EKWB 280mm rad, but after some cardboard templating I realized it wouldn't fit. It interferes with the front panel snap-fits by a few mm. Instead I went with an AlphaCool rad which is slightly shorter overall and allows it to clear. I also had to get slim fans to clear the GPU ports. On the upside, the GPU ports being where they are allowed me to very easily route the water flow from the motherboard side to the GPU side as a 30mm extender screwed into one of the back ports perfectly clears the case divider and two 90 degree adapters allowed me to get a good angle to hook up to the CPU block. Fan speed is controlled by an AquaComputer Quadro based on water temp. The AquaComputer HighFlow meter reports both flow speed and temperature to the Quadro. The pump is an Alphacool DC-LT2 with a solo top which is the smallest pump I could find that would reasonably fit in the case. I did consider the EK Quantum-Velocity CPU block and pump combo but the $300 price put me off. There's no traditional reservoir in the system, instead the fill/bleed/expansion buffer is the piece of tubing going from a T-fitting on the GPU to a fill port at the top of the case. I designed and 3D printed a bracket that allowed me to fit a fill port at the top of the Meshlicious without needing to modify the top cover. Bleeding the system is still a pain in the rear end. There's a vent port at the top of the radiator, but it's awkwardly placed under a lip in the case and can't easily be used for filling. Performance wise it runs okay. Water temperature maxes out at about 50C under stress test, with CPU and GPU hot spots around 75C with fans running at 80%. It runs a bit hot but still comfortably far from throttling and I'd say it's acceptable considering the constraints I was working under. Water flow is a bit low at 52L/m so I could probably improve cooling somewhat by getting a more powerful pump if I could find one that fits.
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Apr 17, 2023 08:45
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The case is fully mesh so I assume most of the air entering the fans is drawn in through the side panels. I'll stick a thermometer inside the case and see if the inside air is noticably hotter than ambient. There's a little bit of space at the top of the case where I could stick another fan to draw hot air out if needed, I've seen plans on thingiverse for a bracket that balances a fan on the divider.
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Apr 17, 2023 13:06
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Yeah I knew the rad/fan setup would probably be on the somewhat inadequate side going into this build. I don't mind it running hot as long as it doesn't thermal throttle, it's always a tradeoff when building in very small cases. If I could find a FE card (or any other card with fittings on the short side) I'd have space for a thicker rad and fans, it's really just the width of the GPU block that's causing the limitation.
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Apr 17, 2023 14:25
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I'll give it a try. Thanks!
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Apr 17, 2023 14:54
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VelociBacon posted:I think you're just going to have issues with one 280 or 240 radiator regardless of how thick you get it, those are high wattage draw components. I have a 3090 and a 9900k and to cool that properly I use two thick 420 rads. If it's working for you just enjoy it!  One driver reinstall later and the system runs much cooler when I'm not forcing it with 3DMark, and now that the GPU isn't constantly boiling the water it runs at about 35C water temp when gaming. I still ordered another 140mm rad and I'm going to 3D print a top hat for the Meshlicious to mount it in.
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May 25, 2023 17:03
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Collateral Damage posted:I still ordered another 140mm rad and I'm going to 3D print a top hat for the Meshlicious to mount it in.  Went back and forth on designs a few times, but in the end decided on the simplest solution, a 4mm thick slab with countersunk screw holes that just mount directly to the fan and rad. The fan is kind of ugly though, so I'll make a skirt that goes around the fan frame to hide it, but leave the radiator exposed.
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Jun 16, 2023 13:07
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I like the Meshlicious because it's vertical, so while it's relatively big for an ITX case it has a small footprint. It's really designed for CPU AIO + Air GPU though, so yeah it's not ideal for a full loop. But I'm working with what I have.
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Jun 18, 2023 13:46
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Guess who's an idiot and forgot to cap off the radiator before filling the system. At least I did the right thing and just ran the pump using an external power supply, so nothing fried, just need to wait for everything to dry.
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Jun 21, 2023 10:46
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| # ¿ Apr 27, 2024 00:32 |
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If your bios allows it you can dial the power limit for your CPU down and it will run considerably cooler for a pretty insignificant loss of performance.
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Jun 22, 2023 09:07
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