Is this fake? Mineral Oil Cooling System

[Kristijonas]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IwdCn1nlAkA

Is it fake? Does it make the PC reliable? Is it actually better than air cooling? Won't it start boiling at some point?

 

[dawp]

No, it isn't fake. mineral oil is just one of the cheaper fluids you could use.

 

[motsm]

The dissipation without cycling can work alright for mid end systems from what I've seen, but higher output systems need a pump to cycle and cool the oil like a traditional water cooling system. I've seen some impressive benches with these setups, it just seems like more of a hassle than it's worth.

 

[eelw]

Why run the fans?

 

[aigomorla]

no its not fake.. and some guy on our forum even took it up one level with a better one.

its a fun project.

Is it worth it? No way, you know how hard it is to clean all that oil off your stuff?

Why run the fans?

because u still need to get fresh oil though the fins for exchange otherwise you will get a heat gradient forming inside the oil.

 

[Kristijonas]

you know how hard it is to clean all that oil off your stuff?

Why clean it and not just leave it all in the oil for as long as the PC runs?

 

[TakeNoPrisoners]

Mineral oil cooling is very real. Not the most practical option. You would burn out the fans at some point by leaving them running like that. They arn't ment to run in oil.

I've seen people use a pump system to circulate the oil.

 

[aigomorla]

Why clean it and not just leave it all in the oil for as long as the PC runs?

things are not made as durable as they used to.

I bet you, in most systems.. you will require at least 1 RMA.

 

[sandorski]

The first time I saw this type of setup was 10+ years ago. It would sort of be cool, but given Upgrades and what not, I think it would get very annoying working with it.

 

[Costas Athan]

But what about thermal conductivity? Water and water based mixtures aren't bater in that area?

 

[BoomerD]

This sounds like a challenge for the folks who make CorrosionX.

I remember their commercial with an operating television fully submerged in the product...

:biggrin:

 

[Costas Athan]

But what about thermal conductivity? Water and water based mixtures aren't bater in that area?

Oh! I hadn't watch the whole video. I thought that the oil was inside pipes. But if you want to fill the whole tower with a fluid it isn't a good idea to use an electrically conductive fluid.

But anyway the question stays the same? What about thermal conductivity? Is it efficient enough?

But besides the efficiency the whole thing isn't too handy. What if you want to perform any kind of maintenance to the PC?

 

[dawp]

Is it worth it? No way, you know how hard it is to clean all that oil off your stuff?

Just run it through a dishwasher, just make sue you let it dry completely before powering it up.

I used to work in a plant that made motherboards for tandy when RadioShack had their own brand in the late 80's into the 90's and basically that is what was used, a big spray washer with a conveyor belt that fed the boards through once all the parts were installed and ran through the wave solderer. The last stage blew the excess water off before they emerged to be stacked and ready for final prep and testing.

If I remember correctly, the water used was de-ionized.

 

[smakme7757]

I'd imagine sending a part back for RMA might be a little bit of a hassle cleaning of all the oil

Edit: (Saw above) Oh, dishwasher...i guess it's not too hard after all lol

 

[lehtv]

Roflmao, cleaning PC components in the dishwasher because they're all greasy from being immersed in mineral oil...

Think I'll just stick to air cooling -.-

 

[T_Yamamoto]

Mobos are waterproof?!

i didnt know that!

 

[Costas Athan]

Mobos are waterproof?!

i didnt know that!

Mineral oil is not electrically conductive so it does not short circuit anything! The most notable use is in electric transformers.

 

[dawp]

Mineral oil is not electrically conductive so it does not short circuit anything! The most notable use is in electric transformers.

I believe he was responding to my post about putting the board (and video card) through the dishwasher, tho it would probably be a good idea to take the heatsinks and any fans off first.

 

[Idontcare]

I believe he was responding to my post about putting the board (and video card) through the dishwasher, tho it would probably be a good idea to take the heatsinks and any fans off first.

With veritable component soup present on today's motherboards, I would be concerned of the galvanic corrosion that will be occurring between all those exposed dissimilar metals which are completing a circuit thanks to the water in the dishwasher.

You don't need an external voltage source to create a voltage differential on the motherboard. Just need dissimilar metals (including the one's exposed in the dishwasher itself) and a conductive circuit provided by the water and the ionic impurities it is dissolving from the mobo itself.

 

[dawp]

With veritable component soup present on today's motherboards, I would be concerned of the galvanic corrosion that will be occurring between all those exposed dissimilar metals which are completing a circuit thanks to the water in the dishwasher.

You don't need an external voltage source to create a voltage differential on the motherboard. Just need dissimilar metals (including the one's exposed in the dishwasher itself) and a conductive circuit provided by the water and the ionic impurities it is dissolving from the mobo itself.

I worked at the Tandy plant before they shut it down and shipped all the equipment to china because it was cheaper even tho our quality was much higher and had fewer rejects. ended up costing them in the end. the plant was first taken over by AST Research when tandy sold their manufacturing side, that was in '93, after '95 it went downhill quickly when they shipped the equipment to china and was out of business by 2000. I left in '97 to work for Southwestern Bell, which is now at&t.

 

[Red Squirrel]

It works fine, but seems like a lot of hassle, and it would SUCK to get a leak!

Pure water apparently works too. It's not conductive like rain or tap water which has minerals in it. Water does eventually cause rust and with that some minerals eventually make it in, so it would not be practical either.

As much as exotic cooling methods are neat, air cooling is still the simplest and if done well does not have to be loud.