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is water cooling relible

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1stOVERCLOCKER

Member
Joined
Mar 7, 2006
Location
U.S.A
hey ive had wc for about a month noqw but i only use my comp like once a week for fear of leaks and stuff even though i leaktested for 3 days stright also is the pupms in water cooling relible or arte they known to break cause i dont want a fried cpu thnx and please help
am i just being paronoid or would my comp run overnight and be safe
 
doesn't sound like your up to watercooling if you put it in a month ago and don't want to use it. but yes your being paranoid, as long as you leaktest it, it will be perfectly fine to run it overnight, mines been up and running almost 3 days straight. and the pumps have a life expectancy just like a fan most are around 50,000 hours mtbf or so.
 
if your really worried set up the automatic shutdown feature to turn your system off if temperatures reach 60c and you should be good. that way if the pump did fail the likliness of damage would be less
 
life isn't worth living if you don't take risks :) I heard that somewhere, but don't go skydiving without a parachute :sn:
 
it's as reliable as you made it to be

use your computer, it's as useful off as it is broken
 
i got my WC setup half a year ago or so, my pump has pretty much been running non stop since then, if my pump stop and the water overheats, the proc will overheat and the pc will shut down. you have nothing to worry about, esp if you have a new/newer pump :)
oh, and i have clamps on everything along with 7/16 tubing on 1/2 parts..so there IS no chance of leak
if you dont have clamps i advise you to get some!
 
i have the same diameters, and i had to heat up tubing and violently force it on

i bet my life if cant leak, lol
 
Don't worry about it. The components are very durable, and if you set the shutdown temp in the BIOS you should be very safe.

My main WCed rig has been running 24/7 for the last 4 months. So a good 75% of that time I'm not even around it. The first couple weeks that I started running 24/7, I was afraid I'd come home from work and find a dead computer. It never happened and I don't worry one bit any more.

techun said:
i have the same diameters, and i had to heat up tubing and violently force it on

Same here. But I didn't bother heating the tubing, a drop of soap does wonders. Just remember with metal clamps you don't want to screw them down too tight or you will cut through the tubing.
 
I was using WC on my old rig for more than one year, and it never leaked. So if you ask me, the chanses that your WC will leak are very small.
 
1stOVERCLOCKER said:
hey ive had wc for about a month now...
good for you

1stOVERCLOCKER said:
... i only use my comp like once a week for fear of leaks and stuff even though i leaktested for 3 days stright also is the pupms in water cooling relible or arte they known to break cause i dont want a fried cpu thnx and please help...
1) punctuation (even if its not correct) is good
2) WC may not be for you

1stOVERCLOCKER said:
... am i just being paronoid ...
yes


EDIT: not to be rude...
 
My system is proabably the least likely to leak. This is because i have stainless steel hard plumbing and machined compression fittings (when i get them in), my dad has a bunch of the compression fittings and i was really surprised to see them laying around as they are $50.00 a fitting. Also, the steel tubing is for hot water and i have tubing for cold water made from virgin teflon, this stuff doesnt transfer heat so the cold water stays cold and its tough as a rock, almost impossible to bend but itll work, ill have pics up when i finish it. Once I have my stuff in I'm not going to do any worrying about leaks.
 
I havent turned my computer off since I took the IHS off my chip in dec or january.. Havent maintenanced anything either. No problems yet :D
 
ive ran one of my watercooled setups for 1 full yr, without a hitch...i dont leaktest either...just tighten crap as much as possible
 
too much reefer=paranoia?

really though...your being way too paranoid. if you leak tested for 3 days then you definitely dont have anything to worry about. if your THAT paranoid you could always get some MCT-5 fluid...
the only problem i have has is from a faulty component which was replaced by the manufacturer. nothing died either because the leak was in a spot that didnt hurt any components.

i leave my comp on as much as possible.
 
I agree that your system is as leak free as you make it. If you tighten things down well, use RTV or the like on any screw fittings, use good clamps (I heartily recommend mcmaster type 430 smooth-lined clamps), what is there to leak?

Most leaks come from simple mistakes. If I had to worry about running water that much, I wouldn't run water. But guess what- fans die too and can also clog up with dust. Quality pumps like the laing, 50z, and eheim pumps last years without a hiccup.

