PSU Watercooling becoming mainstream

gmat · 01-13-2003, 04:13 AM

... for modders of course.
(seen on Slashdot)
http://www.digital-explosion.co.uk/i...p?articleID=65
They kept it simple, i wonder how effective it is - those MOSFETs produce quite a lot of heat.

bigben2k · 01-13-2003, 09:42 AM

I added a comment, in their forum, about discharging the capacitors:

"120 Vac is actually 340 Volts, peak to peak.

To discharge a cap, use a resistor.

Selecting a resistor, note that typical resistors are rated 1/4 Watt, use this equation:

P=VI
V=RI (aka I=V/R)
so
P=V^2/R (aka P/V^2=R)
where P is power (in Watts), R is resistance (in Ohms), and V is the voltage.

Assuming a 1/4 Watt resistor, V=340, this will give you an R of 462K Ohm, which will release a current of 0.002 milliamps (if my calculations are correct!). It could take a while... then you'd have to switch to a smaller resistor, as the voltage drops...

This would be much easier with a 5 Watt pot."

MeltMan · 01-13-2003, 10:56 AM

Add in natural capacitor leakage. Big electrolytic capacitors leak down fast. The easiest way would to be simply pulling out the wall plug from the computer and wait a minute or so. The 5vsb lead will pull the psu down in about 30 seconds.

Plus keep in mind those caps are DC and wont shock you so much, but more "burn" your skin. Once the caps are under ~25V or so, you are pretty much completely safe.

jtroutma · 01-14-2003, 12:46 AM

Has it been proven that watercooling a PSU can acutally make the unit perform better?

AS in, keep the voltages more stable or not degrade over time?

Just something I have been wondering..........

msv · 01-14-2003, 01:16 AM

Right, MeltMan, unplug the cord and the capacitors will discharge in a matter of minutes.
Almost.
To completely discharge them, push the computers start button with the cord unplugged. Trying to start the computer this way sucks it dry of any electric charge in notime.
Also seems to discharge all the capacitors on the motherboard (not kidding) for good or ill.
regards
Mikael S.

bigben2k · 01-14-2003, 08:59 AM

Yes, watercooling will help, a tiny, tiny little bit, in keeping the voltages more steady.

More importantly, it gets rid of the fan, and it will take care of the extra heat from a heavy load.

jtroutma · 01-14-2003, 11:40 PM

Just wanted some confirmation that it can help (not a lot but some).... thank you!

01-13-2003, 04:13 AM	#1
gmat Thermophile Join Date: Mar 2001 Location: France Posts: 1,221	PSU Watercooling becoming mainstream ... for modders of course. (seen on Slashdot) http://www.digital-explosion.co.uk/i...p?articleID=65 They kept it simple, i wonder how effective it is - those MOSFETs produce quite a lot of heat.

01-13-2003, 09:42 AM	#2
bigben2k Responsible for 2% of all the posts here. Join Date: May 2002 Location: Texas, U.S.A. Posts: 8,302	I added a comment, in their forum, about discharging the capacitors: "120 Vac is actually 340 Volts, peak to peak. To discharge a cap, use a resistor. Selecting a resistor, note that typical resistors are rated 1/4 Watt, use this equation: P=VI V=RI (aka I=V/R) so P=V^2/R (aka P/V^2=R) where P is power (in Watts), R is resistance (in Ohms), and V is the voltage. Assuming a 1/4 Watt resistor, V=340, this will give you an R of 462K Ohm, which will release a current of 0.002 milliamps (if my calculations are correct!). It could take a while... then you'd have to switch to a smaller resistor, as the voltage drops... This would be much easier with a 5 Watt pot." __________________ WBTA (Water Block Testing Alliance) Nordic Hardware WC 101

01-13-2003, 10:56 AM	#3
MeltMan Cooling Savant Join Date: Aug 2001 Location: KS Posts: 374	Add in natural capacitor leakage. Big electrolytic capacitors leak down fast. The easiest way would to be simply pulling out the wall plug from the computer and wait a minute or so. The 5vsb lead will pull the psu down in about 30 seconds. Plus keep in mind those caps are DC and wont shock you so much, but more "burn" your skin. Once the caps are under ~25V or so, you are pretty much completely safe. __________________ MeltMan Lurker Supreme!

01-14-2003, 12:46 AM	#4
jtroutma Cooling Savant Join Date: Aug 2001 Location: SLO, CA Posts: 837	Has it been proven that watercooling a PSU can acutally make the unit perform better? AS in, keep the voltages more stable or not degrade over time? Just something I have been wondering.......... __________________ Athlon64 X2 4200+ @ 2.5Ghz (250FSB x 10) OCZ VX 1GB 4000 @ 250FSB (6-2-2-2 timmings) DFI LANParty nForce4 Ultra-D SCSI Raid 5 x (3) Cheetah 15K HDDs LSI Express 500 (128MB cache) OCZ PowerStream 520W PSU ATI X850XT PE (Stock) DTEK WhiteWater + DTEK Custom Radiator Eheim 1250

01-14-2003, 08:59 AM	#6
bigben2k Responsible for 2% of all the posts here. Join Date: May 2002 Location: Texas, U.S.A. Posts: 8,302	Yes, watercooling will help, a tiny, tiny little bit, in keeping the voltages more steady. More importantly, it gets rid of the fan, and it will take care of the extra heat from a heavy load. __________________ WBTA (Water Block Testing Alliance) Nordic Hardware WC 101

01-14-2003, 01:16 AM	#5
msv Cooling Savant Join Date: Dec 2002 Location: Sweden Posts: 336	Right, MeltMan, unplug the cord and the capacitors will discharge in a matter of minutes. Almost. To completely discharge them, push the computers start button with the cord unplugged. Trying to start the computer this way sucks it dry of any electric charge in notime. Also seems to discharge all the capacitors on the motherboard (not kidding) for good or ill. regards Mikael S.

01-14-2003, 11:40 PM	#7
jtroutma Cooling Savant Join Date: Aug 2001 Location: SLO, CA Posts: 837	Just wanted some confirmation that it can help (not a lot but some).... thank you! __________________ Athlon64 X2 4200+ @ 2.5Ghz (250FSB x 10) OCZ VX 1GB 4000 @ 250FSB (6-2-2-2 timmings) DFI LANParty nForce4 Ultra-D SCSI Raid 5 x (3) Cheetah 15K HDDs LSI Express 500 (128MB cache) OCZ PowerStream 520W PSU ATI X850XT PE (Stock) DTEK WhiteWater + DTEK Custom Radiator Eheim 1250

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