I'm about to kill my MCP300 pump

eXacto · 09-12-2003, 11:34 AM

This Swiftech pump is really starting to get on my friggin nerves! I have been running it for a few months now (thank god it hasn't busted a leak) and for a while I would hear a grinding noise at random times from air bubbles. I guess they finally worked their way out because that stopped, but then the impellor sounded like it started to slip and hit on something because it would make a really bad clicking and grinding sound for long periods of time until I hit it a few times or turned it on and off.

NOW my problem is the goddamn vibration! It's so bad I can feel the floor around my computer desk vibrating, and even when I sleep at night I can hear the damn vibrations in my pillow! I have tried several ways to get this ****er to shut up, and have resorted to putting a folded sock underneath it. That cuts the vibrations out dramatically, but after a while the sock must get settled, so the vibrations come back really bad until I adjust the sock again.

How the hell do I get rid of these vibrations? The pad on the bottom of the pump doesn't do jack.

Boli · 09-12-2003, 01:05 PM

Is that GOLD? on it. Now that surely has to go above and beyond the recomended sideways force on the socket.

~ Boli

eXacto · 09-12-2003, 01:06 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by Boli
Is that GOLD? on it. Now that surely has to go above and beyond the recomended sideways force on the socket.

~ Boli

err... what?

TerraMex · 09-12-2003, 01:16 PM

He posted on the wrong one.

Anyway, about your problem.

You can have a bent shaft.
You can have a looser shaft.
You can have a loose impeller.
You can have a damaged impeller.
You can have a damaged shaft.

All of the above. I know it doesnt actually help, sorry.

IMHO, open the pump, check the components. Verify the seals. Check the impeller for cracks, bits broken (balance is affected by different pads) . Do the same with the shaft. And be very very carefull. Usually the shaft is ceramic and it breaks easily with a dry blow.

Boli · 09-12-2003, 01:18 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by eXacto
err... what?

I knew something went wrong.. posted on the wrong thread. Thought I could get away with a nice cover up.

Meant to reply to this: http://forums.procooling.com/vbb/sho...8904#post88904

D'oh!

~ Boli

Quarter · 09-12-2003, 01:41 PM

I'd contact Swiftech and get an RMA for it.
Those pumps have been very troublesome and have recently been pulled from Swiftech's line up.

SCompRacer · 09-18-2003, 07:36 AM

eXacto, did you ever contact Swiftech for an RMA? I have two of these pumps and did some mods that helped to solve noise and vibration issues. I had RMA'd one of the two pumps for a leak and the replacement made the same noise anyway. Be aware that some of these are void your warranty fixes.

There is a time stamp of when the pump was moulded in the face of the pump that the impeller can hit on. One can grind that off.

You can perform the Via Aqua 1300 fix by washing the impeller out in clean water, drying it, and using Super Glue to fix the impeller to the shaft.

Some thin plastic washers (varies with pump) can be placed on the spindle that the impeller sits on. One or two washers will keep the impeller from hitting the face of the pump as it moves back and forth on the shaft. You don't want to shim it out too far, just enough so when you gently push in on the impeller, it won't hit the face of the pump.

The last thing I did was to drill a small 1/16" hole in the end of the impeller. It seems the more restriction I added to these pumps (two CPU blocks and a GPU block) the worse they rattled. Drilling the little hole in the end of the impeller stopped that. I did some flow tests and the mods didn't cause any changes, and the impeller doesn't come out so far as to rub the aluminum inlet. The one pump I have installed now is sitting on a small piece of Dynamat on their pump tray in a PC 70 and is very quiet.

eXacto · 09-18-2003, 07:50 PM

Thanks for your help, but I'm not quite sure how I am supposed to put those washes on. If you could maybe draw it in on one of those pictures it would help me out a lot.

Also, what exactly does that small hole in the front of the impellor do?

