Ideal plastic tubing for water cooled computer?

Dear Thomas Reat:

I'd go for silicone. It is relatively inert to ozone, at least better than your other choices. The fans will make ozone. Works well with hose barbs and/or clamps.

Use propylene glycol and water. Or silicone oil (check for compatibility with your tubing choice), so that when your benchtop technician ruptures the tubing, he doesn't smoke the board. Silicone oils are used in more expensive high voltage transformers to conduct heat (for ozone generators for example).

David A. Smith

When I read the original posting, my first reaction was the two materials you don't want to use are silicone and polyurethane. Both have poor mechanical strength compared to other options. Unless your working fluid is highly reactive, I can't think of a good reason to use silicone in this application.

Not likely. Computers mostly use brushless fans these days. If they generated ozone, you'd be able to smell it.

Silicone oil? Only if you're a glutton for punishment. Water is a good choice. Even motor oil would be a better choice than silicone oil.

I would go with blended rubber (neoprene). Check out this link

and later go to and search for "Hose Clamps". Worm drive hose clamps, are cheap and work ok, just make sure that you use right size (if its 2 big for the hose it will not clamp right). If you want something better check out "Smooth-Band Miniature Machine-Screw Hose Clamps". Distilled water is non cunductive, but if you connect everything right there should be no leaks. Also if you go with oil make sure that your pump can take it. Neoprene tubing can handle oil easily, but different kinds of plastics and rubbers can dissolve in oil.

KOzOK

If I was doing it, I'd use polyethylene tubing with compression fittings. Using hose barbs and clamps is just asking for future leaks. So is using any kind of rubber, which degrades over time. PE does not degrade and the compression fittings will last far longer than the computer. I would use a glycol fluid for heat transfer.

But that's just me...

Steve Turner

Real address contains worldnet instead of spamnet

Cooling in a computer is not a demanding mechanical application.

David A. Smith

The only reason to use a glycol/water mix would be if you need the increased freezing or boiling protection provide by the addition of glycol. Otherwise it's addition is detrimental to the convective heat transfer coefficients and heat capacity of the fluid.

If they generated it in any quantity, you could smell it. But most computers are used with CRTs, which do make some ozone, and the computer breathes this in. It is concentration times time that ages materials. A lot of people leave their computer running 24 hours per day.

Why are contact cleaner solutions required when working on old connectors?

1) to blow out the hair balls, 2) to renew the mating connector surfaces which have oxidized.

I was likely off base with the fan in any modern computer. The switching power supply is vented directly outside the case, so it should be a non-issue as well.

David A. Smith

Dear Sporkman:

A little pricey, and cannot be used with silicone tubing. So you'll need to chose a different tubing material.

David A. Smith

compatibility

If you develop a leak, you won't want water in an electrical cabinet. Unless you have a DI system to keep it non-conductive, you'll have damage. They do have hydrocarbon based transformer oils, but more volume/mass is required due to its low specific heat. Silicone may be problematic, but it has some excellent charateristics, including biology doesn't much care for most formulations.

David A. Smith

Dear Ed Ruf:

Some glycols are toxic, so adding it would prevent having biogrowth in your nice warm computer cooling system. Biofilms can clog small ports. Propylene glycol is especially good for this type of application, and not too much is required.

David A. Smith

How long have you driven a car without a radiator leak? In my case ten years. Take a leaf out of the autodesigners' book and use a rubber tube with fabric interlining if necessary....

Brian W

Yes, you'll probably get away with it. On the other hand, a small leak under my hood (which HAS happened to me) doesn't hurt much. Inside of a computer a leak of only a few drops can spell disaster.

Steve Turner

Real address contains worldnet instead of spamnet

The standard procedure in electronics cooling is to put the circulating pump into the loop such that a negative pressure exists (compared to ambient) in the coolant tubing inside of electronics housings.

If you have a leak in the coolant tubing, air is sucked in rather than fluid leaking out.

My message is not getting through: I think the reinforced rubber hose is a *superior* as well as cost-effective solution.

Did you think a plastic hose would last longer or better? I don't!

Brian W

I can think of a very good one...it's very flexible and can be formed into quite tight bends without creasing...This is very important in a water cooling system. Mechanical strength is not really an issue because the system operates only under atmospheric pressure