Water cooled - sealed ?

_lecro_ · 11 Jul 2010 at 23:51

Just a thought i had the other day,
should a water cooled system a sealed unit or open , maybe have the top off the res..
Seems to me in this really hot weather threres a possibility, with water expansion that a sealed system may blow a gasket ,so to speak

kdouglas1987 · 11 Jul 2010 at 23:56

or spill into your rig? just a thought mind you...

_lecro_ · 11 Jul 2010 at 23:58

Exactly...

momo56 · 12 Jul 2010 at 00:06

Doubt it expands that much to cause a problem. Wouldnt the tubing and stuff expand too ?

kdouglas1987 · 12 Jul 2010 at 00:39

No i meant spill into your rig if it was open topped....but i see what you meant, Isnt the stuff that goes into the water the same stuff that goes into car radiators? If so i think it likely that if engine temperatures dont blow under hundreds/thousands of degrees C, your CPU cooling system will be fine. Im no expert though....

Bubo · 12 Jul 2010 at 08:53

There is absolutely no issue with water expanding in a sealed loop. It simply does not expand to any measurable degree due to fluctuating ambient temperature. If it did then the lid of that bottle of spring water you have next to your pc would have popped off by now.

Think about it, when you run your loop the water temp will rise by say 10-15°C just due to your cpu etc, and this doesn't cause any leaks. Any expansion of water is taken up by compressing the air bubble in the res, in exactly the same way as the expansion tank in your cars cooling system. The fittings, if fitted correctly, are well capable of withstanding this minor pressure change.

cavemanoc · 12 Jul 2010 at 10:40

Bubo said:
...this minor pressure change.

That's the real point - there is a far greater pressure change effected by turning on the pump than would ever be generated by the water expanding (unless you were running your loop hot enough to boil the water of course...

)

_lecro_ · 12 Jul 2010 at 10:45

SO all should be good then unless the pump fails :eek:

Probably not happen its just the thought of fluid gushing all over my lovely gpu

w3bbo · 12 Jul 2010 at 11:30

You will get some expansion but not enough that it should cause any issues, certainly not enough that would cause a leak assuming everything is hooked up correctly. If you are really worried about pressure then unscrew your reservoirs cap slightly which will allow any air out/in as required.

UnworthyBean · 12 Jul 2010 at 13:04

In watercooling, The water temperature normally hovers a few C above ambient and doesn't change much during the course of the loop. Also, water hardly expands during these temperatures so there isn't anything to worry about.

PhillyDee · 12 Jul 2010 at 13:09

kdouglas1987 said:
No i meant spill into your rig if it was open topped....but i see what you meant, Isnt the stuff that goes into the water the same stuff that goes into car radiators? If so i think it likely that if engine temperatures dont blow under hundreds/thousands of degrees C, your CPU cooling system will be fine. Im no expert though....

Car systems have pressure release caps as a fail safe, and an expansion bottle so when the liquid expands, it compresses the air. Yes, it is sealed and pressurised.