Swiftech Reservoir : My third leak so far :'(

[...jaS!]

So I have the lovely swiftech reservoir :rolleyes: . Im using 2 1/2inch barbs and one plug. First time I screwed everything in, I used plumbers tape.. but only wrapped it like twice. I had drips under both barbs and plug. So I tear it apart, take off the barbs. This time I wrapped them like 8 eight times. Screwed them back on. Now one thing i should mention, and I dont know if this is common or not, but my water either is under pressure, or foams/something. Whenever I turn off the pump the water rises up to the top of the fill hole, then when I turn the pump on, it goes back down. So anyway when I put the cap on and turned the system off. I let it sit for a few minutes and seen drips coming again, from the same spot. Im thinking that pressure or whatever is trying to find a way to escape and breaks thru my seals. So I decided to give it yet another try. I tear it apart. Re-do the plumbers tape AGAIN, this time like 10 -12 times wrapped going along with the threads. I thought i had it perfect. Screwed everything in and let it run for 24 hours with the fill cap OFF. NO leaks :). So I can actually get to FINISHING MY COMPUTER other than dealing with this mess I put the cap on the fill port to finalize everything.. then turn the pump off. I sit there and watch it. I can hear like a weird pressure sound. After a few minutes, drips started to form from the plug and one of the barbs. SO! What can I do here, to either better seal the plugs, OR stop this damn pressure problem. Also to note, if u havent used one of these reservoirs before... good:eh?: This thing needs to be filled to the tip top for me, so I have no air / bubbles. So suggesting that I use less water, cant do it. and I dont wanna get a new reseroir or a t-line so help me out, what can I do here?

[9mmCensor]

Use plumbers goop and the enter key every now and then.

[...jaS!]

r

g

r

[Wicked Klown]

Also might be a good idea to pace things having to do with watercooling in our wonderful Watercoolnig thread.

[...jaS!]

But Im not watercooling so that doesnt make sense.

[9mmCensor]

But Im not watercooling so that doesnt make sense.
Then why do you have a resivoir?

[MVC]

Don't use plumber's tape. Because NPT fittings are by definition tapered the inside threads tend to be "looser" than the outer ones and you're libel to get little bits of tape trying to flow through your loop and then blocking something, like the CPU block, when the pump does eventually suck them in.

As for the dripping, I had the same problem with a quick disconnect fitting I had on my reservoir so that I could drain most of the loop. But, when I changed the fitting from the original Acetal to stainless steel the problem went away--the stainless one was rated for about half again the amount of pressure it could withstand. I still don't know why the system developed so much pressure when it was turned off, but....

Anyway, to fix your drip, make sure the threads on your fittings are in good condition, fill up the grooves with RTV silicone sealant and then thread the fitting all the way into the reservoir--preferably until the "nut" part is right up against the reservoir and you can't see any more threads, but don't break it doing this, if it won't get any tighter, it won't get any tighter. Then let the sealant cure for about half an hour and it should be fine.

[donny_paycheck]

Then why do you have a resivoir?
LOL yeah.

I'm moving this to water cooling for now.

[glebka11]

But Im not watercooling so that doesnt make sense.
Aha, okay. So if you aren't watercooling, what are you doing?
IMHO you should read some stickies in the watercooling forum.

[sunrunner20]

Personally i'd have steel in my loop as a last resort. I'd rather have RTV allover the place then steel.

[MVC]

Personally i'd have steel in my loop as a last resort. I'd rather have RTV allover the place then steel.

No choice. It wasn't leaking around the fitting, it was leaking through the fitting, and the acetal one was the highest rated plastic one I could find--I too wanted to stay with all plastic. The only other option would have been to just plug the hole and forget about being able to easily drain the loop, and I wanted that even less than I wanted the stainless steel. So far it seems to be working fine. Believe me, I'll report back if it turns into a problem.

[Lothar5150]

...jaS!

I designed and manufacture that reservoir for Swiftech and others. The preferred seal is achieved with a good sealant like plumber goop or RTV that does not contain acetic acid. Your threads should only be hand tight. For standard garden variety barbs you should have one thread still showing. DO NOT OVER TIGHTEN.

[Seven]

Hmmm....are you sure your system is completely sealed?

I had a strange problem like that that NEARLY killed my system. Make sure that all the "bleed valves" or whatever are COMPLETELY closed...and everything in the system is sealed off. Your water level SHOULD NOT change if your system is sealed.

7

EDIT: Except for a moderate change when the pump kicks on...which is normal.

