AIO orientation question

greenbrucelee · 26 Apr 2020 at 15:22

I've been told that if you front mount an AIO that the radiator should be positioned so the hoses/tubes are coming from the bottom and not the top as it can cause air bubbles and cause coolant to disapate quicker is that true?

also if positioning an AIO at the top of the case should the AIO be above the cpu or does it not matter? for example if the top of my cases can take a 420mm AIO but I put in a 280mm AIO and have it near the exhaust fan?

greenbrucelee · 26 Apr 2020 at 20:04

Mcnumpty2323 said:
Makes sense
Though never had an AIO in front of the case
Though the length of tubing may be a factor if can do it
For top mounted shouldn't matter
I have done nearer to rear exhaust like
You mentioned
And nearer to front of the case too

thanks for the reply. If I do mount the cooler at the front Ill put it with the tubes coming from the bottom as there will be enough length. I'm getting the artic freezer 2 btw

greenbrucelee · 26 Apr 2020 at 21:38

Mcnumpty2323 said:
Yeah in theory then any air bubbles
Would rise to top of the radiator and remain there

thanks

greenbrucelee · 28 Apr 2020 at 15:10

Mcnumpty2323 said:
You're welcome mate

How much difference is there between 280mm and 360mm and which would be quieter?

greenbrucelee · 28 Apr 2020 at 15:38

Mcnumpty2323 said:
Sometimes you will get basically same results or close enough to be within margins of error
And 140mm fans should be little quieter

Thanks. I think the 280 will fit in the top of the case without any hassles but the 360 will only fit in the front and will involve reversing the fans and a bit of fiddling

greenbrucelee · 28 Apr 2020 at 15:50

Mcnumpty2323 said:
On top you can also use it as exhaust if wanted
Few degrees difference from intake on cpu temps but does get more warm air
Out the case

Yeah. Because the radiator is so thick having the 360mm will totally block access to CPU header and RAM if I put it at the top but the 280 will give me a bit of space

greenbrucelee · 28 Apr 2020 at 17:04

Mcnumpty2323 said:
Luckily most cases have slots rather than just holes now
So being able to slide it further back/forwards is really useful

Yeah mine does (fractal r6 tempered glass, open layout)

TheVoice said:
I've got the hoses at the top on my Corsair H115i, pretty sure that was the recommended mounting at the time. Seems there are arguments in favour of either arrangement.

It's probably negligible in the amount of coolant loss. Most people have hose at top

greenbrucelee · 29 Apr 2020 at 07:28

Mcnumpty2323 said:
Luckily most cases have slots rather than just holes now
So being able to slide it further back/forwards is really useful

It appears that the 280mm is sold out everywhere however the 360mm isn't. Should I wait or just get the 360?

greenbrucelee · 29 Apr 2020 at 16:35

Mcnumpty2323 said:
Personal choice really
Depends how soon you want it
You can ask in customer support section
How long till they get more
Or if they can order you one in

Appears sold out on all now ETA is may

greenbrucelee · 30 Apr 2020 at 07:54

Mcnumpty2323 said:
Guess it's whether you want one quickly or not then unfortunately
Though may is only couple of days away
Now

It says 19th of may now

greenbrucelee · 30 Apr 2020 at 16:05

Mcnumpty2323 said:
Not totally surprised
They're selling more stuff than at xmas
With all the work from home people
And people self isolating buying stuff
To cheer them selves up
Just had to buy a printer and they're in severe short supply same as webcams

I need a printer too

greenbrucelee · 30 Apr 2020 at 20:31

Mcnumpty2323 said:
I managed to grab one of the last
Printer/scanners in argos
And they deliver until 11pm tonight
It's 4 minutes away according to text
Messages

Cool

greenbrucelee · 2 May 2020 at 15:26

marlies said:
The primary purpose of trapping the air at the closed end of the radiator is to prevent the air from getting to the pump/block of an AIO. Fluid permeation will still take place through the hoses, and only the hoses, not through any other parts of the cooler. The reason you do not want the the air to get to the pump is because it will cause unwanted noise, and it can also cause accelerated wear.

For custom/open loops, you want the exact opposite radiator placement to ensure the air get out of the radiator, and into the reservoir. It is also why the order of the loop matters, not because of performance difference, but to help bleed the system quickly without extra noise (pump should 'suck' from reservoir to prevent air from getting into the pump, which would usually require it to be pulsed to get the air out, creating unnecessary noise).

thanks for that. So I should have the hoses coming from the bottom if I put it at the front of the case?

greenbrucelee · 2 May 2020 at 20:03

marlies said:
If it's an AIO, yes.

Just shake the radiator, it's pretty obvious if there's gas inside, even a brand new unit will have some gas inside. The older the AIO, and the higher the fluid temperature is (linked to heat load vs radiator size), the quicker it will permeate through the tubing. E.g. a 240mm AIO on a Core i9 CPU will suffer quicker fluid loss than the same AIO model on a Core i5, generally speaking.

If you change your AIO every 4-5 years (Asetek gives a MTBF of 50k hours for their gen 4 and 5 stuff, not sure about the newest gen 6), you are not going to witness this problem, especially if you mount it correctly so the gas never have a chance to enter the pump. Most users only become aware of issues when something changes in their system (odd noise from gas trapped in the pump/block in this instance). It's only when you run the AIO past its rated specs (Asetek consumer units are supposedly tested to a fluid temp of 60c). Also keep in mind the models with bigger radiator have more fluid inside to counteract against permeation when mounted correctly.

Thanks