
Common sense dictates that submerging your high-end PC in cooking oil is not a good idea. But, of course, engineering feats and science breakthroughs were made possible by those who dared to explore the realms of the non-conventional. Members of the Munich-based THG lab are only too happy to confirm this fact. And not only did we find that our AMD Athlon FX-55 and GeForce 6800 Ultra equipped system didn't short out when we filled the sealed shut PC case with cooking oil - but the non-conductive properties of the liquid coupled created a totally cool and quiet high-end PC, devoid of the noise pollution of fans. The PC case - or should we say tank - also offered a new and novel way to display and show off your PC components.

Remember our Record Attempt: The 5 GHz Project when we went to cooling extremes with liquid nitrogen, Build Your Own XGA Projector! or the PC that manages with just 37 Watts of power? And don't forget the Espresso machine in the PC case. And now? Many hours of work along with preparation time coupled with numerous glitches are behind our new one-of-a-kind specimen.

Initial attempts with oil in a plastic container.
Technically, our attractive high-end PC can keep up with the best of the crop as far as performance goes - minus the noise, of course, associated with an extremely loud standard 08/15 case. Indeed, the large volume of liquid guarantees absolutely silent operation - no fans are running. And even under maximum load the three major building blocks remain sufficiently cool: processor, graphics card and chipset.
- Dousing Your Athlon FX-55 With Eight Gallons Of Cooking Oil?
- VIDEO 18 TO DOWNLOAD: Fascination Surrounds The Oil PC
- Ready For The Plunge
- Pre-Conditioning In The Oil Bath
- DIY Step By Step: Tools And Aids
- Sealing The Plexiglas Case
- Sealing The Plexiglas Case, Continued
- The Important Step Of Sealing The CPU Base
- Assembly And Placing Of Components
- Pouring In The Oil During Operation
- Bottom Line: DIY Fun With Oil PC Based On The Athlon FX55
This is the first article I've seen mentioning the sealling of he base of the CPU. Other's some in the forums are concerned that there is not enough cooling flow under sockets.. since liquid is thicker than air it tends to want to create hotspots here. Air will swell and vent heat more. This article notes that they "had" to seal the base for stability. I understand the dielectic effect. But anyways for a socket 775 anyone know for sure what we should do?
Anyway, I'm curious about the long term effects. This project was started a couple years ago. Is the computer still running, or did they decided to can it. Seems like everyone that does this ends up draining it before it get's a chance to fail from oil-related reasons. Pity - It would be nice to have some data to see whether it really could be a viable solution for a silent PC that would last literally for as long as the cpu transistors normally last.
Before considering that I purchased a tiny (15 litre) fishtank for a low end setup that was built/sealed with silicone, so I guess I'll soon know xD (hopefully not by it falling apart and spilling oil all over my carpets lol).
I have an existing 3 foot tank which I intended using for my 'production' system which will be more than double the power in every sense
I'll do my best to pop back and post on this new consideration to let you know how the silicone behaves under extreme usage.
Oh and another thing, on the mineral oil... in all experiments the folks mentioned difficulty in getting hold of mineral oil. I initially thought the majour problem would be in the fact that it's classed as a known laxative and any distributor would be hesitant handing over that much of it for legal or safety reasons. Turns out most people don't even know what it is xD!! That got me onto some research into it's common consumers, and in so doing found a bunch of alternative names for it, which I DID see at some stores.
I'll list them here for acedemic interest but please keep in mind that common or trading names may differ from region to region so ask the right questions (Low viscosity, high flash point, no electrical conductance) AND test it in a controlled outdoor enviroment on smaller (cheaper) components before going the whole way
White oil
Nujol
Paraffin oil (Not normal paraffin, like for lanterns, far as I know)
Baby oil xD (Yep, though I'm suspecting the fragrance additives may have some unwanted properties, probably mildly corrosive)
Anyways, happy modding for now
l8r,
OnyxxOr
Don't use a food-based oil if you do this.