Water Cooling of CPU...Too Risky or just Paranoid?

[Indianatone]

Hi Guys and Gals,
On one of my main rigs I have a Newegg.com - CORSAIR Hydro Series H75 CW-9060015-WW Water/Liquid CPU Cooler 120 MM installed keeping my FX 8350 around 17C or lower. My sister system has a Cooler Master Hyper 212 with push pull fans and the FX 8320 runs at 17 C or less. Not really any difference in performance. What is scaring the bejesus out of me is as an Electronics guy water and expensive electronics do not mix. A couple of reviews have made me question the water cooler in so much as I ordered another Cooler master 212 from Amazon. The review from LEOPOLD R .on New Egg has me somewhat concerned as does this:
My friends liquid cooling system leaked onto his Titan and sparked an electrical fire. Is the card salvageable? The LC company refuses to reimburse more than $150 for the card. : techsupportgore
I cannot afford to lose my system as I am no longer working and recently did an upgrade on 3 machines costing $1500 to $2000 (my wife was mad for a few till she got her new machine) and have somewhat shot my wad so to speak. What are everyone's thoughts? Am I being paranoid or is it like the dinosaurs in Jurassic Park? When the ride breaks down the Dino's eat the guests. If this cooler leaks bang goes my CPU, GPU, MB and Soundcard at least...

 

[Solarstarshines]

Well i can say Paranoid but really you are being cautious which isn't bad at all

Now Water cooling does have a big gain over air cooling for the fact Idle temps don't tell you anything

When you are putting load on your machine you will see the difference in water and also if you overclock you will be able to go further in pushing speed

Now if you don't do any of that you can just get a decent after market cooler I would say water is for people who overclock and enthusiasts

Water coolers can vary and most of the time Sealed Loops are better then Building your own because when you build your own water cooling system you need to know what you are doing many have ruined machines by not knowing the proper way to install

 

[sygnus21]

I have to say I was up there with you before I put one of those things in my system, but being they've been around for a minute now, even I finally gave in and got one - CORSAIR Hydro Series H100i Water Cooler - Newegg.com

That said, I do frequent inspections on my PC, plus I've already made up my mind that it's only got a life of two years before replacement. But yeah I got one, so...

Yeah, anything can happen, but... see my sig

 

[N00berG00ber]

ive had mine for about 6 months now and move it all around taken it off put it on kinked the tubing, and its all fine. ive left it on unattended etc. im more worried about the pumo going out and the CPU overheating than it actually leaking lol.

but if you get a Corsair, they are REALLY good with their RMAs. ive heard MANY stories where it may have leaked and it shorted their mobo, psu, gpu etc, and they tell corsair that, and corsair usually replaces it for you. so i have good faith in them. but if you want extreme water cooling and want a closed loop, get anything corsair h100i or better.

 

[Layback Bear]

I have one computer with Corsair H50 installed May 2011 and have had no problems. I will be updating this one soon to a H80.
My other computer is in My Specs which has a custom water cooling.
Both are over clocked. For ever day use the AIO water cooler is all one needs in my opinion when every thing is set up correctly. To me all water cooling work best if you use a push/pull fans.
With any water cooling system you must watch for leaks very carefully when you first install them.
The better quality air coolers are very large but work quiet well but you must have the room to install them and also clear the ram.
**What ever you choose you must have very good case air flow for them to work their best.

 

[N00berG00ber]

im getting a max of 62C on the hottest core on my 3770k at 4.2 1.128V on prime. i have one fan in push and its running at a max RPM of 950. so they are pretty good IMO. on my AMD 6350, at 4.6 (idr the exact voltage) i got a max temp of 65C on 1 fan in pull set to silent profile in bios.

 

[Lady Fitzgerald]

Well, I'm one of those who is paranoid about using water cooling. I've seen only a few complaints about leaks ruining a system but that is enough to scare me off. As long as air cooling continues to the job for me, I'll continue to use it. Maintenance is lower and I've yet to hear of anyone complaining about an air leak ruining a system.

 

[N00berG00ber]

Well, I'm one of those who is paranoid about using water cooling. I've seen only a few complaints about leaks ruining a system but that is enough to scare me off. As long as air cooling continues to the job for me, I'll continue to use it. Maintenance is lower and I've yet to hear of anyone complaining about an air leak ruining a system.

