Prototype Free Flow CPU Pump Block

[htko89]

... The amount of blocks I've seen with Galvanic corrosion / failing plating in less than a year of use is nuts.
I had a distilled water loop with a silver kill coil and nothing in there that could react and cause early onset galvanic corrosion. Within 6 months the nickel plating on the CPU block was peeling away. I wouldn't touch anything EK again. ...

Could it be the silver kill coil or coolant? Can you link the posts you see with galvanic corrosion. I don't use one so I can't compare, but I don't have any issues on mine. (I'm using ek 3.2 pwm ddc, ek supremacy, distilled water + ek cryofuel, and dazmode lp240 rad). The use of good distilled water is key to preventing corrosion.

 

[Bioforce]

Don't get EK involved buddy, the quality of their products is severely diminshed. More so with their screwed nickel plating process, The amount of blocks I've seen with Galvanic corrosion / failing plating in less than a year of use is nuts.
I had a distilled water loop with a silver kill coil and nothing in there that could react and cause early onset galvanic corrosion. Within 6 months the nickel plating on the CPU block was peeling away. I wouldn't touch anything EK again.

I'd suggest keeping it simple and stick to a POM top and copper base, ofc you will get the RGB brigade that want a nickel plate base and acrylic top. You want these to be durable, I'd keep that in mind

EK explicitly states on their website not to use silver coils in your loop with EK components. You're introducing an additional metal into a loop that already contains multiple metals. That will clearly cause galvanic corrosion if you don't at least include an anti-corrosive agent in the distilled water.

 

[Legion]

Could it be the silver kill coil or coolant? Can you link the posts you see with galvanic corrosion. I don't use one so I can't compare, but I don't have any issues on mine. (I'm using ek 3.2 pwm ddc, ek supremacy, distilled water + ek cryofuel, and dazmode lp240 rad). The use of good distilled water is key to preventing corrosion.

Mixing Nickel plated, Copper and Silver components in a loop "normally" would have have no adverse effects, they all fall into a similar position on the Anodic Index.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Galvanic_corrosion#Anodic_index

I've used high quality Distilled water and Silver kill coils since 2003 in a new build every year for the last 15 years.
It's only when I used an EK supremacy block a few years ago that I encountered this issue as did many other watercooling enthusiasts.
That tells me straight away that EK's Nickel plating process was at fault here, nothing I was doing.

If you want evidence about EK's diminshed quality of their products you only have to start reading around some overclocking forums such as OCuK!

EK explicitly states on their website not to use silver coils in your loop with EK components. You're introducing an additional metal into a loop that already contains multiple metals. That will clearly cause galvanic corrosion if you don't at least include an anti-corrosive agent in the distilled water.

EK added this AFTER the large amount of returned failed blocks with their defective nickel plating process, most of these returns didn't even involve the use of a Silver kill coil!
The rest of your statement is just innacurate, I'm sorry to say (read above for Anodic Index)
There are zero issues running Silver kill coils with good "quality" distilled water in Copper / Ni plated loops!

 

[VegetableStu]

is there a test review out there over multiple vendors with the use of a silver coil? people elsewhere are pointing out the possibility on the mix being difference-enough in the anodic index between silver-nickel compared to nickel-copper ._.

pretty hard to search outside of EK talk. /r/watercooling seems to be passing along the no-silver-with-nickel thing these recent years as general rule of thumb without mentioning EK

 

[Bioforce]

Mixing Nickel plated, Copper and Silver components in a loop "normally" would have have no adverse effects, they all fall into a similar position on the Anodic Index.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Galvanic_corrosion#Anodic_index

I've used high quality Distilled water and Silver kill coils since 2003 in a new build every year for the last 15 years.
It's only when I used an EK supremacy block a few years ago that I encountered this issue as did many other watercooling enthusiasts.
That tells me straight away that EK's Nickel plating process was at fault here, nothing I was doing.

If you want evidence about EK's diminshed quality of their products you only have to start reading around some overclocking forums such as OCuK!




EK added this AFTER the large amount of returned failed blocks with their defective nickel plating process, most of these returns didn't even involve the use of a Silver kill coil!
The rest of your statement is just innacurate, I'm sorry to say (read above for Anodic Index)
There are zero issues running Silver kill coils with good "quality" distilled water in Copper / Ni plated loops!

Ionized water on it's own is corrosive, but then there is the fact that there is a 0.20 difference between the silver and copper in your loop when even a 0.15 difference is pushing your luck in an environment of constantly flowing hot ionized water. I'm not sure how any of that is "inaccurate" when it lines up directly with what the article you linked to is saying.

 

[Tazpr]

Very curious to see where this goes since I've been waiting on a proper low profile integrated DDC block for EVER!

Really like the POM design with the LED channel, look very classy!

 

[htko89]

Very curious to see where this goes since I've been waiting on a proper low profile integrated DDC block for EVER!

Really like the POM design with the LED channel, look very classy!

