why you shouldnt neglect proper loop maintenance

[Mcnumpty2323]

just spent a few extremely frustrating days
replaced my gpu with one with active backplate
no matter which in/out ports i tried
and i tried all 6 combinations in the end up
couldnt get more than a dribble of flow return to the distro
obviously as it happened while changing gpu
i was fixated on somehow i was installing it wrong

but was either just a coincidence
or the added active backplate was just too
much and broke the camels back
so to speak

due to health reasons
not been maintaining my loop as i should
few years of using red dye
not even pastel or fancy shimmering coolant
led to this

gpu benchmark test when first installed
click for bigger images




gpu idle after finally figured it out



gpu benchmark [superposition extreme setting] after figured it out



and finally the reason why



so actually turned out to be
separation of the red dye in the cpu microfins
and jet plate
weirdly there was no real noticeable impact on cpu temperature
combined with as i was fitting a new gpu when it happened
the cpu block was the very last thing i checked

just goes to show
even experienced watercooling guys can make mistakes
so the moral of the story
dont neglect your loop maintenance lol
it leads to a load of hassle in the end up

 

[Parsley]

Well... that'll do it .

White Pastel did similar to me (though I cleaned it before it became a problem, fortunately) so now I just run clear coolant. As I'm getting older and turning into Victor Meldrew, I'm getting over fancy colours and turning grey in many ways .

See through block tops do help with this aswell.

Glad you have it sorted, you'll get all your performance back!

 

[Mcnumpty2323]

In my defence
Never used an active backplate before
And the EK manual was ####
It just said our direct link backplate please connect
2 tubes
No mention of which ports you were
Actually meant to use
After trying all 6 combinations in the end
2 don't really work
2 work but not as well
2 work best
Would be interesting to see the flow inserts
But no way am I going to drain it all again
And disassemble it to find out lol

I guess the clogging wasn't really affecting the cpu
As compared to the gpu
It's putting out 30% of the wattage and less heat to dump

All well that ends well lol
Got the gpu from a friend so knew it would work
So had to be something my end
Was just unfortunate set of circumstances that made me
Have to try all 6 combinations of gpu ports
Before looking at a different part of the loop

And yeah also getting older
And a few more grey hairs after all that

 

[Jay85]

Had a similiar issue but it was down to pastel colours separating and blocking the fins. That was years ago though like early 2000's and since then haven't really used pastels or dyes and gone with straight clear coolant (Halfords Deionised water).

Some oring bits mixed in for good measure too

 

[Mcnumpty2323]

Mine had more gunk than yours lol
But definitely no bits of O ring in mine

Really I should blitz the whole thing
And use clear coolant
Since nowadays everything has leds
So can sort of add colour that way instead
But I can't even pick the pc up anymore
To take it into another room
So That I can properly flush it out
Working on it in situ is a PITA
A good workspace makes life so so much easier

 

[Bruno.88]

Had a similiar issue but it was down to pastel colours separating and blocking the fins. That was years ago though like early 2000's and since then haven't really used pastels or dyes and gone with straight clear coolant (Halfords Deionised water).

Some oring bits mixed in for good measure too

I ve learnt the lesson too, ever again will use coloured water in pc!!

 

[Drumroll]

Had issues with the active backplate when it was launched. Supplied screws were wrong size, even started a thread here to alert people.
Regarding coolant, yes. Been there, had a headache with the solid one from Mayhems. Had to open even a bay reservoir to remove the residues. Never again.
Nowadays can’t bother with WC. Got too expensive, a lot of components don’t go through proper QC, and becomes a lot about RGB than performance.

 

[Mallers]

Hi, what maintenance is generally needed please? OR do you have a link to a simple explanation? I just bought new parts, a new MSI mobo and an i9-14 series, and the computer shop who was building said they couldnt get air cooling to fit on that in the dark base pro 901, so ive got a Corsair icue h150i elite capellix xt AIO now. never had water colling before, is it something that i can just leave forever or do i have to do something eveyr so often to keep it going? Apart from general cleaning of any dust build up?

 

[Mcnumpty2323]

Hi, what maintenance is generally needed please? OR do you have a link to a simple explanation? I just bought new parts, a new MSI mobo and an i9-14 series, and the computer shop who was building said they couldnt get air cooling to fit on that in the dark base pro 901, so ive got a Corsair icue h150i elite capellix xt AIO now. never had water colling before, is it something that i can just leave forever or do i have to do something eveyr so often to keep it going? Apart from general cleaning of any dust build up?

Most AIO are sealed units
So maintenance free
Though after years of use coolant may permeate
Through the tubing

 

[Drumroll]

Also, only if temperature starts raising down the line, the usual repaste.
Considering that most CPUs nowadays will boost close to their thermal limit, some well recommended thermal paste won’t be as long life as they used to be. Some will pump out of the temperature is over 80C often.
After trying few different thermal pastes, I was impressed with the Gelid GC Extreme and the new Arctic MX6. The Arctic is quite cheap, considering the other options around.
Regarding the AIO, they could’ve used an air cooler, I don’t see why a Phantom Spirit wouldn’t fit inside that case, but the reason is the i9. To avoid issues, an AIO is the best option, without much tweaking required.

 

[Sin_Chase]

One of the reason I always use clear coolants. Cant be arsed doing maintenance and clear coolant will run for years without any issues

 

[Parsley]

But it doesn't look as good!

 

[dfour]

But it doesn't look as good!

I would much rather not have the issues that come with it.

 

[Wing-Man]

if you want red, blue or what ever buy coloured tubing and use clear fluid

 

[T1Cybernetic]

if you want red, blue or what ever buy coloured tubing and use clear fluid

I agree, I use red soft tubing and that's always been in my PC since I first build a loop. 50/50 or 25/75 antifreeze /water mix has been great. I don't get any build up of sludge or anything nasty thankfully and the red tubing looks nice which is a win in my book. I'm tempted to buy black tubing soon though because I'm almost out of red and I think it would look cleaner.

 

[jimhaumman]

Mayhems pastel orange is in my loop close to six years.
I've changed gpu with waterblock and cpu block.
Nothing like that in my old waterblock from my cpu.
Coolant was made in 2014.

 

[cavemanoc]

I've moved to UV dyes instead, partly to avoid staining, and partly as I don't want to maintenance hassle. Seeing this got me thinking - does anyone know if the UV dyes are liable to the same separation issues?

 

[Mcnumpty2323]

I've moved to UV dyes instead, partly to avoid staining, and partly as I don't want to maintenance hassle. Seeing this got me thinking - does anyone know if the UV dyes are liable to the same separation issues?

Believe have seen posts before
Where uv separated
Maybe not as badly as coloured coolant
But think it's still an additive
So likely to separate

Mine cleaned off No problem at least
It's usually things like
The gpu block
Where nickel coating gets tarnished
Even with clear coolant
That tarnishing usually stays
Unless use nickel polish on it
Probably any sort of metal polish would work
As long as its only a mild abrasive

 

[SirConfused]

I ran UV green for quite a few years and didn't have any separation with the mayhems stuff. I did notice that the actual fluorescence completely died off after <6 months, so I wouldn't say that it's less maintenance than any other fluid! I'm running some standard x1 red premix at the moment and haven't had any staining issues despite having the fluid in there for well over a year at a time.

 

[Mr Footlong]

Been there, done that more than once over the years with coloured coolants/additives..... I have given up with coloured coolants now and have boring old clear fluid. Mayhems XT-1 Nuke (clear) is my go-to these days and so far had been spot on.

I would love to use dyes again but I am getting too old for that cleaning malarkey and worry etc .