AiO long term use

[HILTI]

Hello everyone. I used to build PC-s some decades ago (90's and 00's(?)) and now I am thinking about building small PC for video editing on Resolve and photo editing in Lightroom. I saw NZXT H1 case and I like it, but it has AiO cooling. We usually use PC's for 15 years (passing with age to less demanding family members). I have ZERO experience with AiO or any other water coolong and I am afraid tjat this cooling will be troublesome with maintenance. How many years does normally AiO work? What kind of maintenanxe os required and how freque tly? I have feeling that water cooling is more for enthousiasts that loke to fiddle with their computers rather than for average user, that never opens their PC (maybe 1/3 y for dust cleaning). Can You please enlighten me in thos topic?

[boggy77]

i wouldn't count on it lasting for 15 years... i would stick to air cooling

[Ramrod126]

IDK about 15 years but I still have a Corair H70 that I bought in 2011 that works just fine.

[SolarNova]

Would not rely on a AIO to last that long without needing to be refilled, which they are not designed for. It can be done but its not a consumer friendly processes.

 

Stick with air cooling.

[HILTI]

So in case of NZXT H1 (which generally is expensive case) - what should customer do after 5y? Throw away AiO? Really AiO is only good for few years?

[WoodenMarker]

8 minutes ago, HILTI said:

So in case of NZXT H1 (which generally is expensive case) - what should customer do after 5y? Throw away AiO? Really AiO is only good for few years?

You can expect a good AIO to last 5+ years but permeation and evaporation will eventually mean that the performance degrades without refilling. 

[HILTI]

Thank You for all explanations.

 

I did not find any maintanance guide on NZXT website fo H1 AiO. What coolant type is used? How can I check level and add coolant? If pump will go wrong - what replacement parts are needed and are they even available? 

[SolarNova]

9 hours ago, HILTI said:

Thank You for all explanations.

 

I did not find any maintanance guide on NZXT website fo H1 AiO. What coolant type is used? How can I check level and add coolant? If pump will go wrong - what replacement parts are needed and are they even available? 

AIO's are not designed to 'repaired' so replacement parts wont be easily available.

The coolant is usually a proprietary blend of distilled water, glycol, and anti corrosives. A 'top up' would be with just distilled but again topping it up would likely be a hassle as they are not designed to be 'topped up' by the user.

 

If the AIO failed u'd just have to buy a replacement 140mm AIO.

[Dravinian]

Who are you passing a 15 year old PC to...your dog?

That would be 2005 specs, that would barely be able to handle chrome.

AIOs will last years, but realistically in 15 years, the PC you have today will barely be useful.

[SolarNova]

1 minute ago, Dravinian said:

Who are you passing a 15 year old PC to...your dog?

That would be 2005 specs, that would barely be able to handle chrome.

AIOs will last years, but realistically in 15 years, the PC you have today will barely be useful.

Wouldnt be so sure of that tbh.

 

The i7 3930k released 9 years ago and is still holding my system strong now. The core of my system is still fine, i've only had to update the GPU from a 780 to 1080ti in the last year.

 

A PC from 2005 is at a bit of a disadvantage being that it was built during a time when high fidelity game was just kicking of.

Crysis released in 2007 for example and was so far beyond the average 3d game in terms of fidelity it took years before the average persons PC could run it smoothly. Your average FPS game of 2005 were things like Delta Force, Quake 4, and COD 2.

Now take games from 2011, COD-MW3, Fear 3, and Bulletstorm, far higher fidelity, but in comparison to today not that far removed all things considered.

 

Also CPU wise strong multi thread CPU's just starting to be a thing in early 00's with the core2quad series, not gaining meaningful maturity until 2011 with 2nd gen intel i series..

 

I wouldn't be surprised to see current gen hardware survive 15 years performance wise, not without a MAJOR breakthrough in game complexity and graphical fidelity.

[Austinham]

15 years with any type of cooling will need some degree of maintenance other then maybe passive cooling. Dust builds up, fans bearings go dry, pumps die, seals can fail, coolant can leak and so on.

Id pas on the AOI, most are rather poorly made and even the good ones are more troublesome than an air cooled setup in the long run.

 

 

32 minutes ago, Dravinian said:

Who are you passing a 15 year old PC to...your dog?

That would be 2005 specs, that would barely be able to handle chrome.

AIOs will last years, but realistically in 15 years, the PC you have today will barely be useful.

Not everyone uses a PC the same way. I seen many a folks use even older PCs daily.

Example, I know an older person that still does their banking the old way with paper statements and excel on a windows 98 system that is not online. And they don't have a single problem with that.

[Hilltrot]

On 4/23/2020 at 3:43 PM, HILTI said:

So in case of NZXT H1 (which generally is expensive case) - what should customer do after 5y? Throw away AiO? Really AiO is only good for few years?

Do you wear the same pair of shoes for 15 years?  How about socks?   What do you do with them after they wear out?

 

Why are you acting so indignant about things wearing out?

 

The AIO's warranty is 6-years.  It could last longer.  If the pump doesn't give out, eventually the water permeates out over a very long process.  This process is sped up if the liquid goes above 60 Celsius.  So, if you want it to last 10-15 years, moderate your CPU purchase.

 

Orientation matters in AIOs, so turning you case upside down while it's running will lower its lifespan.