Watercooling upgrade project

Discussion in 'Overclocking, Cooling & Modding' started by Chai, Feb 26, 2014.

  1. Chai

    Chai Administrator Staff Member

    More than a year ago, I bought a new Corsair 650D casing, hoping to increase space and tidying up the case. But after using it for more than a year, the tubing started to kinked and affected the water flow.

    http://forums.techarp.com/lounge/7941-arp-s-new-toy-bragging-corner-541.html#post369941

    With a reservoir top on the pump, I can reduce tubing, and also improve performance.

    DSC_5103.jpg

    It's also time to refurbish this setup. The pump, old reservoir, radiator are easily more than 6 years old, and it is still working fine, just.

    Mechanically, the pump is still working fine. Radiator looks fine other than the glossy paint. I used a matt spray paint to renew the look. Some before and after spray.

    DSC_5107.jpg DSC_5112.jpg

    Swiftech Apogee XT still looks good after 3 years.

    DSC_5109.jpg

    More to come...
     

    Attached Files:

    Last edited: Feb 27, 2014
  2. Adrian Wong

    Adrian Wong Da Boss Staff Member

    Did you strip the paint off, or just painted over it?
     
  3. Chai

    Chai Administrator Staff Member

    Just spray over it. The base is still in good condition.
     
  4. PsYkHoTiK

    PsYkHoTiK Admin nerd

    My setup has been running strong for years. I don't think I've ever had a computer this long... Haha!
     
  5. Chai

    Chai Administrator Staff Member

    This is one of the reason why it's time for maintenance. Look at the amount of dust! :nuts:

    IMAG0707.jpg

    I masked the fin area during spray as the fin area will be covered by fan anyway, and spraying over the copper fins may affect the heat dissipation, probably not by much.

    DSC_5108.jpg

    After putting the setup back into my system, I noticed a number of issues. The pump finally stopped working properly (probably due to my fault as I didn't bleed the system well).

    After researching online, there's a good aftermarket PCB replacement for my pump called DIYINHK. It was supposed to offer MCP355 performance without much noise increase.

    DSC_5115.jpg

    This is how the old one looks like.

    DSC_5113.jpg DSC_5117.jpg

    This is how the new one looks like after soldering.

    DSC_5121.jpg

    It worked very well, for about an hour... more to come...
     
  6. Adrian Wong

    Adrian Wong Da Boss Staff Member

    That is a lot of dust! :D
     
  7. Ishtim

    Ishtim Super Moderator

    What radiator is that? What block is that?:think: OK, Apogee XT (same here)

    I have recently disassembled all my stuff and went back to air as power supply was flaky... :think:

    So do you use the copper additive in the coolant?
     
  8. Chai

    Chai Administrator Staff Member

    It's one of the early Swiftech MCR320 radiator.

    I'm using Swiftech HydrX coolant mixture. It's not pretty, but it works.
     
  9. PowerSlide

    PowerSlide Just Started

    i love watercooling setup

    do show pic after done refurbishing
     
  10. Chai

    Chai Administrator Staff Member

    Wow... I have actually just completely my build last night, but with a lot of drama!

    One of the hose actually shoots out of the waterblock and sprayed the water every where! I tried drying it with hair dryer, wipe with cloth, took out the motherboard and inspected each components carefully, but nothing worked.

    Thankfully after 1 whole night of drying, the system started fine in the morning, which is like 30mins before I posted this...

    I will take a picture of the complete build once I'm back from work, hopefully.
     
  11. Chai

    Chai Administrator Staff Member

    I took a few nice photos of the setup. But I made another bigger mistake. I tried to tighten the hose by pushing against the processor. Sprung a minor leak, and suddenly the system crashed. It looks like the processor has shorted while I was pressing against the socket, causing the processor to bend. Since then, I couldn't boot up the machine anymore. Let's see what happens in the morning. But it doesn't look good. Looks like Haswell refresh is my only option now. :haha:

    Sent from my Nexus 7 using Tapatalk
     
    Last edited: Apr 29, 2014
  12. Adrian Wong

    Adrian Wong Da Boss Staff Member

    OMG... was your rig running when that happened?? :shock: :shock:
     
  13. Adrian Wong

    Adrian Wong Da Boss Staff Member

    ANOTHER leak??? :shock: :shock:
     
  14. Chai

    Chai Administrator Staff Member

    Leak didn't cause the damage. It was due to processor short circuit in the socket. Yup it was still running during the short.

    Sent from my Nexus 7 using Tapatalk
     
  15. Adrian Wong

    Adrian Wong Da Boss Staff Member

    Any luck today?

    The processor and the motherboard should have short circuit protection. If you dry them properly and start them up again, they should work.
     
  16. Chai

    Chai Administrator Staff Member

    Nope, it wasn't the water. I was basically shorting the processor pins by pushing the processor against the socket really hard while it was running because I was trying to push the hose in. This causes the board to flex until it shorted the pins. I will take a photo of a slightly burnt processor one I get it running again.

    Sent from my Nexus 7 using Tapatalk
     
  17. Chai

    Chai Administrator Staff Member

    I finally bought the new z97 motherboard! One of the first few owners in Malaysia according to one of the low yat shops. Will post pics later.

    Sent from my HTC One X using Tapatalk
     
  18. Chai

    Chai Administrator Staff Member

    I started with repairing the pump, and ended up wasting a lot of money for nothing in the end.

    These are supposedly high quality replacement for the old and complicated PCB.
    DSC_5115.jpg DSC_5121.jpg DSC_5127.jpg

    This is the stock PCB.
    DSC_5117.jpg

    But both ended up burning at the solder joint. I have no idea what happened and what causes it. The seller said it is due to overvolted 12V from the PSU. But my system has been running fine for over 3 years with the current Corsair TX650.
    DSC_5179.jpg DSC_5180.jpg

    This is one of my saddest repair job at that point...
     
  19. Chai

    Chai Administrator Staff Member

    After giving up repairing the old MCP350, I looked for the next best option, MCP35X. It is PWM speed control, which is perfect for my quest for quiet water cooling setup.

    It is a quality product, but to get it shipping from US, probably cost like an atomic bomb.
     

    Attached Files:

  20. Adrian Wong

    Adrian Wong Da Boss Staff Member

    Since it's only one item I guess you have no option. If you have a few items, I think there are companies that combine your shipments for a cheaper delivery cost to Singapore. I can always get a relative to collect it for you for forwarding to Malaysia.
     

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