Connect radiator direct to chassis Mod

[alexkyriak]

With vertical radiators with only two ports, isn’t it always a good idea to have the ports at the top, so as to better prevent air getting trapped? (I’ve only built one system before this so I don’t know the practicals too well but I thought I’d read that somewhere.)

 

[V F]

Yes, unless you enjoy turning the case upside down as the ports wont be the highest part in the loop.

 

[Mcnumpty2323]

Usually vertical with only 2 ports
The ports are put at the top for convenience
And better aesthetics
Firstly because if you have a top rad too
You can go from one to the other easily without
A very long tube run
Or from the cpu
And more importantly if you want to disconnect
The tubes/radiator
If you don't have the drain valve empty the rad
When the ports are at the bottom
You're going to need a lot of paper towels
I have put the 2 ports at the bottom in the past
But it just doesn't look as good
If you need a really long tubing run
With soft tubing anyway as can't get it dead straight
Like you can with hard tubing

It's not as much of an issue in custom loops
Because we can bleed and top up coolant
But with AIO you actually should have
The ports at the bottom
It's not an issue when they're relatively new
But after years of use once some coolant has permeated out
If the ports are at the top
Then so is the air
Which means that the pump is sucking in less fluid
And possibly air

 

[alexkyriak]

Ok, solved the "hold down the rad" conundrum, quite simple in the end. Yes, thanks to Mr.Drill again (my case feels like it's more holes than metal right now... )

Have drilled a few holes in the base and fed through some screws which engage with the Varder fan rubber mount holes and into the fan's "chassis". So this connects the radiator into the floor, and holds it against the brackets I installed previously. It's so minimal you can hardly see it, but it works well I think.

 

[Mcnumpty2323]

Yep wouldn't even notice those
The pencil marks are more visible lol
Really coming together now
Cant wait to see more pictures as it progresses
Forgot if already asked
Coloured coolant?
White or even black coolant may look great
Don't see black coolant used often at all

 

[alexkyriak]

Not sure about coolant colour, can’t decide. Was wondering if I should go for a bold colour like blue or red, or keep it clear and let the lighting hues give it the interest.

Black coolant… hmm. That sounds interesting. Is it intensive in terms of having to clean out every 2 months due to all the colouration in that type of coolant?

Was thinking to go pure distilled water or clear cryofuel to keep out all the colourations. Or at least use a dye.

 

[Mcnumpty2323]

Not used pastel coolant myself
Just dye
But for a really solid looking colour pastel definitely
Will look better than dye
Have seen people say they had problems with pastel
But usually that's what happens
You see more people on forums complaining
That something didn't work right
Than you do saying it's great
Only thing I ever had issues with was aurora
So wouldn't recommend the shimmering coolants
Though even those may be made differently now
It's possible people who had issues may not
Have fully flushed components
Or maybe left the pc turned off for extended periods of time
I would imagine there are plenty people who love pastel
And have had absolutely no issues with it

 

[im4gine3]

pastel colours for pictures.. then bleed and fill with plain deionized water and drop of concentrate.. or premix liquid.

I personally don't run pastel colours as normal as it can be a pain if/when blockages occur, and more of a pain dismantling everything including the blocks themselves to clean. You won't get that hassle using clear liquid

 

[alexkyriak]

Thanks, was thinking clear, with perhaps a dye. Presume this counts as ‘clear’, and not ‘sludgy pastel’?

 

[Chockymonster]

I had a 60mm ek xe rad with push pull fans (noctua underneath, ek vardar on top)
I have an EK riser that fitted with a small mod to the riser (cutting off the bottom support)
Card is still rock solid with a 3080 FE and ek block.
I’ve since given up with push pull as it made next to no difference on loop temp.

Hi all, I am considering ways of fixing a push pull 60mm radiator directly to the base surface of a Lian Li 011D XL. Ie, without the dedicated fan mounting bracket. I know it’s probably foolish, so I’m only considering it….

Ideally it would be done in a non-destructive way but this doesn’t seem feasible. I don’t think there are products out there than can do this.

If I were to mechanically fix it, this would mean drilling holes in the chassis, either to line up with the fan hole spacings, or, to fit some form of bracket to restrain the rad and fans combo. But again, am unaware of any products that can do this.

This is all because I stubbornly wanted to use 60mm push pull in the base beneath a gpu riser. I know it’s probably too much of a long shot and I should just use a 45mm rad on the Lian Li dedicated fan mounting frame that inserts into the bottom of the chassis.

However I thought I might pick your brains before I resign myself to the inevitable! Cheers guys

 

[alexkyriak]

On my build in progress, I’ve got two push/pulls out of the three rads. Maybe I’ve gone a bit ott… prob way overkill.

 

[im4gine3]

Thanks, was thinking clear, with perhaps a dye. Presume this counts as ‘clear’, and not ‘sludgy pastel’?

yeah thats fine

 

[alexkyriak]

Long time no post but here are some vids of the loop just set up and removing air bubbles.

AK PC water loop test 02

Water loop test 02

youtu.be

AK PC water loop test 01

Quick test of the water loop bleeding out the bubbles

youtu.be

Was struggling with air bubbles, realised I had pumps going too fast. There are a bunch of static micro bubbles in the reservoir and in the gpu, am hoping these will go after a few days.

 

[LuckyBenski]

Long time no post but here are some vids of the loop just set up and removing air bubbles.

AK PC water loop test 02

Water loop test 02

youtu.be

AK PC water loop test 01

Quick test of the water loop bleeding out the bubbles

youtu.be

Was struggling with air bubbles, realised I had pumps going too fast. There are a bunch of static micro bubbles in the reservoir and in the gpu, am hoping these will go after a few days.

I usually find clingy micro bubbles that look like inside a glass of Coke, go by themselves after a day or two yeah

 

[alexkyriak]

Ok cheers @LuckyBenski that’s reassuring, I will monitor them. I think I’ve got all the main bubbles out. Will keep running for an hour or two then time for first boot up.