Yeah I agree. I think we should disregard all the nay-sayers who obviously don't have a need for this themselves. I never understood people who do that. It's like people who go on phone modding forums and say 'but why' or arduino forums and say 'oh just buy xyz smart device instead'. It really isn't about that but more about the performance of the DDC pump / designing a product that fulfills a purpose. Not to mention that any DC-LT combo can't be sourced at all in North America without importing it yourself (except from aquatuning.us), with the only alternative being the Fractal Design Celsius S24 which is an asetek design and isn't much better.

 

[Tazpr]

Yeah I agree. I think we should disregard all the nay-sayers who obviously don't have a need for this themselves. I never understood people who do that. It's like people who go on phone modding forums and say 'but why' or arduino forums and say 'oh just buy xyz smart device instead'. It really isn't about that but more about the performance of the DDC pump / designing a product that fulfills a purpose. Not to mention that any DC-LT combo can't be sourced at all in North America without importing it yourself (except from aquatuning.us), with the only alternative being the Fractal Design Celsius S24 which is an asetek design and isn't much better.

The only DC-LT I've ever bought was DOA...

 

[Wahaha360]

Block Pump Prototype 1

 

[enricko7]

Block Pump Prototype 1

Neat! What fittings are you using on the block?

 

[Wahaha360]

Neat! What fittings are you using on the block?

These https://koolance.com/nozzle-single-swivel-angled-barb-for-id-06mm-1-4in

 

[Boil]

Not offering acrylic due to QA concerns and people cracking them. POM top and Copper base is the only version that will be available.

POM is the way to go, stronger than acetal...

@Wahaha360

When you are visiting Alphacool, maybe put a bug in their ear about some SFF-specific radiator/pump combos...?

I could (personally) see uses for single fan 92mm & single fan 140mm radiators (in their 45mm thick variant) with dual DC-LT pumps (one on intake & one on output) integrated into the tank ends...

Lower noise with DC-LT, but maintaining a better flow rate by using dual pumps...?

 

[htko89]

Hows the performance of the prototype so far? Any thermal testing / acoustic testing? Would love to hear its going great

 

[htko89]

I was doing some research the other day about g1/4 extendable cpu block pumps and I found this - while it's not extendable, maybe the way the flow works on this block can serve as an alternative inspiration to mounting a DDC pump to a block.

https://www.amazon.ca/DeepCool-Cooling-CAPTAIN-240-EX/dp/B01HGMHVAQ

With this design, the DDC pump can also be cooled by the cpu block!

Combine it with a factory DDC pump top (internally under a pretty facsia of course) and you get something thats even easier to manufacture (though at a cost to logistics / assembly)

https://www.dazmode.com/store/shop/watercooling/factory-ddc-pump-top/

EK does offer a horizontal cpu block

https://www.ekwb.com/shop/ek-annihilator

 

[Supercluster]

POM is the way to go, stronger than acetal...

Polyoxymethylene (POM), also known as acetal, polyacetal, and polyformaldehyde, is an engineering thermoplastic used in precision parts requiring high stiffness, low friction, and excellent dimensional stability.

 

[Sashby]

Alphacool sell these 90° fittings, although from what I could find these aren't sold separately from the expansion QDC tubing kits. Theses do seem lower in height in comparison to other 90° rotary fittings (whilst still maintaining G1/4 thread and a 11/8 tubing. Made from brass and painted matte black.

Edit: If the talks with alphacool go well to develop your block, maybe these fittings could be sourced from them as well (or perhaps G1/4 thread to 1/8 compression instead)

https://www.au.aquatuning.com/water...baer-gpx-extension-set-900-tubes-and-fittings

 

[VegetableStu]

holy crap those are seriously low-profile o_o might add that to my list

 

[htko89]

Polyoxymethylene (POM), also known as acetal, polyacetal, and polyformaldehyde, is an engineering thermoplastic used in precision parts requiring high stiffness, low friction, and excellent dimensional stability.

He probably meant acrylic not acetal

 

[Boil]

POM is the way to go, stronger than acetal...

Polyoxymethylene (POM), also known as acetal, polyacetal, and polyformaldehyde, is an engineering thermoplastic used in precision parts requiring high stiffness, low friction, and excellent dimensional stability.

He probably meant acrylic not acetal

Nope, I was mistaken...

I had read somewhere that POM ws better than acetal, because acetal could be brittle at times...

And that stuck with me for awhile, but now I know acetal & POM are one & the same...?

 

[Wahaha360]

Anyone ever rewired their DDC to be powered off 4 pin PWN header?

I have the Asus AIO pump header, I assume it should have more Amp (trying to confirm how many).

Reference posts;
https://linustechtips.com/main/topic/189861-power-laing-ddc-off-of-fan-headers/
https://www.reddit.com/r/watercooling/comments/83y71f/can_i_rewire_a_ddc_pump_to_only_use_the_fan/