7

[{AG}Sgt.Stryker]

I designed and manufacture that reservoir for Swiftech and others. The preferred seal is achieved with a good sealant like plumber goop or RTV that does not contain acetic acid. Your threads should only be hand tight. For standard garden variety barbs you should have one thread still showing. DO NOT OVER TIGHTEN.Lothar, I like your res (assuming the DangerDen HTPE res is yours) but mine also leaks. I may have overtightened the barbs. The barbs came from DD with teflon tape on them. I finger-tightened them first and there were still about four or five threads showing. That didn't seem tight enough to me, so I used an open-end wrench to snug them up. I never put more than a finger's worth of torque on them, but I did snug them up so that no threads are showing. Have I maybe cracked the barb mounting bosses?

[Lothar5150]

Lothar, I like your res (assuming the DangerDen HTPE res is yours) but mine also leaks. I may have overtightened the barbs. The barbs came from DD with teflon tape on them. I finger-tightened them first and there were still about four or five threads showing. That didn't seem tight enough to me, so I used an open-end wrench to snug them up. I never put more than a finger's worth of torque on them, but I did snug them up so that no threads are showing. Have I maybe cracked the barb mounting bosses?

Thanks.

If it has split along the port parting line, yes, you have cracked it. However, if it hasn’t split, switch to a good chemical sealant. Teflon tape is a pain and not the preferred method for sealing on this res.

Semper Fi :cool:

[Fiber9]

Best solution, even if restricts your fitting options is the way Swiftech made their new reservoir (mcres-1000).
Don't know if Lothar is involved in designing/manufacturing of this new part, but in the long run seems the best choice.

[MVC]

Semper Fi :cool:

Lothar, you a vet? active? Or do you just know Latin and Marine Corps traditions? :) I figured Sgt. Stryker was active so it didn't push any buttons. I'm a (partially) disabled vet (my replacement knee works very well)--USMC '79-'82.

[redwraith94]

RTV sealant, definately, teflon tape only works well with gobs and gobs of torque.

[XeonStrikeForce]

ya welcome to the club mine leaks too

[MVC]

ya welcome to the club mine leaks too

What are you folks using for sealant? No matter how bad the fit (within reason), RTV should still give you a good seal and there shouldn't be any leaks.

Edit: And no, I don't have one of these reservoirs. I make my own reservoirs out of acrylic, but putting sealant on a fitting is putting sealant on a fiting. and with sealant it shouldn't leak. Period.

[{AG}Sgt.Stryker]

I figured Sgt. Stryker was active...Actually, {AG}Sgt.Stryker is my son's clan name on the Allied Governments game server... he's 14. I used my son's handle 'cuz I couldn't think of anything more original. But I AM a former Marine... '70- '77. You younger folks may not recognize the name Sgt. Stryker. Check out the movie "Sands of Iwo Jima," with John Wayne.

[XeonStrikeForce]

I used it stock as Swiftech sent it and they used tape. But they over did and cracked it but I hoped it wouldn't leak. I made my own but it was designed for a diferant type of system & I'll be implimenting it soon. I just need more antifreeze.

[nstabl]

But Im not watercooling so that doesnt make sense.
WHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA????????!!!!!!!! :confused:

[MVC]

Actually, {AG}Sgt.Stryker is my son's clan name on the Allied Governments game server... he's 14. I used my son's handle 'cuz I couldn't think of anything more original. But I AM a former Marine... '70- '77. You younger folks may not recognize the name Sgt. Stryker. Check out the movie "Sands of Iwo Jima," with John Wayne.

Well, I knew the name wasn't real (and I actually have a John Wayne autograph around here somewhere--my mom got it circa 1950), but I still figured you for active--oy vey :). Strange knowing you must have ~10 years on me since I enlisted at 17--and I thought I was old, at least compared to the "regulars" here :beer:

[chunkeymunkey25]

Wow, that really sucks with Swifty res leaking all over the place. And I was thinking of for my next setup getting the MCRes1000 + mcp350 for space saving :(

If that ever happened to me & I wanted to solve the problem myself, Id probably cover the connection with tubing on with so much Goop, the connections would start sagging.

[zip22]

Wow, that really sucks with Swifty res leaking all over the place. And I was thinking of for my next setup getting the MCRes1000 + mcp350 for space saving :(

If that ever happened to me & I wanted to solve the problem myself, Id probably cover the connection with tubing on with so much Goop, the connections would start sagging.

get this!
http://www.swiftnets.com/products/MCRES-1000.asp

the barb is PART of the res, so no leaks and its even more compact
http://www.swiftnets.com/assets/images/products/MCRES-1000/integrated-pump-res-tray.gif

[MVC]

get this!
http://www.swiftnets.com/products/MCRES-1000.asp

the barb is PART of the res, so no leaks and its even more compact


As long as you limit yourself to 3/8" ID tubing it would work fine, but if you want 1/2" there really isn't room to make any mods....

