What's Inside a CPU Liquid Cooler (Closed Loop) Teardown

Ever curious about what is inside your CPU Closed Loop Liquid Cooler to see how it works inside? I tear mine apart so you can see the inner workings of the CPU Liquid Cooler that has taken over the PC industry.
Opening your CPU Liquid Cooler Voids its warranty. Do so only if you don't plan on putting it back together. It is extremely difficult if not impossible to put back together once you remove the liquid.
My CPU Liquid Cooler failed on me. I suspect either a clog or a failing pump. So nothing left to do but break it open to discover what really happened inside.
Music:
Nicolai Heidlas - Take The Chance
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[@moistschmeckles400]

Thanks for uploading this, much easier to understand how a liquid cooler works

[@HelloDavid]

np!

[@Thomas-lx8bc]

David Zhang thanks on this upload, always wanted to try this but not worth voiding any warranty. Why would they do copper and not aluminum or titanium? For the contact pad that meets the processor.

[@kellerweskier7214]

dont use water please. its dangerous. use mineral oil, it flows better, non conductive, and has a better life span on the cooler

[@botsmokie5388]

Keller weskier lol mineral oil submerged pcs require much more maintenance. Not saying it's bad just saying most people want something they can install and leave in for months to years.

[@GrulbGL]

copper conducts the heat way better then both of these.

[@maxvandervoorn1089]

Oh look, it's a lil pump

[@kjallen2610]

😂

[@username48286]

😐

[@alikaragulmez825]

😂

[@Mikelica69]

XD

[@Czecher_]

My Corsair h115i developed this same problem in just over a year. Currently have my i7 5820k idling at 58c @ 1.16ghz... AIOs have always been a bit of a gamble in my experience.

[@kar351]

I never trust closed loops, and after seeing this video, my concerns are validated. All that crap coming from the rad is enough to screw up the pump. Even on custom water loops, its always good to flush new radiators, many brands do not even bother with this in the manufacture process. Still, good video. Thanks for sharing.

[@ErvinGoss]

+David Zhang I am thinking of buying a used closed system, but it might need to have the liquid changed. So when I typed this into youtube search, this was one of the top videos. Your video is very informative on this subject. I like how you explained what you were taking apart, and what to look for in case I do buy the used closed loop system. Good video all around.

[@HelloDavid]

+Ervin Goss Thanks for the comment. Although I'd just like to say that I don't recommend you change the liquid in a closed loop (unless it is one of those expandable setups) Filling these back up is extremely difficult as the fill port typically requires a high pressure injection to remove most of the air. It's not impossible just extremely difficult without a reservoir or a port to bleed air. Good luck!

[@bikerchrisukk]

Well done, nice editing, clear speech and informative. Kudos.

[@samykamkar]

Nice, thanks for the teardown!

[@cyb3rmeerk4t51]

I am a faaaaaan!!! never thought I'd bump into your comment on a random yt vid!! I hope you'll comeback in the yt community.

[@kaas8543]

Wow, this video is informative yet elegant at the same time. Great work!

[@vanaddoteye3334]

Awesome video, exactly what I need to learn for my research on CPU cooling.

[@mcab-ir1gr]

This was super interesting and also very well made! Thank you

[@memadmax69]

Great vid man, clear, concise, quick, without alot of BS that other vids have. +100

[@HelloDavid]

Thanks!

[@henriquebalzani1563]

Great video! I like the way you treat the equipment with respect and precise hand moviments

[@PaciDrifter]

Amazing quality video as always!! 300+ subs and rocking it like 300k!! keep it up bro!

[@gals.182]

and 5 years later he's in 300k!

[@holyice12]

How many months/years did you used that ?

[@dahaproject3498]

amazing engineering

[@tac0mauz]

Finally someone explained this in a non-confusing way :P Thanks for the breakdown! Might buy one soon cause my air cooler is making my room practically a sauna.

[@alecmnatzakanian5246]

your room isn't gonna get any cooler from an AIO pump tho :/

[@VietnameseDubbedClips]

@@alecmnatzakanian5246 heck, if the AIO is doing its job well, it may heat up his room even more lol

[@michaelbauers8800]

Old post, but CPU coolers do the job of moving heat from the CPU, and into the room the computer is in. There's no magic to get rid of heat. Which is why server labs have to move the heat out of the room, somewhere else. I have thought before, it would be nice to vent the PC's heat outside, or move it underground. I once saw someone with a mobile home, dig a hole, for a water tank in the ground, and build a cooling solution around that.

[@TheRogueBro]

David, I literally just went through almost this exact issue. I also have the same cooler as you, the Antek Kuhler 920. So mine started making impeller failing noises after i had cleaned out the system one day. I was stressed and worried that I had to replace it, so I waited a day. The next day I took mine apart like you did. Mine was not clogged like yours, but you can see the same issue is happening as they seem to use Antifreeze (based on the smell). I cleaned out my motor, cleaned out the fin array, and started to reassemble the pump. I used a small syringe to add distilled water to the pump before closing it up so the impeller had something to pup once it started back up. Reassembled and am currently back up and running on the same system. Their is still a small heat issue as I am running at idle 43c (109f). But once under load don't really get all that much hotter. I do plan on going custom loop on my next build, but if I do keep this cooler for another PC, I will be flushing and replacing the coolant in the system with proper coolant from EK (as it's a much cleaner and less likely to fail solution). Now you said that it is difficult to add liquid to the loop, but this is not true. You can flush the system with distilled water, you would just need a large plastic syringe to push new liquid through one tube, the radiator and out the other. Assemble, and then do as I did, just add more water by pushing water into the system to push all the air out before assembly.

