Watercooling without a radiator

[Windows9]

So my plan is to get just a block and pump and use a 20L conatiner as a radiator and reservoir. Would this work. I have a i3-2120. I was thinking if temps are fine I would also use it for both PCs (AMD A4-4000 takes 20W max)

[Mr.Sir]

why?

and yeah, if you have your AC on a normal temp. but it would evaporate eventually and may get gunk in your pump

[Windows9]

2 minutes ago, Mr.Sir said:

why?

and yeah, if you have your AC on a normal temp. but it would evaporate eventually and may get gunk in your pump

I can put a lid on it. 

 

2 minutes ago, Mr.Sir said:

AC

Average temp here is 25C in summer

2 minutes ago, Mr.Sir said:

why?

No fans, less noise, more fun

[IAmAndre]

Why would you watercool a CPU like that? If you want to try something exotic you should look more into passive cooling IMO.

[Windows9]

2 minutes ago, IAmAndre said:

Why would you watercool a CPU like that? If you want to try something exotic you should look more into passive cooling IMO

This is more interesting. Passive cooling has been done to death

[W-L]

8 minutes ago, AMD1234 said:

So my plan is to get just a block and pump and use a 20L conatiner as a radiator and reservoir. Would this work. I have a i3-2120. I was thinking if temps are fine I would also use it for both PCs (AMD A4-4000 takes 20W max)

It's not really practical but possible given that the container can radiate the heat from the system into the surroundings. There was a thread a long while back which illustrated this using a glass fish tank as a reservoir to then radiate the heat to the air.

 

However for such a low end system it wouldn't be worth the effort to go through all of that work. 

 

[Windows9]

Just now, W-L said:

However for such a low end system it wouldn't be worth the effort to go through all of that work.

Cpu block : £3

Pump : £3

Spare time doing nothing : Free

[W-L]

Just now, AMD1234 said:

Cpu block : £3

Pump : £3

Spare time doing nothing : Free

Those would not qualify as acceptable components for reliable watercooling but as a proof of concept it will work. You will need to worry about galvanic corrosion if you use mixed metals and then the issue of growth in such as loop especially with a large tank like that which has a greater possibility due to the large amount of light exposure. 

[RollinLower]

Just now, AMD1234 said:

Cpu block : £3

Pump : £3

Spare time doing nothing : Free

do it. if you want to do it i see no reason not to. in times like these you need something to do to fight the boredom of isolation

 

also, it would be fun to do some experimenting. what would water surface area mean for thermals? and what is the point where adding more volume gets diminishing returns?

[Windows9]

1 minute ago, W-L said:

growth

Drop of bleach and water change every 6 weeks should do

 

1 minute ago, W-L said:

galvanic corrosion if you use mixed metals

Pump is plastic so only metal is block

[W-L]

1 minute ago, AMD1234 said:

Drop of bleach and water change every 6 weeks should do

 

Pump is plastic so only metal is block

Bleach even in small amounts will destroy the block assuming due to the cost you are using a low cost aluminum waterblock, it needs to be a glycol type mix if you want it to last at all. Not to mention you can't use standard tap water it must distilled water with an additive at the very least. 

 

If you want to just lower noise a larger aircooler will do, but I would only suggest to do this if this is just a busy project to play around with. 

[FakeGamerGuy]

I ran PT Nuke in my fish tank res and it worked fine. My biggest issue I ran into was lower cooling efficiency (see: hot-ass room due to the AC being broken) in the summer, and a huge amount of dust getting in the loop after I added some glass rocks to the tank for aesthetics. It would have been just fine if I had considered even just rinsing the glass before adding it to my tank. I think there's a video near the end of the thread linked above.

[FakeGamerGuy]

I ran PT Nuke in my fish tank res and it worked fine. My biggest issue I ran into was lower cooling efficiency (see: hot-ass room due to the AC being broken) in the summer, and a huge amount of dust getting in the loop after I added some glass rocks to the tank for aesthetics. It would have been just fine if I had considered even just rinsing the glass before adding it to my tank. I think there's a video near the end of the thread linked above.

Edit: Having scrolled up through the thread a bit, I would like to add that a majority of my cooling performance came from the water being exposed to moving air (it was next to a window that I usually kept open) and from evaporation of the water. You will get natural evaporation over time, even of the water isn't "warm". I usually refilled with distilled water to keep everything clean and free of minerals. There will be some amount of radiation through the glass, but it won't be much, especially if the delta between the water temperature and the air temperature isn't that high. What's described in the posts above is more of a thermal capacitor. It will absorb the heat and keep the CPU cool but it won't do much to dissipate that heat into the air.

[Kitsan]

I mean if you've got nothing else better to do, give it a try but please be careful and respect the fact that you're dealing with dangerous/costly subject matter

 

This idea is as old as watercooling, however just bear in mind that the water will heat up over time even with an i3 if you try to cover it, you've got to give the water an avenue to evaporate

[Whiro]

1 hour ago, AMD1234 said:

Cpu block : £3

Pump : £3

Where did you find them for such a price? 

[Windows9]

6 minutes ago, Whiro said:

Where did you find them for such a price?

Standard block = £2 + 3D printed adapter + £1

Pump = Fish tank pump

[Mick Naughty]

So is the pc just gonna be used for web browsing?

Wont work for any real use aside from that. 

[StDragon]

You could always make your own radiator. Just get some soft copper coil and run water through that. Passively cooled (especially for that low wattage CPU). Just be careful to not bend it back and forth too much it or will break.

[FakeGamerGuy]

Not sure I would trust any parts that cheap around my computer lol especially not any 3D printed parts. For reference I had an EK Supremacy block, but I did use a submersible pond pump. Make sure you get one with adequate head pressure.