Quick Clarification on Hard Drive Cooling.

BrianW · 01-13-2003, 11:51 AM

OK I want to make a simple hard drive water cooling solution. I have read that Hard Drives are designed to release heat through their sides. Does anyone know if this is true?

Thanks in advance.

Brian W

Mikey Boo · 01-13-2003, 12:54 PM

ive heard that the sides do get hotter also. ive seen guys make heatsinks for the sides that brought the temps down. i guess the best way to find out, is take ur hard drive out of the case sit it on top and touch the sides, top and bottom over a period of time. then u will know for sure...

Brians256 · 01-13-2003, 01:13 PM

I really don't know the answer to your question, but I do know what some people have said.

First, I believe that the major heat producer is the motor, not the electronics, and the motor heat is mainly in the spindle. The spindle releases it's heat through the middle of the PCB, not the sides of the drive.

Second, there is an article on ProCooling specifically about cooling your hard drive. Score! Look here:
link. So, even if the heat isn't being produced near the case, it seems you can cool the whole drive (enough) by cooling the HD case. The PCB and motor seem to be able to dump enough of their heat into the case to keep things running OK.

BrianW · 01-13-2003, 01:45 PM

So do you think that if you had two waterblocks running alongside the harddrive you would get sufficient cooling?

Brian W

bigben2k · 01-13-2003, 01:56 PM

Covered here and here .

BrianW · 01-13-2003, 01:59 PM

So what do you think bigben? Do you think it would cool sufficiently?

Brian W

bigben2k · 01-13-2003, 02:05 PM

I'd do it, yes. In fact, when I have time (which I never do...), I'll rebuild the drive cage for side waterblocks.

BrianW · 01-13-2003, 02:17 PM

Here are some pics that my brother helped me make. We are noobs with this 3d modeling so bear with us. It is designed to also act as a conversion kit to mount your hard drivew in a 5.25 slot. As most of us have to remove those 3.5 slots for our mods anyways.

Top View

Bottom View

Front Top View

Front Bottom View

Rear Top View

Rear Bottom View

BTW: That Grey box is supposed to be a hard drive. The connections would be adjacent to the barbs.

Edit: My Brother took that noob comment to heart and modeled an old Hard drive he had hanging around. The pics have been updated.

8-Ball · 01-14-2003, 05:26 AM

That looks pretty good.

Two points of interest, the nice big flat metal surface is insulated from the resto of the drive by an o-ring. It may look like a good place to stick a waterblock but you can do better.

Also, think about HD manufacturers. If you have a problem with heat management, users will be screwing a large piece of metal, (your case) to the sides of the drive. I have heard that they do try and get the heat to the side of the drive, this being one of the reasons why.

gmat · 01-14-2003, 06:44 AM

The reason is that the motor is situated on the lowest part of the drive. Usually HDDs are made out of 2 parts, sandwhiching an o-ring. Thus the upper part is insulated from the hot components (electronics, motor) which are on the lowest part.
Since you cannot stick any cooler under most drives - often electronics are exposed - what's left is the sides.

BrianW · 01-14-2003, 08:12 PM

Thanks again guys. It is a privilege to be part of such a great community. I will update with pics if I make any revisions, or i actually get it produced.

Brian W

01-13-2003, 11:51 AM	#1
BrianW Cooling Savant Join Date: Jun 2001 Location: Desert City in California Posts: 631	Quick Clarification on Hard Drive Cooling. OK I want to make a simple hard drive water cooling solution. I have read that Hard Drives are designed to release heat through their sides. Does anyone know if this is true? Thanks in advance. Brian W __________________ Water Cooled Inwin Q500 (Dual Rads: Rad1 = DTEK Pro Core \| Rad2 = Blick Ice Estreme, Hydor L30, Dangerden Maze2, Bay Res Typhoon Reservoir, 1/2 " DD Tygon Thick Wall Hose). Flow: Res, Pump, CPU watervlock, Y into both rads, both rads into res independently. Athlon XP 1800+ (@ 1731 - 150mhz fsb.), on a Asus A7N266-c, and a Radeon 9000 *waiting for RMA'd Saphire 9800 ultra from Newegg)

01-13-2003, 12:54 PM	#2
Mikey Boo Cooling Neophyte Join Date: Feb 2001 Location: Alberta, Canada Posts: 78	ive heard that the sides do get hotter also. ive seen guys make heatsinks for the sides that brought the temps down. i guess the best way to find out, is take ur hard drive out of the case sit it on top and touch the sides, top and bottom over a period of time. then u will know for sure... __________________ Watercoolin + a leak = a wet floor

01-13-2003, 01:45 PM	#4
BrianW Cooling Savant Join Date: Jun 2001 Location: Desert City in California Posts: 631	So do you think that if you had two waterblocks running alongside the harddrive you would get sufficient cooling? Brian W __________________ Water Cooled Inwin Q500 (Dual Rads: Rad1 = DTEK Pro Core \| Rad2 = Blick Ice Estreme, Hydor L30, Dangerden Maze2, Bay Res Typhoon Reservoir, 1/2 " DD Tygon Thick Wall Hose). Flow: Res, Pump, CPU watervlock, Y into both rads, both rads into res independently. Athlon XP 1800+ (@ 1731 - 150mhz fsb.), on a Asus A7N266-c, and a Radeon 9000 *waiting for RMA'd Saphire 9800 ultra from Newegg)

