Can you stack 2 rads together?

[PKLee]

If you stack 2x45mm thick rads together and connect them with fittings for example, is that equivalent to a 90mm thick rad? You can also stack another fan in between, like a CPU heat sink.

 

What would the pros and cons be?

 

Just some random crazy idea, not really gonna do it.

[Pixel5]

you can but its not the same as one thicker rad it would be slightly worse.

[PKLee]

Just now, Pixel5 said:

you can but its not the same as one thicker rad it would be slightly worse.

So... slightly worse than one thicker , but much better than one slimmer?

[Pixel5]

it would be somewhere in between as you obviously gain surface area but not as much as you would with a single thicker one.

 

overall it depends on how much cooling performance you need, if you already have sufficient surface area getting even more only has very small temperature drops to gain.

[PKLee]

1 minute ago, Pixel5 said:

it would be somewhere in between as you obviously gain surface area but not as much as you would with a single thicker one.

 

overall it depends on how much cooling performance you need, if you already have sufficient surface area getting even more only has very small temperature drops to gain.

Okay thanks, I just thought it would be really cool, since I don't remember seeing anyone ever done this before

[For Science!]

35 minutes ago, PKLee said:

Okay thanks, I just thought it would be really cool, since I don't remember seeing anyone ever done this before

Its almost always better if you can keep them seperate. Pros, maybe space saving? cons, less performance

 

http://www.xtremesystems.org/forums/showthread.php?220874-More-Radiator-Sandwich-testing

 

[Olaf6541]

I think it is more practical to do push/pull on a 80mm thick rad if your mounting options are limited, putting 2 rads together will also run into an issue when mounting 2 rads to the same fan...

[PKLee]

1 minute ago, Olaf6541 said:

I think it is more practical to do push/pull on a 80mm thick rad if your mounting options are limited, putting 2 rads together will also run into an issue when mounting 2 rads to the same fan...

The thing is, thick rads almost always come with lower FPI, while slim rads may have higher FPI like 20+. For example if you stack 2 EK 28mm 22 FPI rads together you would end up with a 56mm rad equivalent, but with 22 FPI, while finding a 60mm rad with 20+ FPI could be difficult. It will perform worse than a 56mm 22 FPI rad though, but you can sandwich another fan in between.

[PKLee]

20 minutes ago, For Science! said:

 

That's a very helpful thread, thanks

[Olaf6541]

3 minutes ago, PKLee said:

The thing is, thick rads almost always come with lower FPI, while slim rads may have higher FPI like 20+. For example if you stack 2 EK 28mm 22 FPI rads together you would end up with a 56mm rad equivalent, but with 22 FPI, while finding a 60mm rad with 20+ FPI could be difficult. It will perform worse than a 56mm 22 FPI rad though, but you can sandwich another fan in between.

Yea you're right but better FPI is not relevant if you cannot even physically mount your rads, how would you mount two rads together to the same fans exactly?

[PKLee]

2 minutes ago, Olaf6541 said:

Yea you're right but better FPI is not relevant if you cannot even physically mount your rads, how would you mount two rads together to the same fans exactly?

Well you could sandwich a fan between two rads, then another fan on one side, or both sides.

 

Again, this is just some random crazy idea, I'm not gonna do it. It requires not only extra rad and fan but also more fittings and tubing. I just wonder if stacking two slim rads would be equivalent to a thick rad.

[Olaf6541]

1 minute ago, PKLee said:

Well you could sandwich a fan between two rads, then another fan on one side, or both sides.

 

Again, this is just some random crazy idea, I'm not gonna do it. It requires not only extra rad and fan but also more fittings and tubing. I just wonder if stacking two slim rads would be equivalent to a thick rad.

Yea I guess you could conclude that stacking rads could be a solution is some cases but it is always better to use rads separately (more surface > more cool air), also extra mounting difficulty, extra parts needed do not make it a very good solution in general.