Please help with Clogged CPU Block

O

Omarko

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May 29, 2006
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guys, I am new here but I have been searching for answers desperately and I am really hoping someone here can help.

I am new to watercooling and I have bought a 2nd hand WC kit - Evercool WC-201 to cool my new 7900GT. That was the plan originally ... I installed the set up without the CPU block and all is working perfectly keeping the temps very stable (around 30C and 39C on load). Now I have bought a black ice 120mm RAD that I want to add to the loop and hook up the CPU block on my Venice 3500+ which is currently cooled by Arctic Freezer 64Pro (nice and silent, around 30C).

Now this is where the problem came. the CPU block is CLOGGED UP ... (see this website for more details and pics on this kit and CPU Block http://www.bigbruin.com/reviews05/evercoolwc202/index.php?file=3 its a WC202 but the only diff is the pump strength).

when I try to blow into it, only after putting everything into it a very small amount of fluid comes out of the other hole ... now what I have been doing is ... using tube connected to the block I have sucked some metho into it ... close the circuit and shake it vigorously ... also boiled it in hot water for about 10 mins ... small bits and pieces of stuff are coming out ... I have done this procedure 5 times now ... I only managed to get very small bits out ... see this pic:


Click to view full-sized image!

My question is: Is there any chemical (besides acids) or detergent I can use to clean this block ? the previous user told me that he used food colourant ... and you can see on the pic the red colour water and the small bits I assume are dried up food colouring additive ... Any ideas ? suggestions ? THANK YOU !!!
 
DarthBeavis said:
Buy another block
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I'm with this guy. 50 bucks is cheap insurance that some crud won't come out of that block if you get it flowing again and lodge somewhere else in your cooling loop and block it all up.
 
LOL ... I paid AUD 70 for the kit ... not gonna spend $50 on a new block !

I will just keep on flushing it ...

so Vinegar is the answer? I heard that Vinegar doe snot like Copper ... I'd hate to see the block get damaged by som corrosion from the reaction of those two ...
 
thecoldanddarkone has hit the nail on the head with his vinegar suggestion.

pic16.jpg


Ont the other hand, if this is your block, why don't you just dissassemble it and clean it manually? All you need is a phillips screwdriver....?

Acetic (ethanoic) acid is a weak acid, especially when diluted with water in vinegar, and will attack the deposits in the WB but will leave the copper alone. At most, it will remove any surface tarnish and produce a nice shiny finish.

I used to make my own WB's out of copper, with lids brazed on. To remove deposits, I'd heat them up, VERY HOT, on a stove hotplate, and then drop them into a bucket of ice water. The rapid cooling and shrinking of the metal makes the gunk inside crack and separate from the metal, which can then be flushed out with a garden hose.
 
I will try the STOVE heat up ... I hope it wont damage the block ... but hey ... its already in a bad shape ...
 
well ... the block fell APART !!!! LOL

see pic:

Click to view full-sized image!

the amount of dirt there was inside - I would never be able to flush it out ...

will have to try to put it together ... hmmm ...

STOVE - here I come again ...
 
I heated up both parts ... and stuck them together ... took it off the stove and let it cool ... my CPU block is alive again !!! LOL

looks all ok .... may apply some glue to be safe on the edges .... :)
 
Heres a novel idea. PIPE CLEANER !!! Get one with a nylon core ( The part the nylon bristles are woven through, vs the metal core ones ) and it will flex its little heart out so you can clean through any bend : ) . Don't forget to twist it slowly as you push it through tight spaces as to help it work it's wayu through.

And for god's sake don't buy those cheap things used for arts and crafts : /
 
I'm no water cooling expert, but it looks like that block has both copper and aluminum which may be the source of your "gunk".
 
Omarko said:
I heated up both parts ... and stuck them together ... took it off the stove and let it cool ... my CPU block is alive again !!! LOL

looks all ok .... may apply some glue to be safe on the edges .... :)
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Are you kidding? What holds it together? Some solder that you reheated or something else?

Get a new block. That thing is not reliable. It could leak or worse come apart and your PC will be toast when it does.
 
Met-AL said:
Are you kidding? What holds it together? Some solder that you reheated or something else?

Get a new block. That thing is not reliable. It could leak or worse come apart and your PC will be toast when it does.
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QFT!

If you value the rest of your components, do yourself a favor and get a new block. No good can come from trying to make that one work IMO. Your AC freezer should cool almost as well anyway.
 
Completely insane to put the block back together and not realize its going to leak or worse fall apart again and destroy your system. Get a new block.
 
Dont mean to offend anyone but just think for a short while before you go off like that. The block is made completely out of copper and has two parts. You can see them disjointed on the picture. The silver stuff is solder, simple as that. Now do you know what happens to solder when you heat it up and melt it and stick something onto it and then cool it down ? Its as simple as that. How do you think they combined the block in first place? After reheating the solder on both components and sticking it back together, I left it cool off which pressuring them against each other. Now I had water run throught it overnight so far and no leaks. I also bought some heat friendly glue that I will apply around the joints for further insurance all is ok. There is simply NO way it can fall apart. There is not enough pressure inside the pipes to tear it apart.
 
