Down sides to watercooling..??

[Confused_Chimp]

I've have as of yet started to overclock any of my systems I've got, but am considering coverting my GPU(s) to watercooling and possibly my CPU (passively cooled currently).
My main reason for this is noise, I've got a XFX Geforce 7800 GT, which to me makes more noise than I would like. I might then also consider overclocking it as well, but I'm not primarly worried about that.
Having never done watercooling before, I have read a little bit about it. But what I wanted to know about is what are the downsides.
Some places seem to sugget there is a unpleasant oddur, changing the water, and build up of algie.
But just wanted to get some comments from people who've done this. and preferably for a long time. I like to just keep my system running with the minimum of fuss. Although I'm happy to tinker with it, I'd rather spend my time gaming than sorting out problems, or maintenance.
Many thanks for any help.
CC

 

[shawnlizzle =]]

if you run your watercooling loop properly, the maintnance should be quite easy. you have to flush your water every 6 months or so. thats really about it.

the risk of a leak is usually small and all you need to do is let your components dry completely before setting everythign up again. the risk of leaking is also small if you leak test and tighten the barbs right.

 

[Confused_Chimp]

the problem I've got is I've never done it before. so am not sure what are the problems I might encounter.
From what I've read online, there seems to be a few mentions that water cooling systems have sistinctive smell to them. I was wondering if this is common or not and if it is, if its only confined to some of the cheaper fluids etc.
Will I be able to leave the system for months on end and not ahve to worry about it? or does the equipment need replacing regularly?
I previously found a articule by a Australian guy who had problems with his watercooling system and a problem with block corroding. Apparently he narrowed it down to a problem of having copper and aluminium blocks in the same system. I've tried to search for the site again to post URL, but can't find it now. Doesn't help I'm at work and not getting as much time as I would like to search for it.

Just trying to get an idea of what I'm getting into and if its worth it.
I think I want to change my GPU's to watercooling and considering my CPU as well. but the passive cooler on my CPU does a good job.
I think I might need to put some watercooling on the chipset of my motherboard as well.

 

[RichPLS]

Watercooling should be a closed loop, and no odors should waft from PC, unless you spilled some fluid and did not clean it up.

 

[john_thor]

Cheaper fluids? Dude, it's water. :lol:

Seriously though, you should use deionised water, which the stuff they top up car batteries with. It's very cheap and available everywhere. You won't get any corroding issues if you use a corrosion inhibitor additive to the water. They are also toxic so no algae growth either.

I have been running with that combination for 2 years, no smells, no leaks, no growth, no corrosion. 8)

 

[Watercool]

I have been running a watercooled system composed of Koolance components for about four and a half years now, with my PC running pretty much 24/7.

No strange smells, no leaks, very quiet, cool and stable.

I have had not one single problem with the setup since I installed it, which is why I returned to Koolance for more parts during a recent upgrade.

Watercooled components in my PC are:

AMD-A64-3800x2
EVGA-7800GT
NForce4 Chipset.

I use an EXOS-1 as the pump/heat exchanger.

The Koolance equipment may not be the cheapest on the market, but from the experience I have had I can do nothing but recomend it.

 

[The_Abyss]

If your main concern is noise and you have spare space, then the Zalman Reservator 2 is a great solution, and looks pretty funky too. It also acts as a nice radiator in winter

 

[Confused_Chimp]

cheers all for your help