01-13-2003, 01:56 PM	#5
bigben2k Responsible for 2% of all the posts here. Join Date: May 2002 Location: Texas, U.S.A. Posts: 8,302	Covered here and here . __________________ WBTA (Water Block Testing Alliance) Nordic Hardware WC 101

01-13-2003, 01:59 PM	#6
BrianW Cooling Savant Join Date: Jun 2001 Location: Desert City in California Posts: 631	So what do you think bigben? Do you think it would cool sufficiently? Brian W __________________ Water Cooled Inwin Q500 (Dual Rads: Rad1 = DTEK Pro Core \| Rad2 = Blick Ice Estreme, Hydor L30, Dangerden Maze2, Bay Res Typhoon Reservoir, 1/2 " DD Tygon Thick Wall Hose). Flow: Res, Pump, CPU watervlock, Y into both rads, both rads into res independently. Athlon XP 1800+ (@ 1731 - 150mhz fsb.), on a Asus A7N266-c, and a Radeon 9000 *waiting for RMA'd Saphire 9800 ultra from Newegg)

01-13-2003, 01:13 PM	#3
Brians256 Pro/Staff Join Date: Oct 2001 Location: Klamath Falls, OR Posts: 1,439	I really don't know the answer to your question, but I do know what some people have said. First, I believe that the major heat producer is the motor, not the electronics, and the motor heat is mainly in the spindle. The spindle releases it's heat through the middle of the PCB, not the sides of the drive. Second, there is an article on ProCooling specifically about cooling your hard drive. Score! Look here: link. So, even if the heat isn't being produced near the case, it seems you can cool the whole drive (enough) by cooling the HD case. The PCB and motor seem to be able to dump enough of their heat into the case to keep things running OK.

01-13-2003, 02:05 PM	#7
bigben2k Responsible for 2% of all the posts here. Join Date: May 2002 Location: Texas, U.S.A. Posts: 8,302	I'd do it, yes. In fact, when I have time (which I never do...), I'll rebuild the drive cage for side waterblocks. __________________ WBTA (Water Block Testing Alliance) Nordic Hardware WC 101

01-13-2003, 02:17 PM	#8
BrianW Cooling Savant Join Date: Jun 2001 Location: Desert City in California Posts: 631	Here are some pics that my brother helped me make. We are noobs with this 3d modeling so bear with us. It is designed to also act as a conversion kit to mount your hard drivew in a 5.25 slot. As most of us have to remove those 3.5 slots for our mods anyways. Top View Bottom View Front Top View Front Bottom View Rear Top View Rear Bottom View BTW: That Grey box is supposed to be a hard drive. The connections would be adjacent to the barbs. Edit: My Brother took that noob comment to heart and modeled an old Hard drive he had hanging around. The pics have been updated. __________________ Water Cooled Inwin Q500 (Dual Rads: Rad1 = DTEK Pro Core \| Rad2 = Blick Ice Estreme, Hydor L30, Dangerden Maze2, Bay Res Typhoon Reservoir, 1/2 " DD Tygon Thick Wall Hose). Flow: Res, Pump, CPU watervlock, Y into both rads, both rads into res independently. Athlon XP 1800+ (@ 1731 - 150mhz fsb.), on a Asus A7N266-c, and a Radeon 9000 waiting for RMA'd Saphire 9800 ultra from Newegg) Last edited by BrianW; 01-14-2003 at 08:12 PM.*

01-14-2003, 05:26 AM	#9
8-Ball Cooling Savant Join Date: Feb 2002 Location: Oxford University, UK Posts: 452	That looks pretty good. Two points of interest, the nice big flat metal surface is insulated from the resto of the drive by an o-ring. It may look like a good place to stick a waterblock but you can do better. Also, think about HD manufacturers. If you have a problem with heat management, users will be screwing a large piece of metal, (your case) to the sides of the drive. I have heard that they do try and get the heat to the side of the drive, this being one of the reasons why.

01-14-2003, 06:44 AM	#10
gmat Thermophile Join Date: Mar 2001 Location: France Posts: 1,221	The reason is that the motor is situated on the lowest part of the drive. Usually HDDs are made out of 2 parts, sandwhiching an o-ring. Thus the upper part is insulated from the hot components (electronics, motor) which are on the lowest part. Since you cannot stick any cooler under most drives - often electronics are exposed - what's left is the sides.

01-14-2003, 08:12 PM	#11
BrianW Cooling Savant Join Date: Jun 2001 Location: Desert City in California Posts: 631	Thanks again guys. It is a privilege to be part of such a great community. I will update with pics if I make any revisions, or i actually get it produced. Brian W __________________ Water Cooled Inwin Q500 (Dual Rads: Rad1 = DTEK Pro Core \| Rad2 = Blick Ice Estreme, Hydor L30, Dangerden Maze2, Bay Res Typhoon Reservoir, 1/2 " DD Tygon Thick Wall Hose). Flow: Res, Pump, CPU watervlock, Y into both rads, both rads into res independently. Athlon XP 1800+ (@ 1731 - 150mhz fsb.), on a Asus A7N266-c, and a Radeon 9000 *waiting for RMA'd Saphire 9800 ultra from Newegg)

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