Can a heater cooler be too large? - Overclock.net

zouev · 08-01-08

Hi. What do you think of 2x of these:
http://www.autopartswarehouse.com/de...QRR398006.html

...And of course i''ll make the shroud and put like 4 fans in it....Because sound and space are not an issue for me, but my guess is that this would load temps very low. Or should i just go for the twin 1976 Chevy truck heater cores(in series)...because it will be way cheaper, but is it going to be less effective? Or Should I Just get a single heater core from a Corvette or something and that's it. There will be 3 or 4 waterblocks on this computer btw I have never built and/or had a watercooled system before.

drthompson · 08-01-08

Regardless of how big the radiator is you'll never get temperatures lower than ambient, it is the ultimate heat sink. The challenge with any thermal design is to size the radiator to the expected heat load, to small, things get hot, to large, you waste money & space. It's not going to hurt anything to over size, it just doesn't gain you any increased performance.

waqasr · 08-01-08

Well overkill on a rad is almost always a good thing..but im not too knowledgeable on heater cores, but i assume it will cool aswell as some of the better rads, if not better.

dr4gon · 08-01-08

Is this a copper heatercore? Just be sure it is and to clean it well before you use it. I don't know about two....

At that price you can just get a GTX480!

DuckieHo · 08-01-08

21"x3"x2" = 126in^3.... Pshhhhhhhhh

My heatcore is bigger at 11"x9.5"x2" = 209in^3

http://www.moddersmart.com/index.php...product_id=138

Slider46 · 08-01-08

Don't get one too big or it'll reduce your flow.

You need a balance between flow and thermal capacity.

zouev · 08-01-08

Wow guys. Thanks for the input. I like the quad 120mm fan http://www.moddersmart.com/index.php...product_id=138 setup. Thanks a lot.

3Z3VH · 08-01-08

Why would you be worried about the flow speed of the fluid in the radiator ?

Sure, flow speed in your block is a HUGE issue, as you want it to flow as fast as possible to get the heat out of the block quickly... but if the water slows down in the radiator, all it will do is let it get CLOSER to ambient temp before it comes out the other end. There is no disadvantage to a large rad other than the fact that you will be spending more money on coolant, and it is tougher to get all the bubbles out of. I have seen people use a full car radiator (not a heater core) and it worked just fine for their PC water cooling.

You should only run into a problem if your rad is too small, or too restrictive (high pressure drop).

zouev · 08-01-08

Wow guys. Thanks for the input. I like the quad 120mm fan http://www.moddersmart.com/index.php...product_id=138 setup. Thanks a lot.

08-01-08	#1 (permalink)
zouev New to Overclock.net Join Date: Aug 2008 Posts: 3 Rep: 0 Unique Rep: 0 Trader Rating: 0	Can a heater cooler be too large? Hi. What do you think of 2x of these: http://www.autopartswarehouse.com/de...QRR398006.html ...And of course i''ll make the shroud and put like 4 fans in it....Because sound and space are not an issue for me, but my guess is that this would load temps very low. Or should i just go for the twin 1976 Chevy truck heater cores(in series)...because it will be way cheaper, but is it going to be less effective? Or Should I Just get a single heater core from a Corvette or something and that's it. There will be 3 or 4 waterblocks on this computer btw I have never built and/or had a watercooled system before.

		Overclock.net - Overclocking.net > Cooling > Water Cooling
Can a heater cooler be too large?

08-01-08	#2 (permalink)
drthompson New to Overclock.net Join Date: Oct 2007 Posts: 14 Rep: 2 Unique Rep: 1 Trader Rating: 0	Regardless of how big the radiator is you'll never get temperatures lower than ambient, it is the ultimate heat sink. The challenge with any thermal design is to size the radiator to the expected heat load, to small, things get hot, to large, you waste money & space. It's not going to hurt anything to over size, it just doesn't gain you any increased performance.

08-01-08	#7 (permalink)
zouev New to Overclock.net Join Date: Aug 2008 Posts: 3 Rep: 0 Unique Rep: 0 Trader Rating: 0	Wow guys. Thanks for the input. I like the quad 120mm fan http://www.moddersmart.com/index.php...product_id=138 setup. Thanks a lot.

08-01-08	#8 (permalink)
3Z3VH New to Overclock.net Join Date: Aug 2008 Posts: 8 Rep: 1 Unique Rep: 1 Trader Rating: 0	Why would you be worried about the flow speed of the fluid in the radiator ? Sure, flow speed in your block is a HUGE issue, as you want it to flow as fast as possible to get the heat out of the block quickly... but if the water slows down in the radiator, all it will do is let it get CLOSER to ambient temp before it comes out the other end. There is no disadvantage to a large rad other than the fact that you will be spending more money on coolant, and it is tougher to get all the bubbles out of. I have seen people use a full car radiator (not a heater core) and it worked just fine for their PC water cooling. You should only run into a problem if your rad is too small, or too restrictive (high pressure drop).

08-01-08	#9 (permalink)
zouev New to Overclock.net Join Date: Aug 2008 Posts: 3 Rep: 0 Unique Rep: 0 Trader Rating: 0	Wow guys. Thanks for the input. I like the quad 120mm fan http://www.moddersmart.com/index.php...product_id=138 setup. Thanks a lot.

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