What happens when the pump dies?

I'm a modder by nature. I like cutting cases, volt modding and making mods to equipment. But... I like to know the pitfalls before I start. So, what happens to a water cooled computer when the pump dies? I have some idea but I'd like input from someone who has experienced it first hand.

Thanks for any insight and experience you can share.

you usually have the computer shut down if the temp passes a certain number in the BIOS, so if your pump dies and the CPU reaches the temp you specified in the BIOS your computer automatically shut down to prevent any damage.

If you are running an s939 system, that feature must be enabled in the BIOS, and you can specify the temperature cutoff. Also, in some setups, usually those with all metal blocks and good airflow over the block, the block will be able to keep the cpu cool enough to run, albeit at a high temperature.

All in all, just having the motor die on the pump in a modern computer will probably not cause any permanent damage.

i would highly doubt the block + fans could cool an OC'd cpu even at idle

your pc would almost certainly shut itself off after hitting a certain temp, just make sure you have all that set in bios.

or, because its OC'd and the temp is going up it could also just lock up or reboot, constant rebooting could be an issue, but its more likely the temp monitor will catch it on the reboot and shut it off because of temp.

think mine is set to 70c max before shut off, i believe thermal specs for most intel cpu's is a maximum of 90 before you truly damage them.

depends on the platform, newer CPU's have thermal shutdown on die older systems may need speedfan or similar setup to shutdown.

It takes a little while for the tempurature to creep up than a heatsink with a dead fan, depending on how much mass there is to your water block. My Swiftech MCW462 has a pretty thick copper base and an aluminum top and a large internal area, so it takes awhile to heat up with the pump turned off.

Not a bad thing to consider, but remember that fans fail too. Its not a bad idea to verify that you have a shutdown temp setup even if you are air cooled.