Curse

Lurid · May 09, 2006, 10:45 PM // 22:45

Cooling Overview

With todays electronics growing ever more powerful, so does the need for more powerful and effective cooling solutions. Several companies that manufactur things like Processors and GPU's have opted for a smaller die size, 130NM to 90NM to 65NM, thus lowering the heat output and making for more performance options. Those of us who dabble in "overclocking" which is the process by which you use your computer components to their fullest, often squeezing more performance out of a component. This with proper caution and care, aswell as knowladge of the subject can safely and effectively boost performance. This comes at a cost though, extra speed often means higher voltages for stability, which creates more heat...thus expanding our problems.

Air Cooling

The time honored tradition of using heatinks / fans to keep your computer components cool. There are two types of air cooling:

1. Passive - Usually older less heat generating, or lower heat output components are passively cooled. If you are doing any overclocking I would not reccomend this option, hell even if your running stock I wouldn't reccomend it.

2. Active - The use of heatsinks with fans placed blowing on them to keep the components cool. Generally the most common type, employing the use of heat pipes to better dissapate the heat. Common types of materials used are : copper and aluminum. Copper disapates heat more easily, though usually not enough for most to care about, around a 2C - 3C difference on average, though it does vary. This is fine and well, though with more heat comes faster fans, which increases the noise and can lead some to seek other cooling options.

Fan Selection

This is a subsection of the air cooling section. Fans are the most common means of heat disspation. Noise to CFM is the key here, lower powered fans are generally more quiet, though they are less powerful and push less air per cubic meter (CFM) Larger fans are generally a better idea, as a 120mm fan can spin slower and produce the same or more CFM than an 80mm fan it is generally more quiet. Some companies lie about their product's noise and CFM, the most notable example of this is "Silent X" they would literally lie about it being a fan, if they could get away with it.

Notable best buys for quiet fans:
Yate Loon
Panaflo
Papst

Notable best buy for high power fans:
Delta

Fan Placement

Fan placement can be critical, I use an empty case with fans connected to a power supply to test "dead spots" in my air flow. In order to do so you take a burning incense and allow it to trail smoke through the fan, then follow its progression through the case. Then you position fans to alleviate the dead spots, for best air flow. Air pressure will equalize itself, through any means necessary so its best to have equal air flow entering and leaving the case. Usually something like: font / side = intake back / top = exhaust.

Fan Myths

1. Stacking fans does not cool more effectively, stacking fans actually causes turbulence, which causes more noise and less air flow. Which in turn transfers into lowered cooling potential.

2. Fans indeed do have a "dead spot" which is the circle where the motor is. This can be allieved in one of two ways, you can move the fan back some with the use of longer screws or you can take two fans. Cut the fan itself out of one, leaving only the outside square, then screw the other (whole) fan into this. This allows the fan to be placed further away from the heat sink, and relieves the "dead spot"

Water Cooling

Water cooling is the process by which a person uses a waterblock and a radiator to cool computer components. Usually the radiator is placed at the front, back, or outside the case with fans mounted on it to cool the water flowing through the system, the water is pumped along by what is essentially an aquarium pump. The water travels through tubing into a waterblock, which has carvings inside of it, that increase surface area inside the block and allow heat to be disapated.

As water has a higher thermal capacity, it allows for more heat to be transferred out, and can be used with larger, lower RPM fans for the same or higher heat transfer w/o increasing noise. When utilized properly water is much more effective than air cooling, especially in its ability to lower load temperatures.

Water Cooling Loop Mounted Image - here

Points to Remember

Always custom any water cooling setup, never buy a kit. You can almost always do a better job for less money than any kit. Larger fans are best, and dual radiators are the best idea whenever possible, radiators come in two flavors: those that are built specifically for computer water cooling and those that are actually designed for automotives and are adapted for this purpose. These are called heatercores, and are much more efficient. Tubing sizes are important aswell, 1/2" tubing is reccomended strongly, aswell as worm clamps to secure the tubing to blocks and etc.... Never cool more than GPU(s) and a CPU, anything more is completely unecessary, as it has no benefit over cooling with air, all it serves to do is add more excess heat to the loop.

Sub-Ambient Cooling

Sub-ambient cooling is the cooling to sub-zero temperatures. This is only useful for those of us who are die hard overclockers, breaking world speed records and pushing components to their absolute limits. These methods are often dangerous and very costly. Methods include:

DICE or LN2

Dry ice (DICE) or liquid nitrogen are used to achieve temperatures in excess of -40 degrees Celcius. These employ the use of complicated setups (LN2) or something as simple as a copper pipe, and a milled base plate that has been fitted to accept the mounting holes on a specific motherboard.

DICE Image - here
LN2 Image - here

Phase Change

Phase change is anything from using a duct from an air conditioner to funnel in cool air to building a custom machine thats only purpose is to super cool air or other gases to cool computer components. Phase change units can be very complicated to build, and quite costly aswell. Usually for those who wish to have a more reliable form of sub-ambient cooling, even though it requires a large and often heavy enclosure to do so.

Custom Unit Image - here
VapoChill Unit Image - here

Water Chillers / Chill Boxes

Often considered a form of phase change cooling, air chillers use modified air conditioners to pump super chilled air into a case, eliminating the need for condensation proofing. Water chillers use a mixture of anti-freeze and isopryl alchohol to resist slushing under extreme temperatures, this mixture is then pumped through a water cooling loop and super cools the components, without as large a problem with size.

Water Chiller Image - here

Thermo Electric Cooling (TEC's)

This is, in my opinion, a very ineffective way to super cool a computer component. It uses thermo electric laws and manipulation to super cool one side of a block, and to super heat the other. The cool side is then applied to the processor, and by means of a water cooling loop the heat from the other side is removed.

This requires large amounts of power and elaborate cooling loops. For current generation processors this is usually very ineffective, as they can rarely cool below ambient at all. With the massive heat loads applied.

TEC Mounted Image - here
TEC Unmounted Image - here

Potential Problems

Cooling below ambient causes condensation, water on electrical components = a bad thing. So you must condensation proof everything that is in harm of coming in contact with the condensation. By use of dyelectric grease and or insulation, or by "air chilling" the entire enclosure, so that everything inside is the same temperature.

These enclosures are often very energy inefficient, large, heavy, and can be quite expensive. These can often without proper care harm both you bodily and your components.

Foreward / Disclaimer

This is in no way the work of anyone not listed below, all images have been credited to their respective owners. All information is my intellectual property, and under no circumstances to be reproduced in any form without my consent. I am in no way responsible for what you do to your computer, and to yourself, if you choose to use any of the above ideas you do so at your own disgression, and in no way hold me liable for any damages you may or may not incur.

This is ever changing, and will be updated based upon popular demand, images soon in coming, along with a more expanded guide for each topic and more, as long as the community wishes me to do so. To my knowladge all of the above information is factual, if not please correct me.

Image Credits

Ssilencer
Jason
Yogi
overmex
hookturn
Wowza

Friends of mine from Extreme Overclocking Forums, wonderful jobs on all their setups.

Narada · May 10, 2006, 04:20 AM // 04:20

Great guide! Awesome informations/explanations! The 'fan myths' was an especially good addition IMO, very unique.

MCS · May 10, 2006, 07:13 AM // 07:13

Wow.... I have like a tiny fan.

Lurid · May 10, 2006, 12:34 PM // 12:34

Thanks for the feedback guys, I intend to expand upon the more traditional cooling options, so that anyone interested in buying a better HSF combo or interested in dabbling with water cooling wil have some point of referance on site. ^_^