View Full Version : Problems with watercooling setup
ReNeG@dE
11-26-01, 08:11 PM
I've been running watercooling for months now, but I just got some silicone tubing. So I redid all of the plumbing, put the pump in my case, etc, etc. Now I've having problems bleeding the air out. I'll get (basically) all of the air out, then I leave the pump running for a few hours and its full of air again! I've tried to make a diagram of it using my l33t paint skillorz, but let me know if something doesn't make sense. I'd really rather not have to drain the system and completely redo the tubing again, but if that's what you think let me know. Thanks.
*JEREMY*
11-26-01, 08:15 PM
did you shake your radiator and turn it upside down,it took me awhile to get the air out of mine but thats how i did it
ReNeG@dE
11-26-01, 08:39 PM
yes many, many times... Like I said, I get all the air out (shaking the rad, squeezing the tubing to get air bubbles to detatch from them, etc.) and I've marked the water level on the fill tube. Then if I leave the pump run for a while the water level keeps rising (well it seems to stop at some point...) and then when I shut the pump down, there are air bubbles in the system. I work the air bubbles out and the water level drops back to the original mark... So it seems like it must be pulling air in from somewhere...
Did you fill your system entirely through the "fill tube"? Do you have hose clamps on every connection?
ReNeG@dE
11-26-01, 09:23 PM
Yes, I have hose clamps on every connection.
No I did not fill the entire system through the fill tube, I connected everything except the intake of the pump to the.... I can't think of the right term... exhaust of the waterblock. I put the pump in a pail of distilled water + waterwetter, had the pump go until it was as full as possible, then connected the pump to the tubing from the waterblock and filled it the rest of the way through the fill tube. Then I worked the air out of the system.
Sounds like the front housing on your pump might have an air leak. What pump do you have? Danner mag drive pumps have this problem sometimes.
ReNeG@dE
11-26-01, 10:24 PM
It's an Eheim 1048, there are no leaks (water leaks anyway) and no cracks that I can see...
Is it maybe something to do with how I have the fill tube configured? Should I switch the T around?
I always put the "t" right before the intake myself because I think it bleeds out better that way. My reasoning is that it gives the air bubbles more time to form larger bubbles that rise better in the air trap. With the "t" right after the outlet the bubbles are thrashed by the impeller and are smaller and blow by the air trap.
ReNeG@dE
11-26-01, 11:17 PM
I was thinking more along the lines of this:
ReNeG@dE
11-26-01, 11:20 PM
and you're right about the impeller thrashing it... Should have thought of that before, though that isn't the easiest way to work out the bubbles. I just run the pump for awhile, let the air collect in the rad and then work the bubbles from the rad out through the fill tube, going backwards (with the pump turned off of course ;) )
ReNeG@dE
11-27-01, 11:24 AM
sorry to bump, but I really need some suggestions... I tried it again last night, working al the air out, then leaving the pump on overnight. The water level went up by 3-4" and there was a HUGE air bubble in the rad.
The Overclocker
11-27-01, 12:08 PM
Originally posted by ReNeG@dE
I was thinking more along the lines of this:
definatly do the proposed
ReNeG@dE
11-27-01, 12:28 PM
Okay, thanks. I'll give it a go tonight, any other suggestions, things to check/change while I have the system drained? Thanks to all the people who have read through this and suffered through my horrible diagrams :p
Originally posted by ReNeG@dE
Okay, thanks. I'll give it a go tonight, any other suggestions, things to check/change while I have the system drained? Thanks to all the people who have read through this and suffered through my horrible diagrams :p
Run your pumpin a bucket of water... would at least elimate the theory that air is entering through your pump...
ReNeG@dE
11-27-01, 03:54 PM
That's a good idea, I'll try that before I drain it... I think I'll put some teflon tape on the (threads of the) fittings on the pump as well... If the pump turns out to be cracked somehow, though I don't know how that would be possible since I haven't been kicking it around or anything, should I coat the thing in JB Weld or something?
Another thing, the excess teflon tape around the threads of the fittings coming out of my water block (as in the part of the threads that are not in the waterblock), came off when I was rubbing the top with some steel wool to try and shine it up. I can't imagine that would cause a problem, but I'm streching for anything here...
Warlord2
11-27-01, 04:16 PM
air is somehow getting into the system
I had the same problem with my mag drive
make sure your pump doesnt have a crack anywhere and that all the connections good
how much air is getting in?
are your temps any worse thin before?
ReNeG@dE
11-29-01, 12:56 PM
Well I switched the hoses around so that they matched the "proposed" diagram above, I also, put teflon tape on the fittings coming out of the pump. I tried running the pump in a bucket of water, but because I had to move the pump and therefore the hoses as well, I could not tell for sure if air was getting in or not, though it did appear to be.
With the pump out of the bucket, air is definitly still getting in... I checked the pump for cracks but can't see any. There is the part at the front of the pump that you can remove to replace the impeller that I haven't checked, so I'll do that tonight..
One thing I noticed, but am not too sure about is that I can hear a "gurgling" sound coming from my pump, basically all the time. It's the same sound as when air bubbles get sucked into the pump, but I can't see air bubbles going in through the tubes... Has anyone with an Eheim 1048 pump had this kind of problem?
**EDIT: Sorry Warlord I forgot to answer your ?'s. The amount of air getting in depends on how long I run it... I've got 1/2" tubing and after running for 6 hours the level went up by a little over 2". The temps are a little better than with my old setup (vinyl tubing, etc.) and they don't seem to get much worse with the amount of air getting in, the problem is that the water level keeps getting higher and higher. If it stabilized at some point I wouldn't care nearly as much, since the temps are still better than before...
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