A realistic LCLC mod with possible better temps

So I love the mini-fridge idea, it's kind of like a running gag that pops up in a new thread every couple of weeks or so. But the appeal of it does seem rooted in a legitimate desire to acheive an easy way to cooler temps. So, I've had an alternative idea: Ice Cubes.

The idea of Ice Cubes is this: an easy, DIY mod to closed loop water-cooling. That's basically it. It would use the ability of an everyday power-draw - the refrigerator - and redirect that energy for PC cooling.

What I would do is use a small metal waste-basket and store it in the freezer. This would be the reservoir. Then when frozen remove it and place it inside an insulated box. Fill it with ice cubes and water and the cooling lines, and seal it. Insulate the cooling intake line to attain maximum efficiency. Then run that sucker until the reservoir temps started going above ambient, and swap the ice out. Obviously, this would take a much shorter time if you are doing extreme overclocking. But for a mild overclock, it might take a while. Not sure.

A textual representation of the water loop (sorry, no graphics!) : frozen metal waste basket filled with ice cubes --> pump --> insulated intake tube --> cpu block --> outtake tube --> radiator --> waste-basket.

Again, let me clearly state that this is not a fabulous cooling solution. It is only a "step-up" that a home modder could try to get better cooling results. The primary appeal is that it would be easy to achieve and modify for better results (ie, swap a high performance radiator, fab some copper tubing, etc).

So that's basically the Ice Cubes idea. Feedback? Critiques?

Pros and cons:

Pros:
- Relatively inexpensive and easy to make
- Uses an already existing power-draw for more efficient cooling
- No additional costs would be required beyond the initial setup

Cons:
- Would not work as well with a multiple-block cooling loop (CPU-block only would be best)
- The reservoir would be external to the PC case.
- Would have to be more careful about dirt, and would be a hassle to change the ice out frequently.

Untested:
- How long it would take the ice to freeze, how long it would take to rise above ambient temps, and more.

We do something similar on the benching team, take your normal WC radiator and loop and dump the radiator in a bucket of ice cubes and water. Presto! Chilled water.

My loop is a pond pump, CPU block, and 5 gallon bucket. I either toss a sack of ice in the bucket or put a nissan truck radiator in the loop depending on what I'm up to.

Anyway, your idea will work quite nicely! You'll want to insulate the entire loop though not just the one hose from ice to CPU, and you'll want to insulate around the CPU as well to prevent condensation and related death.


On a longer term making your own you run into the same issue as putting the computer in your fridge, it's the same amount of heat the fridge has to get rid of either way.

So you would put the radiator in a bucket of iced water? How does that work, is it better that way?

That's just where the heat exchange takes place - if you are cooling with ice, no reason to have ambient air blowing on your water. Just cut out the middle man, straight ice slushy to the radiator.

I.M.O.G. said:

That's just where the heat exchange takes place - if you are cooling with ice, no reason to have ambient air blowing on your water. Just cut out the middle man, straight ice slushy to the radiator.

Click to expand...

Ah, that makes sense. Cool, thanks.

The CPU temps will be slightly higher than using the bucket as a reservoir and pumping the bucket water through the block. That's the downside.

The plus side is that the water in the loop stays clean, you don't have to worry about dust/dirt/cat hair in the bucket getting lodged in the block.