H2o Help.

[KraZy]

(Ach.. still a n00b in h2o. I miss air cooling, but not the noise..)

 

I have the Swiftech 8501 kit that I am currently using with my P3.0C, and am in need of a little advice. Basically, here is a list of questions...

 

Should I length the tubing that is being used so the system can hold more water?

 

When I get another radiator, should it be hooked up in series or parallel to the old one? And why? Is lower water pressure better in the radiators? Or should I just invest in a single mac-daddy radiator?

 

Besides easing my headaches with air bubbles, what would a resivoir do for me? Swiftech kits do not have one, and thier docs say one is not needed.

 

Thanks... just some pressing issues..

[keto]

The less length of tubing you have, the higher the water pressure will be - this is a good thing. Adding length and therefore more water sounds good but is NOT as you will have overall pressure drop/lower throughput over the cooling surface. Caveat: if you have a really high powered pump, a small pressure loss may have zero impact.

 

Series or parallel is an ongoing argument with no real answer afaik. I run a dual rad setup and prefer series, running the water through one rad then the next then back to the rest of the loop. My theory (unscientific, I'm no engineer) is that if you run parallel you may not get equal flow through each and therefore not get efficient cooling PLUS when in series you are running water already cooled at RAD1 then into RAD2 for a further temp drop, tho it's very small. Single bigger rad is easier, and better, providing it's as good at heat dissipation as the theoretical 2 rads. See above paragraph 1, the longer the overall path, the more pressure drop.

 

Reservoir, when placed at the highest point in the loop, is a natural 'gathering place' for air. Also makes refilling somewhat easier, providing it has a suitable and conveniently placed opening. It's not a requirement, as Swifty say.

[exeter_acres]

What keto said...

 

 

agree completely...

 

I use a res ... and would not do it without one for the ease of filling, bleeding, refilling, etc. etc.

[OCit]

I have the exact same kit and my one tip is run the pump straight to the cpu! This will have a huge difference, like huge. So do it. Second id run parallel as swiftech suggests but w/e u want.

[keto]

YEs, OCit is right - you want maximum pressure going thru the cpu block so send the first link outta the pump to the cpu block. Some people argue send thru rads first as the pump adds heat, but you will find 1) the pump adds very little heat 2) the pressure loss from sending the water everywhere else first is significant especially if you have a lower power pump. Pressure and flow are all important in 98% of H2O setups (there are a very few very high efficiency blocks where pressure and flow are less important, tho I can't name them off the top of my head).

[KraZy]

Aight.. I took a few hours last night cutting away any unneeded tubing. Also, I changed the stock fan to a SmartFan II running at 5k. Took the block apart and cleaned it. Changed the goop to AS5.

 

That took about 5c away. BUT the SmartFan running full tilt is not exactly quiet.

 

Time to add a radiator as-per suggestions!

[Guest Ballz2TheWallz]

you should really get a stronger pump if your adding a 2nd rad or get something like the DTEK pro core which should really lower temps.

edit:nvm your pump looks strong enough

[Nuclear]

The only bad thing about the swifty kit is tube size. By using only 3/8" ID tube, you've really restricted yourself. The kit is good, but you'd get alot better temps and pressure from a 1/2" system. What are your temps BTW?

 

And ahh...Use a rez. DTEK makes one that is real good, or voyeurmods.com has a "typhoon" dual bay rez. I have the typhoon rez and I love it.

[KraZy]

Ok, here are the current stats running F@H...

 

If I change to 1/2ID tubing, wont it still bottle neck the flow @ the radiator and the block? Starting to look at a complete replacement for the Swiftech kit...

[power_overwhelming_]

So wait you are getting 59C???????? If so that is way too much...

[Mad Cow]

59 C !?!?!?!?! Something is VERY WRONG. 60 C is probably the maximum temp that you should run your cpu if you want long cpu life, and you're right on the edge. I assume that you took this reading after your computer had been folding for a while. If so I think you REALLY need to get a larger radiator and/or pump. Here's what could be wrong:

A) Your pump is too weak to get adequate flow to the cpu and radiator, which is building up lots of extra heat.

B ) Your radiator is too small to effectively dissipate all the heat generated. You are running a p4 3.0 C which puts out a LOT of heat.

C) You have some blockage in your tubing.

 

I think A and B are probably your main problems. Here's what you need to do:

A) If you have any overclocks, lower to stock cpu speeds.

B ) If you turned down the fan speed for you comfort, it's time to take it back up to full speed.

C) Check for kinks in your tubing.

D) Get ready to buy some new stuff, and upgrade to 1/2" tubing.

 

With water cooling you should be running MUCH cooler. If a system is setup properly, you should see cpu temps about 5 C above your ambient room temps (~38 C @ load). hope this helps!

[KraZy]

Ya... 59c load. I have heard that P4's are comparable to toaster ovens...

 

Hrmph. Here is a pic of the layout. (excuse the cable mess, but this -is- a work in progress.) The fan is behind the radiator, and i have tried different directions of air flow through it. It doesnt make any differance.