radiator placement

daven1986 · 9 May 2006 at 13:14

Hi, I want to mount my 120.2 radiator on the back of my case, however the only way i can mount it is so some is in-line with my psu exhaust fan, the air that comes out is warmish - would this have a really bad effect on my cooling?

If so i'll mount it on the top of my case.

thanks

daven

Jimbo Mahoney · 9 May 2006 at 13:33

Yup, that will suck. (no pun intended!).

Get it as cool as air as you possibly can, ideally as an intake for your case rather than an exhaust.

daven1986 · 9 May 2006 at 13:36

right in that case it is going on the top!

thanks

daven

G33K · 9 May 2006 at 13:39

I disagree... the air coming out isn't going to be that much hotter. I'd be suprised if it made more than a degree or two's difference to the temperature of your water-cooled components. Another advantage of sticking it behind the PSU is that you won't need an extra fan. Just duct the airflow from the PSU into your radiator for a very quiet setup! You may even find that the radiator acts as a baffle, lowering the amount of sound that the PSU normally emits

daven1986 · 9 May 2006 at 13:44

the air is 4 degrees hotter coming out of the psu.

also do you have any idea what the capacity of a 120.2 radiator is?

thanks

G33K · 9 May 2006 at 14:22

I'd be suprised to see the CPU temperature rise by that much if you moved the rad to the top of the case (or where ever).

Capacity? As in how much heat it can dissipate? Depends on the radiator

daven1986 · 9 May 2006 at 14:36

capacity as in litres!

G33K · 9 May 2006 at 15:13

I would make a very crude guess of about 1/2 it's external dimensions.. ?

daven1986 · 9 May 2006 at 15:16

lol thanks - should have enough coolant then

I am going to use some DangerDen mct-5 coolant, if there isn't enough can I top it up with distilled water?

jellybeard999 · 9 May 2006 at 15:25

daven1986 said:
lol thanks - should have enough coolant then
I am going to use some DangerDen mct-5 coolant, if there isn't enough can I top it up with distilled water?

if you want, but that defeats the point of using mct-5

daven1986 · 9 May 2006 at 15:33

i suppose, but i'd only be topping it up with VERY little distilled water, as i should have enough mct-5.

also do i have to clean my radiator before use? it is an xspc 120.2 V

thanks

daven

G33K · 9 May 2006 at 16:53

To be honest, I wouldn't bother with the fancy coolants. I've been watercooled for about 5 years now and started with propper distilled water, water wetter etc... What I've come to realise is that it really doesn't make much difference. Just plain old distilled water works well and doesn't cloud up too quickly. I run tap water in my server (used to be my main machine)... and it's been going for about 5 months!

Probably wouldn't hurt to at least flush it out (just hold it to the tap and give it a blast, once or twice in each barb).

daven1986 · 9 May 2006 at 17:11

ok thanks. as i read on xtreme systems how you should run water through it many times, then soak it in vinegar etc.

don't get me wrong i don't want to be lazy (well i do) but this seems like a lot of hassle!

I'll do as you suggested then

thanks

daven

G33K · 9 May 2006 at 17:14

You'll only need to do that sort of thing if you've bought a second hand oil cooler / radiator / heater matrix from a scrap yard (those were the days!!). For a shop-bought one, that's definitely overkill

gr1mey · 9 May 2006 at 17:31

the system I built using a 120.2 rad, 1/2 tube and a 5.25 dangerden res, took about 1 1/2 litres

Drazic · 9 May 2006 at 18:09

When i was OC'd to 4.3Ghz and playing FEAR my PC+P got hot and power was needed, fact it took 475W once at peak!!!

The fan on these also speed up

Go for rad up top. What i'm doing on my rig now just to cool my GFX