what are the downsides of watercooling

[iLikeBananas]

So if I were to watercool my current cpu, what would that mean for me? How often do I have to refill it? What are the chances of water leaking out of the system? How do you refill a watercooling system? Like do I have to remove the entire thing? Cpu = 5800X3D + Arctic Liquid Freezer II 280. Is a 280 enough or should I go with 360 instead?

 

[matt0725]

that type of watercooling is called AIO watercooling. they never need to be drained/filled, so you also don't need to ever remove it.

 

The chances of a leak are very low. If it doesn't leak brand new(factory defect) it will likely go years and years without any issue, but there is always a chance something happens. Depending on where the leak is, it may damage nothing, or it may take out your GPU, motherboard, PSU, or any combination of those things.

 

I have no idea if a 280 is enough for cooling that CPU as Im on an older intel chip, but it is likely fine. a 360 will perform better, but you'd have to look at benchmarks to see how much better.

[sk8rs_dad]

The 280 is more than enough for the 5800X3D. I have one on a 5900X and the temps are fine.

[Somerandomtechyboi]

Main disadvantage with aios is both price and longevity, not like aircoolers where theyll last forever and the only service component is the fans whenever they die every decade or 2 and those are easily swappable

 

Aio wise when the pump dies the unit is gone and youll have to buy a new one, not like the parts cant be frankensteined into a custom loop but noone bothers doing that

[RONOTHAN##]

15 minutes ago, Somerandomtechyboi said:

not like the parts cant be frankensteined into a custom loop but noone bothers doing that

I mean, you can do that, but you really shouldn't either. The only part really worth salvaging if the pump dies is the radiator, and since the rads on 98% of AIOs are aluminum it's very easy to cause corrosion in the rest of the loop if you don't know what you're doing (see the ASUS Z690 Formula fiasco for reference). They really should be treated as a single unit that's to be disposed of once they die. 

[ApolloX75]

I've got an H100 that's pushing 10 or 11 years running now. Still works like new, I cracked it open to check the fluid level and top it up, didn't need to.

[SorryBella]

18 minutes ago, Somerandomtechyboi said:

Aio wise when the pump dies the unit is gone and youll have to buy a new one, not like the parts cant be frankensteined into a custom loop but noone bothers doing that

Because its aluminum radiator. So unless you have an aluminum block or youre a reality bending SCP you will experience electrolytic corrosion.

[Somerandomtechyboi]

24 minutes ago, SorryClaire said:

Because its aluminum radiator. So unless you have an aluminum block or youre a reality bending SCP you will experience electrolytic corrosion.

 

24 minutes ago, RONOTHAN## said:

I mean, you can do that, but you really shouldn't either. The only part really worth salvaging if the pump dies is the radiator, and since the rads on 98% of AIOs are aluminum it's very easy to cause corrosion in the rest of the loop if you don't know what you're doing (see the ASUS Z690 Formula fiasco for reference). They really should be treated as a single unit that's to be disposed of once they die. 

You guys do know that you can just mix in like 10-20% antifreeze to stop the corrosion shenanigans right? Cars also run mix metal cooling systems

[SorryBella]

3 minutes ago, Somerandomtechyboi said:

 

You guys do know that you can just mix in like 10-20% antifreeze to stop the corrosion shenanigans right? Cars also run mix metal cooling systems

You do realize that they still do run into that anyway, right? Those coolants are getting changed for 30000 miles for a reason.

 

And also, Propylene Glycol heavily reacts with PETG, which is the most common of reservoir material, so thatll be fun to remember that your reservoir cant be used on anything but that and slowly going to kill itself.

[Lurking]

2 hours ago, Somerandomtechyboi said:

 

You guys do know that you can just mix in like 10-20% antifreeze to stop the corrosion shenanigans right? Cars also run mix metal cooling systems

Cars don't have copper motors, they have aluminum/steel motors and aluminum radiators. And they use 50% of very specifically for that car designed glycol with tons of additives (pH buffer, corrosion inhibitors etc.). their pumps and gaskets also are compatible with the glycol mix. 

 

If you don't actually know stuff, just get a good AIO and you will be fine. If you build yourself, you really should research and get advice from seasoned members here. There are also sets from reputable manufacturers that have all the compatibilities figured out for you. RTFM. 

 

https://l-36.com/corrosion.php

 

OP: If the pump fails, your PC will shut down due to thermal overload. There is no reserve cooling capacity. A large air cooler can operate passively in case of fan failure. So it can at least run windows under low load so you can order a new fan  Tower coolers also can have two fans, so you would have quite some redundancy. 

[andrewmp6]

50 minutes ago, Lurking said:

Cars don't have copper motors, they have aluminum/steel motors and aluminum radiators. And they use 50% of very specifically for that car designed glycol with tons of additives (pH buffer, corrosion inhibitors etc.). their pumps and gaskets also are compatible with the glycol mix. 