SCompRacer · 09-20-2003, 09:27 AM

Sorry I don't have a picture of it, but there is a fixed metal shaft that the impeller sits on. Once you pull the impeller out it is visible. Place a washer on the shaft and insert the impeller. Push in on the impeller gently and if it hits the face of the pump, remove it and add another washer. The magnetic field tends to hold it in one position until the pump runs and other forces overcome it causing the impeller to move in and out. Thats where I felt the rattling noise was being caused by, and it contributed to the vibration.

In regards to what the hole did to solve the problem, I honestly don't know. One would think if the impeller lifts off the shaft while it spins, coolant would flow into that space since there is clearance between the shaft and impeller bore. It is hard to believe a small air pocket would remain between the blind hole of the impeller and metal shaft. When I take the pumps apart, I found traces of a lubricant on the shaft. I tired putting some water resistant grease in the impeller bore and reassembled it. The pump would be quiet for a few days, but it would eventually wash out and the rattling would return. Once I added the hole, they are quiet.

If you attempt to take the pump apart, be aware that the case of the pump is very thin where the lock tabs of the end cap are. To get the end cap out, you can use one of them rubberized cloths that you might have in a kitchen drawer to assist in getting jar covers off. Wrap it around the inlet and twist to remove. You can also cut a piece of hose to wrap around the aluminum inlet and use some pliars. That way the aluminum anodizing won't get damaged. As you reassemble it, push in the end cap while turning so it follows the slope moulded in the pump casing. That way the three ears on the end cap won't stress the thin plastic where the lock tabs rest. If you look at the 12 oclock position of the lower picture in my first post, you can see where I nerfed the plastic with the end cap lock tab.

09-12-2003, 11:34 AM	#1
eXacto Cooling Neophyte Join Date: Oct 2002 Location: San Francisco Posts: 24	I'm about to kill my MCP300 pump This Swiftech pump is really starting to get on my friggin nerves! I have been running it for a few months now (thank god it hasn't busted a leak) and for a while I would hear a grinding noise at random times from air bubbles. I guess they finally worked their way out because that stopped, but then the impellor sounded like it started to slip and hit on something because it would make a really bad clicking and grinding sound for long periods of time until I hit it a few times or turned it on and off. NOW my problem is the goddamn vibration! It's so bad I can feel the floor around my computer desk vibrating, and even when I sleep at night I can hear the damn vibrations in my pillow! I have tried several ways to get this ****er to shut up, and have resorted to putting a folded sock underneath it. That cuts the vibrations out dramatically, but after a while the sock must get settled, so the vibrations come back really bad until I adjust the sock again. How the hell do I get rid of these vibrations? The pad on the bottom of the pump doesn't do jack.

09-12-2003, 01:05 PM	#2
Boli Cooling Savant Join Date: Apr 2003 Location: Blackburn / Dundee Posts: 451	Is that GOLD? on it. Now that surely has to go above and beyond the recomended sideways force on the socket. ~ Boli __________________ 1800+ @ 2247 (214x10.5) - STABLE, 512MB PC3700 TwinX Cosair RAM, NF7-S v2.0, GeForce3 Ti200 Parallel BIM, 120.1 Thermochill, Eheim 1048, Maze 3, Maze4 GPU, "Z" chipset, 1/2" tubing, PC-70: 5x120mm & 9x80mm fans. Internet Server & second machine (folding 24/7): 512MB DDR RAM, XP2000+

09-12-2003, 01:16 PM	#4
TerraMex Cooling Savant Join Date: Nov 2002 Location: Portugal, Europe Posts: 870	He posted on the wrong one. Anyway, about your problem. You can have a bent shaft. You can have a looser shaft. You can have a loose impeller. You can have a damaged impeller. You can have a damaged shaft. All of the above. I know it doesnt actually help, sorry. IMHO, open the pump, check the components. Verify the seals. Check the impeller for cracks, bits broken (balance is affected by different pads) . Do the same with the shaft. And be very very carefull. Usually the shaft is ceramic and it breaks easily with a dry blow. __________________ "we need more cowbell."