BTW- the mcmaster clamps are smooth-lined so you can tighten them down to your hearts' content as they don't cut into tubing at all.

Yes, you are being paranoid!
 
1stOVERCLOCKER said:
hey ive had wc for about a month noqw but i only use my comp like once a week for fear of leaks and stuff even though i leaktested for 3 days stright also is the pupms in water cooling relible or arte they known to break cause i dont want a fried cpu thnx and please help
am i just being paronoid or would my comp run overnight and be safe

As long as you've secured your barbs, there really isn't much to worry about. If you want a bit more insurance set COP (CPU Overheat Protection) in your BIOS to something like 50c, just in case your pump goes West. I can understand you being freaked, but try to ease your way into it. Leave your rig on for a day when you can be home as a start. If that goes fine, try longer periods until you feel comfortable.
 
I think a person might get a bit paranoid if they're unsure about how well they constructed the watercooling system.

I would (and do) put my best effort into making sure the WC system is put together in what I think is a good solid way. To me 'common sense' plays the most part of it, like not taking risks on the hardware I use (buy good strong components), and having the componentry assembled sturdily paying particular attention to how you secure the tubing on component parts. I mean, for example, ensure tubing is solidly connected, but at the same time don't overtighten things through 'fear' as doing this could effectively increase the chance of problems due to deformation (damage) of the tubing/barbs themselves.

As for the potential of pump failure, sure it could happen at any time irrespective to what pump it is, so if possible look for ways to have the PC monitor temperatures and perform a shutdown as a contingency plan for this happening. I think a lot of system BIOS's nowadays have the ability to specify 'emergency shutdown temperatures' by allowing you to set a temperature value, so definatly look into this. If you do this you might want to test that it actually works by firing up the computer to desktop and leaving it without the pump powered to simulate a pump failure. If you use a program like Motherboard Monitor (MBM) you should be able to watch the temperatures rise steadily up to the point where the system BIOS shutdown value is met at which point the PC should immediately shutdown. I think it'd be foolish to not going about testing in this way personally.

Other concerns. Personally I'd avoid the use of cheap acrylic reservoirs and similar like the plague. Although I've never used them I've read too many horror stories about the seals failing on them, and cracks appearing, etc, to ever feel the desire to use one myself. ;)

Read up about 'galvanic corrosion' sometime particularly if your WC system is running mixed metals (aluminium and copper in particular). Make sure you use an appropriate water solution (distilled water & automotive antifreeze is common) to stave off long-term corrosion.

Keep an eye on water levels over time to see how fast they drop. Some systems seem to lose their water gradually over time due to microscopic leaks and such. Having an idea about how fast this occurs on your own system should allow you to learn how frequently you might need to top up the fluid (I top mine up maybe every few months with a few teaspoons worth of water, but all systems are different...).

Anyway, basically just make sure everything is good and tight but not overtight, choose strong components, build it well, setup temperature monitoring in BIOS or other to protect the system if something goes bad, and observe and learn how your system runs over time so you become familiar (and hopefully confident) with it.

No expert here but I built my own first WC about 15 months ago now and it's been running perfectly 24/7 (turning my PC off is a rare event!) all that time. I just check it periodically (water level, etc) and drain/refill the system once in a while (maybe every 5 months to reduce the likelyhood of growth/corrosion), oh, and dust off the rad every now and then. :)

hth.
 
When I went to water cooling. My first setup was a kit from Corsair. It was a good entry level cooling setup and did quite well cooling CPU & VC I then moved to the next level of putting togather a custom setup, and it performed even better. Then I upgraded it to Danger Den CPU and VGA blocks and modded my pump and canned the res. and added T line. As of yet I have not had a pump fail or a line spring a leak. The Coolermaster Wavemaster case with a heatercore and 2 x 120mm fans & shroud, DD TDX block for CPU, DD Maze4 for VGA and a modded DDC-12V pump, DD filport and 1/2 tubing is a great setup.
I think it's a must to have clear pannel side and lites in the case so that you can keep a close eye on your plumbing. As far as dependability, well I use this as my traveling rig ,I work out of town alot and this computer goes with me everywheres and I don't drain it before I leave the house. :D
 
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