Question on Phase change systems...

Hi yall, I have been thinking of a vapochill system, but I am worried about condensation.... how bad of a problem is it? I read that you use non-conductive grease around the cpu/area, but could you go farther by coating the board (or parts of the board) with non conductive silicone/RTV? other than BIOS, and dipswitches, I never change many boards or memory, when its time to upgrade, I upgrade complete mobo's.... also, the RTV pulls off rather easily, and is tough enough to remove from slots & such.... Is this just a dumb idea? LMK! Thank yall! Jim

I insulated two P4 mobos with out silicon, RTV, or goop (120w, 226w tec)with out any problems. I also put neoprene under the socket (backside of mobo) just in case.

I run a p4 1.7 with a 120w TEC in my garage with the overhead door open. I live in North Carolina and the humidity is quite high. I have no PC freezing problems. My first atempt at TEC cooling i left a 1/8 gap between a side of the socket and neoprene. Even though i used loads of silicon sealent all around the socket I lost a P4 mobo and a P4 CPU. The PC froze apon loading the OS. Needless to say when i inspected my insulating job I was horrified that i made such a mistake. BUT i was a NOOBIE!!!!! The expensive joys of learning from your mistakes

I would try to stay away from silicon because it voids the warrenty. (but i guess TEC cooling voids it just the same, I am not sure)




These are pics from my first setup which failed. I have learned to use neoprene that is just as high as the socket w/out the CPU in it. (which protects the socket) then use a thin layer of neo (little thicker than the CPU) (which protects the CPU). the third layer is to insulate the coldplate. I also put a small square of neo in the socket itself. I spread generous helpings of dielectric grease in the socket and the pins. I will find the pics with my better insulation job.

Reuben

Wow, thanks Reuben! Hmmm I am really really tempted by all of this... hehehe I havent tried to even watercool yet, but I don't think that will be as economically feasible... and with the performance of the pIV c's being so good, a chilled cpu sounds oh-so-good!!! Another question, if I might be so bold.... how long can you run an average "supercooled" system at a time? Will it be able to run weeks (possibly months) at a time without maintenance? I have to travel to world hotspots on little notice quite often I will set it up to shutdown the system if any fan quits, or any temp raises above nominal... just like my aircooled boxes.... I guess my question is do you have to tear down and check them every few weeks, or is it a build/test/run like hell setup? Jim

Dielectric grease is very good at insulating pc components. fill any air gaps with grease and then cover with neoprene foam. If you want to remove it, radio shack electronics cleaner (comes in a spray can) cuts through the grease with no residue. Cant even tell you had it on there.

So: grease, neoprene, no air, no condensation.

Also: Vapos and Prometeias have anti coondensation measures anyways. If you live ina humid area, you may want to be extra sure though.

patch do you insulate the back of the mother board