Omarko said:
Dont mean to offend anyone but just think for a short while before you go off like that. The block is made completely out of copper and has two parts. You can see them disjointed on the picture. The silver stuff is solder, simple as that. Now do you know what happens to solder when you heat it up and melt it and stick something onto it and then cool it down ? Its as simple as that. How do you think they combined the block in first place? After reheating the solder on both components and sticking it back together, I left it cool off which pressuring them against each other. Now I had water run throught it overnight so far and no leaks. I also bought some heat friendly glue that I will apply around the joints for further insurance all is ok. There is simply NO way it can fall apart. There is not enough pressure inside the pipes to tear it apart.
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Do what you want, but that block would never be in my system. No way would I trust a block that someone put back together by soldering it with his stove. You didn't use flux, you didn't use any solder except what was left over when you melted it to get it apart. No way would that water block be in my system that is worth at least 1,000 dollars when I could buy a new from the factory block for 50 dollars.

If you do put it back in, I want you to promise to come back here and find this thread and post when it fails and ruins your stuff.

And besides, it looks like a crappy block to begin with. There is a layer of solder between the water and the block. How much does that affect the cooling performance?
 
Omarko said:
Dont mean to offend anyone but just think for a short while before you go off like that. The block is made completely out of copper and has two parts. You can see them disjointed on the picture. The silver stuff is solder, simple as that. Now do you know what happens to solder when you heat it up and melt it and stick something onto it and then cool it down ? Its as simple as that. How do you think they combined the block in first place? After reheating the solder on both components and sticking it back together, I left it cool off which pressuring them against each other. Now I had water run throught it overnight so far and no leaks. I also bought some heat friendly glue that I will apply around the joints for further insurance all is ok. There is simply NO way it can fall apart. There is not enough pressure inside the pipes to tear it apart.
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The way you did it, it definately can fall apart. Hope it stays together for you but honestly its not smart.
 
If you're gonna watercool, do it right, or go air.

Like many others have already said, there's no way I would ever put my system at risk with that thing in it.
 
I'd reuse the block. If it's silver solder, then there's no reason not to recombine the two halves. The silver alloy should be a pretty decent heat conductor. A simple nitric acid test will tell ya if it's silver alloy - the solder should eventually turn greenish if you scratch it and apply a drop of nitric acid.

However, I doubt if it is silver alloy, these things are made to a price. You're probably looking at a normal lead-free antimony/tin solder.

What I would do is:

1) Remove the barbs from the channeled block, if possible.
2) Sand down the base to remove the solder layer, so you have shiny copper. No need to lap it mirror smooth.
3) Sand down the channeled block too, so that you have clean copper mating faces between it and the base). Make sure your block and base mating surfaces are even and flush. Also sand down the sides of the block to bare copper.
4) Next, place the channeled block flat on your stove so that the channel grooves are facing upwards.
5) Heat it up so that you can apply solder to it. Any decent lead-free solder will do.
6) Carefully flux and apply a THIN layer of solder to the upper edges of the channel walls. Use a clean, flat screwdriver to spread the solder. You really want a thin thin layer. Be careful not to let solder fall into the channels. Have some solder wick handy to suck up any blobs of solder that drop in. Make sure the entire mating surface is soldered.
TIP: If your flux turns black and crusty then your heat is too high.
7) When you're done with it, swith off the hotplate, and let it cool down. Wash the block and remove any stray blobs of solder you missed.
8) Then, when you are ready, clean the HS base, and put it face down on your hotplate. smear a thin layer of flux on it, and carefully and squarely align the channeled block on it (the face you previously soldered now mating with the base). Place a heavy piece of iron or some other metal weight on it to press it down. Heat the whole lot up. The solder will melt and join the two halves.
9) When the halves are joined, quickly run a strip of solder around the mating edges to create a waterproof join (where you would have put your glue). Be very quick and don't use too much or it will "hygroscopically" seep into the inside of the block. (A heavy weight on top will help prevent this).

Folks, a block joined this way will be FUCKING STRONG. And it won't leak either.

There is too much satisfaction in making and fixing stuff yourself. This is a hobby, after all. And it increases your leetness quotient way more than just using shrink-wrapped stuff. Plus you learn new things.
 
I'm still saying that in the 2nd torn apart picture it looks like Aluminum and Copper, which in my limited wc knowledge is bad. I'd say chunk it as it seems like the corrosion problem will happen again.
 
Watch out for a WTS parted out gaming rig thread from this guy in the near future matching the parts in his current rig after his block splits at the seam and throws water all over the internals. lol
 
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