HA! never get into 2 stroke racing! lol air leak = worst nightmare and $1k in the hole.

but TBH thw AIO coolers require 0 maintenance. just a dust cleaning every so often.

 

[Indianatone]

Well, I'm one of those who is paranoid about using water cooling. I've seen only a few complaints about leaks ruining a system but that is enough to scare me off. As long as air cooling continues to the job for me, I'll continue to use it. Maintenance is lower and I've yet to hear of anyone complaining about an air leak ruining a system.

That is the way I am leaning, I thought long and hard about whether to use a CPU water cooler but to me this and its similar specked twin are my "pride and joy". I think I am going to remove the water cooler and go to air. The fact that one reviewer of the part I bought had a disaster is a warning for me.
Oh and Jeannie, my Mother was a Scot. One of my finest memories is Tammy and I listening to an impromptu concert by the military marching band at Stirling Castle in Scotland. Drums, bagpipes et al. Bagpipes are really not that bad in small doses.

 

[Lady Fitzgerald]

...Bagpipes are really not that bad in small doses.

I disagree. One of the most incredible experiences I ever had was down in Tucson, AZ several years ago at the Highland Games down there. During an awesome sunset, around 40 pipers took the field and started playing in unison in perfect tune (yes, they can be tuned). And, as if that wasn't awe inspiring enough, they then broke into perfect two part harmony. Definitely NOT a small dose.

I enjoy well played pipes (not just Scottish, either; my favorite is the Irish uilleann pipes) but, face, it, there are lot of people who play them badly. And I have a large collection of bagpipe jokes so brace yourself.

 

[sygnus21]

The net is full of horror stories, and parts fail all the time. There have been uses who reported their power supply exploded causing massive fire damage. Should we Un-plug ours every time we leave home?

Yes, there's a risk in using water coolers, no doubt; but there's also the risk of the above happening with any electrical component in your system.

I bring this up because there's always going to be a "what if"

Anyway good luck on whichever way you go. I was once where you are so I understand

Peace

 

[Lady Fitzgerald]

One has to use a PSU because there is no substitute (and I do turn mine off whenever I go out of town). Usually (unless one really works their system, such as overclocking), one has a less risky alternative to water cooling: air cooling.

 

[Computer0304]

Well you can never be to careful like my sig says |
\ /
But liquid cooling is a great alternative to air cooling and as long as the tubes are not thin, cheap ones, you should be okay. If you want to, you could check the inside of your computer once in a while to make sure there is no developing holes on the tubing.

 

[Indianatone]

There are Power Supplies and there are cheap and nasty power supplies that come with a $30 case claiming 500W output. Downhill with the wind behind as I say. I use Enermax power supplies and have never had one fail. The PC in question has a 1000w gold Enermax 87+ Enermax Revolution 87+ 1000W Review
Probably one of the best money can buy. Water in Electronics and now the fact that with an air cooler there is a chunk of copper and aluminum there to dissipate heat even when the fans have stopped (almost impossible with two fans) and with a water cooler squat.

 

[sygnus21]

Well you can never be to careful like my sig says |
\ /
But liquid cooling is a great alternative to air cooling and as long as the tubes are not thin, cheap ones, you should be okay. If you want to, you could check the inside of your computer once in a while to make sure there is no developing holes on the tubing.

Highly agree with that, especially if you're running any type of water cooling setup. For me, I do regular inspections on my system anyway. Got that habit from being an aircraft mechanic in the Air Force.

Anyway there's always going to be those who doubt so... the OP asked an opinion, we gave it. It's up to him to decide.

Good luck

 

[Britton30]

Opinions are like Uranus, we all have one. here's mine:
I wouldn't be too quick to condemn a product based on an extremely small amount of reported problems. We have many users here at SF who use custom and closed loop water cooling, if there were major problems with one, someone would really make a point to complain about it.

Overall they are safe but it's a mechanical device which can fail and anytime, or never. I have two closed loop coolers. 'been letting one run on the bench for about 2 months with no issues, a Thermaltake Water 2.0 Pro with no problems. The other one is a Corsair H80i and just starting a test run with it.