[-aDaM^]

Silicon for bathtubs is what i used :-/ works good.

[Lothar5150]

Lothar, you a vet? active? Or do you just know Latin and Marine Corps traditions? :) I figured Sgt. Stryker was active so it didn't push any buttons. I'm a (partially) disabled vet (my replacement knee works very well)--USMC '79-'82.

16 years between active service and the reserves. I just got off an OIF tour last year. Then I started CoolingWorks.

Best solution, even if restricts your fitting options is the way Swiftech made their new reservoir (mcres-1000).
Don't know if Lothar is involved in designing/manufacturing of this new part, but in the long run seems the best choice.

Not my design...please don't confuse this with one of my products. The installation instructions suggest that it may not be as user friendly as you might think...but a good concept.

[mysterfix]

My res leaked too so I took it back apart and used some really good silicon sealant, now it's fine. I don't really like this res all that much, it took a really long time for all the air bubbles to go away. And the res has to be filled to the top or it sucks air into the cooling loop.

[Lothar5150]

My res leaked too so I took it back apart and used some really good silicon sealant, now it's fine. I don't really like this res all that much, it took a really long time for all the air bubbles to go away. And the res has to be filled to the top or it sucks air into the cooling loop.

All reservoirs manufactured after January have a relief hole, which solves this problem.

[mysterfix]

All reservoirs manufactured after January have a relief hole, which solves this problem.
Where is this relief hole located? I would like to add one to my res if it's not too much trouble to do.

[Lothar5150]

Where is this relief hole located? I would like to add one to my res if it's not too much trouble to do.

It goes thru the threads at 25Deg angle @ the front of the fill port. Be careful not to deform the threads. With the relief the reservoir will fill and bleed in seconds.

[mysterfix]

OK, Thanks

[XeonStrikeForce]

well I just used my 1 1/2 litre PVC ress :)

[Circaflex]

I have the same one, but from DTEK and it leaks from the barbs, I used plumbers tape which im guessing isnt working too well and i left one thread showing it barley leaks but i just stuffed some paper towels under it it took like a week for me to notice so its a very small/slow leak i dont think im gonna bother refilling my system to fix it, ill just change the paper towels as time goes on ;)

[voigts]

That's not he best idea Circaflex as leaks tend to grow. You need to use plumbers goop or rtv sealant on threads. I prefer plumbers goop as I have used it on household plumbing and I have NEVER had it leak under 50psi water pressure. I was using a swifty res and used plumber's goop on the threads and never had the first leak.

[alinosa]

my seam cracked as well on my dangerden res. AND since i didn't have any rtv, i just threw a worm-gear clamp on each of the outlets i was using and problem solved.

[Circaflex]

That's not he best idea Circaflex as leaks tend to grow. You need to use plumbers goop or rtv sealant on threads. I prefer plumbers goop as I have used it on household plumbing and I have NEVER had it leak under 50psi water pressure. I was using a swifty res and used plumber's goop on the threads and never had the first leak.

so just take the barbs out unscrew the threads, then put some plumbers goop on the barbs and screw them in?

[Circaflex]

I just looked in my garage and i found this sealant. GE Silicone I 100% Silicone Rubber Sealant (White) Premium Quality Cured Sealant is Mildew Resistant Watertight Minimal Shrinkage Excellent Adhesion Remains Flexible. Kitchen & Bath. Quality Scale (Highest = 7 Lowest = 0) Adhesion: Ceramic Tile - 7 Glass - 7 Metal -5 Plastic/Fiberglass 3 Wood 5 Now it has a low plastic adhesive so this wouldnt work well with the res then huh? Should i look for some silicon II?

[Lothar5150]

I just looked in my garage and i found this sealant. GE Silicone I 100% Silicone Rubber Sealant (White) Premium Quality Cured Sealant is Mildew Resistant Watertight Minimal Shrinkage Excellent Adhesion Remains Flexible. Kitchen & Bath. Quality Scale (Highest = 7 Lowest = 0) Adhesion: Ceramic Tile - 7 Glass - 7 Metal -5 Plastic/Fiberglass 3 Wood 5 Now it has a low plastic adhesive so this wouldnt work well with the res then huh? Should i look for some silicon II?

Make sure it does not have acetic acid in it. Most tub and tile silicone sealants have acetic acid (smells like vinegar), so read the label. Acetic acid is a stress agent to HDPE and may cause the ports to crack over time.

Non-Corrosive RTV Silicone is a safe bet.

[voigts]

Yes Circaflex, just unscrew them, put plumber's goop on them, and screw them back in. I also would not recommend the stuff you had in your garage as it is not really designed for plumbing.