Advice - Sub Ambient condensation prevention

[SolarNova]

Greetings.

 

So I've actually asked this on a more hardcore tech forum and am awaiting replies, but I figured I would see if any1 in the LTT community had any experience with sub ambient and/or sub zero cooling and get their advice as well.

 

I have my next build planned out and I can achieve it practically and it should work in theory.

 

That said here are the key points. Wont be going into full detail.

 

Sealed large Cube Case or Wide tower case, Mini Dehumidifier mounted inside said case, Case air temperature control, chilled water loop.

 

This 'should' allow me to control the dew point and thus stop condensation from forming. I'm aiming for internal case temps of 15c-25c, coolant temps in the loop to be 10c or lower, and Dew Point to be 8c or lower.
 

However, I'd like advice from people with experience on what steps I should take, if any, to prep the electrical hardware (motherboard & graphics cards)

I know full on sub zero preparations are to use Grease, Kneadable Art Eraser, Heavy duty paper towels, and Neoprene Foam. However going that far for a sub ambient setup which is purposely designed to stay away from the Dew point seems a bit OTT.

Do u think a simple coat of Silicon or Acrylic water proofing spray would be enough ? What would you suggest ?

Cheers.

[Jykos]

If you do, pleeeeaaaassseee make a build log on the forum. I would love to see pictures of building and final product.

[Enderman]

I would suggest you go for a premade phase change cooler which will be far easier to set up, give much lower temps, and not cost that much more

 

also its much more practical for taking anywhere

 

[tomaatvk]

If you need a list of what the dewpoint is at given temps and humidities, here is a list http://www.heatsink-guide.com/peltier.htm (go to page 4), I think you'll need more than a mini humidifier.

[SolarNova]

Already looked into Sub Zero, to much of a PITA when it comes to insulation from ice and condensation, Ugly, and no commercially available units designed for CPU + 2 GPU.

 

As I said, I've planned out this build already (including Dew Point calculations) and it 'should' work, how well it works is another story, but since I haven't found any builds like this done before, ill have to just try and find out. I know of builds that have been made that go further into the extreme, like Chill Boxes, but I really want this system to look just like any other high end badass ambient water cooled system.

 

 

Ok so ill go into more detail then

 

It will be PETG tubed inside the case, it 'may' have a tube res just for looks, but the cooling will be done externally, via a 'powerful' aquarium chiller and pump placed in my loft (attic) above my room and piped down through the ceiling into the case.

 

The dehumidifier will be peltier powered (not those crapy little desiccant models), designed for a small room, and will be operated in a case with a significantly smaller volume. With the sealed case once its done its job im hoping it wont need to be run that often, so 'should' be fine. The size of the dehumidifier will likely be one with dimensions around (HWD) 350mm x 250mm x 150mm. Which one exactly will depend on what's available at the time. 

Yes i could just make my own peltier unit to dehumidify the air, but I'd have to fabricate a water capture basin and enclosure to keep that water as sealed away as possible from the surrounding air, and I honestly don't have the materials, tools, or skill to pull that of easily, so it best to just a buy a prebuilt one and replace the internal crappy noisy fan with a better one.

 

Inside the case will be a single 120mm rad with a fan (likely a NFF12) connected to the loop as a means to keep the internal case temps under control as the dehumidifier will be kicking out heat along with the components inside the case.

 

Coolant flow and temp sensors & readouts along with a air temp & humidity sensor & readout will be included also so I can actively keep an eye on things while using the system.

 

 

 

Ill be doing a build log but I wont be creating my new build until I get a new VDU, which wont be until a good 21:9 40"-50" OLED comes out.

That said im not saying I wont just give in and rebuild my current system before then because im likely going to be waiting on that VDU for a while at the rate OLED is going atm -.-

 

Anyway, OP question still stands