 

[GeneO]

Hi Guys and Gals,
On one of my main rigs I have a Newegg.com - CORSAIR Hydro Series H75 CW-9060015-WW Water/Liquid CPU Cooler 120 MM installed keeping my FX 8350 around 17C or lower. My sister system has a Cooler Master Hyper 212 with push pull fans and the FX 8320 runs at 17 C or less. Not really any difference in performance. What is scaring the bejesus out of me is as an Electronics guy water and expensive electronics do not mix. A couple of reviews have made me question the water cooler in so much as I ordered another Cooler master 212 from Amazon. The review from LEOPOLD R .on New Egg has me somewhat concerned as does this:
My friends liquid cooling system leaked onto his Titan and sparked an electrical fire. Is the card salvageable? The LC company refuses to reimburse more than $150 for the card. : techsupportgore
I cannot afford to lose my system as I am no longer working and recently did an upgrade on 3 machines costing $1500 to $2000 (my wife was mad for a few till she got her new machine) and have somewhat shot my wad so to speak. What are everyone's thoughts? Am I being paranoid or is it like the dinosaurs in Jurassic Park? When the ride breaks down the Dino's eat the guests. If this cooler leaks bang goes my CPU, GPU, MB and Soundcard at least...

17C ? you both must keep your house really cold!
Most likely that LC system that sparked a fire was custom and not an All-in-one. AIO also can fail. There are also other risks you take DIY.

If you aren't overclocking heavily (> 35% say) then you don't need liquid cooling. Good air cooling will suffice. Sounds like you have cold ambient so air cooling is a no-brainer to me.

 

[Britton30]

Gene, a 35% OC is fairly heavy.

 

[sygnus21]

Opinions are like Uranus, we all have one. here's mine:
I wouldn't be too quick to condemn a product based on an extremely small amount of reported problems. We have many users here at SF who use custom and closed loop water cooling, if there were major problems with one, someone would really make a point to complain about it.

Yeah, what he said

Gene, a 35% OC is fairly heavy.

Yeah, he could use a bit of cooling there

Damn homie you get the double +... too bad I need to spread some love

 

[madcratebuilder]

Hi Guys and Gals,
On one of my main rigs I have a Newegg.com - CORSAIR Hydro Series H75 CW-9060015-WW Water/Liquid CPU Cooler 120 MM installed keeping my FX 8350 around 17C or lower. My sister system has a Cooler Master Hyper 212 with push pull fans and the FX 8320 runs at 17 C or less. Not really any difference in performance. What is scaring the bejesus out of me is as an Electronics guy water and expensive electronics do not mix. A couple of reviews have made me question the water cooler in so much as I ordered another Cooler master 212 from Amazon. The review from LEOPOLD R .on New Egg has me somewhat concerned as does this:
My friends liquid cooling system leaked onto his Titan and sparked an electrical fire. Is the card salvageable? The LC company refuses to reimburse more than $150 for the card. : techsupportgore
I cannot afford to lose my system as I am no longer working and recently did an upgrade on 3 machines costing $1500 to $2000 (my wife was mad for a few till she got her new machine) and have somewhat shot my wad so to speak. What are everyone's thoughts? Am I being paranoid or is it like the dinosaurs in Jurassic Park? When the ride breaks down the Dino's eat the guests. If this cooler leaks bang goes my CPU, GPU, MB and Soundcard at least...

17C ? you both must keep your house really cold!
Most likely that LC system that sparked a fire was custom and not an All-in-one. AIO also can fail. There are also other risks you take DIY.

If you aren't overclocking heavily (> 35% say) then you don't need liquid cooling. Good air cooling will suffice. Sounds like you have cold ambient so air cooling is a no-brainer to me.

That 62F for the north Americans. I suspect the monitoring software is incorrect.

Cooling with h2o is as safe as air if you know what you are doing. I have AIO's that have been running 24/7 for about a year and zero issues. Modded AIO's with out issue and a custom dual pump three sink system. They are as safe as the person doing the assembly. Distilled h2o is not conductive and does not short electrical components. It's common practice to clean motherboards in a dishwasher, when dry they are fine. It's the impurities in h2o that is conductive, not the oxygen and hydrogen atoms. A typical diy loop with distilled water picks up about 40ppm from the brass and cooper used in the components in the first 24hrs, this builds to about 100-150ppm after a period of time. Most responsible diy'ers drain, flush and refill the loop every six months.

I've read some of the stories of hose coming off of AIO's. How hard did you have to pull on that anyway? Did you check the hose clamps before installing? It's not the equipment that fails, it's the operator. The quality of today's h2o equipment is as bullet proof as it gets. It's come a long ways since aquarium pumps and thin plastic tubing.