Radiator alternative – Terje Bolling
– because you don`t need it for your cheapie project.
You just need some old copper tubing, a small tub and a piece of a worn-out towel. Really cheap stuff, if you know where to look ; ) The old scavenged and hacked 120 mm Papst fan (@5Volts) shown on the picture is a luxury item that is not really necessary. Right now, we have our (three weeks of) summer here in Norway, with temperatures around 25 degrees C.
The 7,6 metres of copper tubing is 3/8″ diameter. I have cut it in half, making two shorter loops, to keep my Eheim 1046 from choking. My Swiftech MCW462A seems to appreciate the higher high flow rate. Since there are no kinks or welds in the tubing, the water flow is amazing compared to my previous radiators. And this radiator will never clog with dust and dog hairs ; )
The water in the tub is around ambient temperature, 25 Centigrade, on full load. The coolant in the closed circuit is just a couple of degrees hotter, 27 C. This setup keeps my XP 1700 @ 1700 below 40 degrees C, as I am writing this, and it is absolutely quiet.
You can make a radiator like this almost for free. Spend your money on some ice cream instead : )
Best regards from Terje Bolling
Oslo, Norway
Overklokking.no
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