09-12-2003, 01:41 PM	#6
Quarter Cooling Neophyte Join Date: Aug 2003 Location: San Diego, USA Posts: 15	I'd contact Swiftech and get an RMA for it. Those pumps have been very troublesome and have recently been pulled from Swiftech's line up.

09-18-2003, 07:36 AM	#7
SCompRacer Cooling Neophyte Join Date: Apr 2002 Location: Illinois Posts: 94	eXacto, did you ever contact Swiftech for an RMA? I have two of these pumps and did some mods that helped to solve noise and vibration issues. I had RMA'd one of the two pumps for a leak and the replacement made the same noise anyway. Be aware that some of these are void your warranty fixes. There is a time stamp of when the pump was moulded in the face of the pump that the impeller can hit on. One can grind that off. You can perform the Via Aqua 1300 fix by washing the impeller out in clean water, drying it, and using Super Glue to fix the impeller to the shaft. Some thin plastic washers (varies with pump) can be placed on the spindle that the impeller sits on. One or two washers will keep the impeller from hitting the face of the pump as it moves back and forth on the shaft. You don't want to shim it out too far, just enough so when you gently push in on the impeller, it won't hit the face of the pump. The last thing I did was to drill a small 1/16" hole in the end of the impeller. It seems the more restriction I added to these pumps (two CPU blocks and a GPU block) the worse they rattled. Drilling the little hole in the end of the impeller stopped that. I did some flow tests and the mods didn't cause any changes, and the impeller doesn't come out so far as to rub the aluminum inlet. The one pump I have installed now is sitting on a small piece of Dynamat on their pump tray in a PC 70 and is very quiet.

09-18-2003, 07:50 PM	#8
eXacto Cooling Neophyte Join Date: Oct 2002 Location: San Francisco Posts: 24	Thanks for your help, but I'm not quite sure how I am supposed to put those washes on. If you could maybe draw it in on one of those pictures it would help me out a lot. Also, what exactly does that small hole in the front of the impellor do?

09-20-2003, 09:27 AM	#9
SCompRacer Cooling Neophyte Join Date: Apr 2002 Location: Illinois Posts: 94	Sorry I don't have a picture of it, but there is a fixed metal shaft that the impeller sits on. Once you pull the impeller out it is visible. Place a washer on the shaft and insert the impeller. Push in on the impeller gently and if it hits the face of the pump, remove it and add another washer. The magnetic field tends to hold it in one position until the pump runs and other forces overcome it causing the impeller to move in and out. Thats where I felt the rattling noise was being caused by, and it contributed to the vibration. In regards to what the hole did to solve the problem, I honestly don't know. One would think if the impeller lifts off the shaft while it spins, coolant would flow into that space since there is clearance between the shaft and impeller bore. It is hard to believe a small air pocket would remain between the blind hole of the impeller and metal shaft. When I take the pumps apart, I found traces of a lubricant on the shaft. I tired putting some water resistant grease in the impeller bore and reassembled it. The pump would be quiet for a few days, but it would eventually wash out and the rattling would return. Once I added the hole, they are quiet. If you attempt to take the pump apart, be aware that the case of the pump is very thin where the lock tabs of the end cap are. To get the end cap out, you can use one of them rubberized cloths that you might have in a kitchen drawer to assist in getting jar covers off. Wrap it around the inlet and twist to remove. You can also cut a piece of hose to wrap around the aluminum inlet and use some pliars. That way the aluminum anodizing won't get damaged. As you reassemble it, push in the end cap while turning so it follows the slope moulded in the pump casing. That way the three ears on the end cap won't stress the thin plastic where the lock tabs rest. If you look at the 12 oclock position of the lower picture in my first post, you can see where I nerfed the plastic with the end cap lock tab.

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