Do I need a second pump/res?

[HardCaze]

hi, this will be my first loop (i used to use closed loops; Khuler H20, Corsair H100)

Koolance EXOS 2.5 (simply because im putting in a mini fridge )
i'll be cooling a GTX 590(adding a second when i start my socket 2011), and my i5 @ 5.1ghz with half inch tubing

(I've modified a bar fridge to mount the EXOS (air temp -1~4c)
EDIT** thinking of modifing a chest freezer (-4~0c) and adding a few extra fans in the freezer to give awesome airflow. **
***i'll be putting the whole EXOS system in the freezer on mounts so it wont touch the sides*** will the frost be a problem? or would there be a solution like sprinkling salt? or silica? ***

my plates are- CPU; Heatkiller 3.0 1155/1156
GPU; Heatkiller GPU-X3 (GTX 590 plate)
with around 16' of 1/2" tubing

so i was wondering, how much coolant will i need and will i need a second pump/res?

 

[johan851]

Hopefully you've done some research on refrigerators and watercooling - you'll have to be ready for issues with condensation, and you'll have to have modified the fridge/freezer's compressor to deal with much higher load than it was designed for. There's a reason not many people go this route, and go with phase-change cooling if they want to get extreme. There's an extreme cooling section here that you should take a look through.

You'll need as much coolant as it takes, really. Keep pouring until the loop is full. A gallon? I think you'll only need one pump.

 

[muddocktor]

Moved to the Extreme Cooling forum, since that is the most appropriate forum for this question to be answered

mudd

And yeah, if the freezer can handle the heatload (which is doubtful, IMO), you will definitely have to worry about condensation on the mobo, tubing and vid card. But, freezers and such aren't designed to handle a dynamic heat load like a processor and video card would add to it; they are designed to get a non heat producing object down to a specified temperature.

There is a sticky up top that explains why a mini fridge won't work.

 

[HardCaze]

Yeah i have taken all of this into account, the freezer is arriving tomorrow,
its a fan forced 145L chest freezer (-10~-4c) that will only be used for this purpose.

If it cant cope, ill have a play with the compressor + condenser and see what works best.

Mobo is insulated(Kneaded rubber, dielectric grease, Frost King insulation) so is the GTX590. im thinking if this runs the way i want it, i may go ahead and add a TEC to my cpu and card - using the loops to cool the TEC's =D

 

[hokiealumnus]

Do you already have the EXOS, or is that something you're purchasing? I'd lean away from that one and build yourself a decent loop. Can you even run two exos pumps? They have some sort of proprietary controller board, or at least they used to.

Re: Coolant - Just run 50/50 ethylene glycol (antifreeze) and distilled water and you won't run into any fluid problems at those temperatures.

Re: Freezer - Remember those things are designed to keep cold things cold. When you introduce constant heat sources (especially a hot GTX590), it probably won't be able to keep up with it for long.

To get the most out of it, you'll probably need to let it get nice and cold in the freezer with the loop itself (and only the loop) running. When you've reached bottom temps and the freezer is cold enough to hold for a little while, boot up and bench as fast as you can before it heats up too much. This most likely won't be a viable 24/7 solution.

Re: Tec - Don't bother. You'll need such high wattage tecs that it will be even more impractical than your current plan. Stick with letting the water do the work.

 

[HardCaze]

Do you already have the EXOS, or is that something you're purchasing? I'd lean away from that one and build yourself a decent loop. Can you even run two exos pumps? They have some sort of proprietary controller board, or at least they used to.

Re: Coolant - Just run 50/50 ethylene glycol (antifreeze) and distilled water and you won't run into any fluid problems at those temperatures.

Re: Freezer - Remember those things are designed to keep cold things cold. When you introduce constant heat sources (especially a hot GTX590), it probably won't be able to keep up with it for long.

To get the most out of it, you'll probably need to let it get nice and cold in the freezer with the loop itself (and only the loop) running. When you've reached bottom temps and the freezer is cold enough to hold for a little while, boot up and bench as fast as you can before it heats up too much. This most likely won't be a viable 24/7 solution.

Re: Tec - Don't bother. You'll need such high wattage tecs that it will be even more impractical than your current plan. Stick with letting the water do the work.

I am going to purchase the EXOS system in a few days, will it be viable to run 2?
Say 2 mounted about 30cm above each other?

I'll most likely end up modding the freezers condenser/compressor so it can cope

 

[hokiealumnus]

Oh good, you haven't bought them. Don't. Wait a little bit, work with us here and make a 'real' loop that will far out perform anything the EXOS can do. That way, when you (likely, inevitably) pull it out of this freezer experiment, you have a strong, viable water loop to run on ambient temperatures.

 

[Bobnova]

For a freezer, I would use a car radiator. You're already stuck running antifreeze, so you might as well get some real surface area.

 

[ssjwizard]

Personally I would probably just fill the freezer half way with water/antifreeze mixture and drop a submersible pump into it. Let the freezer bring down the coolant to the min temp and let her rip. 20 gallons of coolant at 0f should net you a tollerable amount of time on your rig before temps start coming back up.

This method your only into this project the cost of a pump, some tubing, and water blocks.

 

[HardCaze]

alright, i wont buy the EXOS.

At the moment im using an Antec DF-85, but its VERY likely ill be going HAF or custom soon,
especially when i add the 2nd 590 and ramp up the volts, im going to need some intense cooling to handle it...

my current cooling setup is;
5x 120mm case fans (stock DF85)
2x 140mm (case fans on top) and the h100 rad mounted under the 140's
1x 120mm high rpm on the side for the graphics card

my CPU under load at 1.33vc hits a top of 60c (ambient temp in this room is about 29-37c)
my 590 idles at 40 and loads at 85

 

[hokiealumnus]

Well, you're going to need a heck of a lot of heat dissipating capability. These numbers are VERY rough, but I'd guess that CPU at that speed is putting out somewhere around 150W. The GPUs could be as much as 200-225W each, plus increases when you raise voltage (be very careful with the GTX590, raising voltage can kill them; their power sections aren't great).

If you're getting a second GTX590, that's roughly 1,000W of heat you're going to have to dissipate. You'll need a good amount of radiator to do such a thing. I'd say at the very least two strong 120.3 rads with rather loud fans, or three with quieter fans. This graph compares some current radiators in wattage dissipated vs. fan speed with a 10°C delta. I'm partial to Swiftech radiators b/c they give the best performance per dollar, but they aren't the best out there.

Do some reading around in our water cooling stickies and read the beginner's guide to get started. Don't jump into this one. I can almost guarantee the freezer will be a fleeting thing and you might as well build a strong loop to start with so your loop is ready when you're ready to let go of the freezer idea.

 

[Bobnova]

I would not even touch a GTX590's voltage. Damn things explode.

 

[HardCaze]

only if the cooling sucks or you add to much

 

[moocow]

I say let him go through with it and post pictures

 

[Phillip2060]

I say let him go through with it and post pictures

How cruel! Going overkill is never a bad thing when you are modding.

A few bucks is much better spent here than needing to buy more gear later because the old stuff couldn't cope.