 

If you don't actually know stuff, just get a good AIO and you will be fine. If you build yourself, you really should research and get advice from seasoned members here. There are also sets from reputable manufacturers that have all the compatibilities figured out for you. RTFM. 

 

https://l-36.com/corrosion.php

 

OP: If the pump fails, your PC will shut down due to thermal overload. There is no reserve cooling capacity. A large air cooler can operate passively in case of fan failure. So it can at least run windows under low load so you can order a new fan  Tower coolers also can have two fans, so you would have quite some redundancy. 

cars use to use copper rads and cast iron engines

[Lurking]

5 minutes ago, andrewmp6 said:

cars use to use copper rads and cast iron engines

And radiator failures were common and the glycol had to be changed quite often. Now, with Aluminum only mainly, I don't hear of radiator failure and have a 100,000 mile glycol change interval. 

[andrewmp6]

Just now, Lurking said:

And radiator failures were common and the glycol had to be changed quite often. Now, with Aluminum only mainly, I don't hear of radiator failure and have a 100,000 mile glycol change interval. 

I have changed 4 times the alum rads then i have any brass or copper in my 30 years of working on cars.The alum rads have plastic end tanks which always crack and leak first.

[Lurking]

48 minutes ago, andrewmp6 said:

I have changed 4 times the alum rads then i have any brass or copper in my 30 years of working on cars.The alum rads have plastic end tanks which always crack and leak first.

What car? Sounds like Audi would do that, they also installed failing plastic water pumps.. heat makes plastic brittle. 

 

What does plastic failure have to do with metal corrosion? The plastic would have failed if the radiator was made of any metal. 

[iLikeBananas]

15 hours ago, matt0725 said:

that type of watercooling is called AIO watercooling. they never need to be drained/filled, so you also don't need to ever remove it.

 

That sounds good 

 

9 hours ago, TechlessBro said:

If an AIO dies which take 3-5years then you throw it away and get another, they aren’t really reusable and aren’t worth rebuilding.

 

This sounds less good lol

 

If it was as simple as throwing it into your system and then forgetting about it, I would go for it. But I really do not like the idea of this thing dying one day and me having to replace it. The main reason why I considered watercooling in the first place is because I don't want to bother with ram clearance. 

 

Just out of curiosity, what is the other type of water cooling called? The one that needs refilling.

[Lurking]

9 minutes ago, iLikeBananas said:

 

That sounds good 

 

 

This sounds less good lol

 

If it was as simple as throwing it into your system and then forgetting about it, I would go for it. But I really do not like the idea of this thing dying one day and me having to replace it. The main reason why I considered watercooling in the first place is because I don't want to bother with ram clearance. 

 

Just out of curiosity, what is the other type of water cooling called? The one that needs refilling.

Custom loop is the other type. But that requires maintenance and your skills dictate success or failure.

 

Ram clearance really is not an issue with well designed air cooler. Even on dual towers you alway can lift the fan a bit or mount it to the discharge side. Cooler height is more limiting in narrow cases. But there are options.

 

Honestly, if you just want good cooling and never worry about it, an air cooler is the way to go.

[ToboRobot]

Cost, complexity of installation/maintenance, risk of leaks, case compatibility with radiators and parts.

[andrewmp6]

19 hours ago, Lurking said:

What car? Sounds like Audi would do that, they also installed failing plastic water pumps.. heat makes plastic brittle. 

 

What does plastic failure have to do with metal corrosion? The plastic would have failed if the radiator was made of any metal. 

All cars made past 1990s the rad is alum core and plastic end caps.The brass/copper ones are solid metal and i have yet to see one leak due to corrosion.The few of those i ever replaced was from damage from hitting things/car wrecks.

[Lurking]

9 minutes ago, andrewmp6 said:

All cars made past 1990s the rad is alum core and plastic end caps.The brass/copper ones are solid metal and i have yet to see one leak due to corrosion.The few of those i ever replaced was from damage from hitting things/car wrecks.

No, which car was yours exactly that had 4 radiators fail?

 

If every car, including mine, would have had 4 radiators fail, I probably would have heard of it.... And again, plastic failure =/= corrosion.

 

And accidents will break things. You are unreasonable to claim the radiator design is at fault when you hit things and it breaks. Everything up front is designed to crumble to absorb energy to protect humans.

 

I don't even know any person personally who ever had a radiator failure. Radiator failure is a non issue compared to all other wear and failure items 

[Mark Kaine]

its water. in your pc.

 

...

 

that is basically it. also aio theoretically need to be replaced every 3 years... its just a huge hassle that looks dumb as a bonus for the most part.  #noctua 4ever

[Mark Kaine]

14 hours ago, iLikeBananas said:

Just out of curiosity, what is the other type of water cooling called? The one that needs refilling.

custom loop.

 

honestly unless u really like the cringe 90s gamer esthetic totally not worth it