[@cde9653]

Thanks for uploading this

[@ryanybos]

Well done. short, to the point & I actually learned something. Thank You

[@ivyleague3224]

Thanks for the info, i did want to see how the pumps work

[@Wolf_1775]

I found this on PCMR, and I'm glad that I did. Great video, bubba.

[@HelloDavid]

+Jon N Thanks man!

[@encoder5.0]

very clean and educated well put together video, very under rated youtuber, you sir deserve 1 million subs. +1 subscriber

[@Cyba_IT]

Great vid mate! Just got my first liquid cooled cooler. Cheers ;)

[@BlueOvals24]

2 questions: 1. Do prebuilt PCs typically come pre-filled? Are the cooling systems always pre-filled? 2. How could debris get in the system like yours?

[@iteachtech6972]

Excellent tear down, nice and constructive description.

[@PradeepGree]

Best short video watched and explained perfectly 👌

[@GavOwenVideos]

Awesome teardown thank you!

[@Thyco2501]

This is the best breakdown I've seen. Seriously. I'd watched like 10 useless videos before I got here. Btw. If a pump fails, what happens to the PC components? Are they immediately damaged?

[@WahotsW]

Very informative video. I was curious how the heat fins and reservoir cycled the fluid (as I thought, through heat pipes to the opposite side of the cooler, and back, for maximum surface area). Thanks!

[@explorationsinsation5210]

Thank you I always wondered what was inside one of those and how they exactly scientifically worked

[@vinuv16]

I think heat sinks are best because of the least chance for a liquid leakage that can result in serious damage to valuable parts of the CPU.

[@obeliskt1024]

great video quality and you are good in explaining stuff.

[@lrahman1775]

Curiosity satisfied. Many thanks! Quick and simple explanation.

[@ayushjoshi7599]

I just wanted to know how an AIO works, but I was a little bit in doubt, if someone makes Videos like this or not, but fortunately, a very good video is here ! Thanks for making such a nice Video bro...

[@duerocovena946]

Thank you so much for doing this! I've been looking for reference so I can mod mine with a hardline tubbing ;)

[@HiteshBhagatGameTech]

very informative.. much thanks for doing this vid

[@mpfoote]

Clean it and refill it. I bet it'll be fine.

[@DIYTech21]

Yea i want to see that too. Wont be that hard but very interesting.

[@xGxPhantomZzz]

Its hard to get that clogging out

[@Alteriukas]

+xGxPhantom Zzz what about using radiator flush additive that is commonly used in cars?

[@YansenHaryanto4547]

try to backflush

[@demianxldc]

refill with ??

[@jayr55555]

Thanks for this video because i been trying to look and see how AIO coolers work. I'm a new PC builder and i'm always curious how things work.

[@letter2km]

Detailed video, thanks for sharing

[@joebennett3937]

great video, i always wanted to know how the pump works

[@user-xu1zg5yh6l]

I love you! thanks sooooo much. this video scratched exactly what i wanted to know

[@sonubhajan]

i was looking for this..thanx man

[@Dirtzoo6]

god help us this is the only video after fourteen i looked at that even begins to address the parts inside and how the pump works. thanks

[@worldview2888]

Awesome video!!!!!!!! very informative!!! i always wanted to know whats inside one. will be getting an AIO cpu cooler to try. i've never used one before.

[@pablex355]

Excellent video !!!

[@boundless8288]

You can easily clean the contact find inside with lemon juice and blow clean with air . Since your motor work fine just refill with new fluid , just be sure to run it through a coffee filter to remove any hidden debris. Also can test with cooler removed to check flow before reinstalling.

[@cristiannicolasprosperi]

Very informative.. Thank you mate,

[@QuaziHoque]

Hi, thanks for posting this video. I'm building a rig to game/stream/edit on and was just researching CPU coolers. What video editor do you use? I like the effect you incorporated at 2:32 to show the flow of the solution through the cooler.

[@tiagobel]

Excellent video! Thanks.

[@Mentalcheez]

Great video. Thank you!

[@TheWigg]

uhhh, you could have just cleaned out the micro fins, flushed out the loop and refilled, boom fixed. The pump is obviously working, just debris clogging up. The debris you got is due to the coolant being an ethoyl-glycol (probably spelt wrong) mix which is know to react with plastics. Alphacool and many others have premixed solutions by the liter on the cheap. Great video!

[@CheesyMcBeard]

Yeah I don't get that either. He just could do that indeed.

[@freeagent.87]

Would you risk putting this back together only to spring a leak and damage your expensive components? Worst part is that you've probably voided the warranty by opening it up.

[@Hunikengt]

Thank you, Just what I needed! :D

[@AungWinHtut]

Thanks for Teardown. Now I know how it words.

[@joshuadelacruz3907]

I will subscribe because of this! Very informative video! Thanks!

[@anshverma9189]

very good video...great job

[@barrybritcher]

my aio liquid cooler says the rad can also be mounted on the outside of the case. but if you can't take in apart how are you meant to feed the block back inside the case.

[@hshthebot2472]

after video ends he would have searched "' How cpu liquid cooler is fixed again " hahaha

[@whoammi]

He's buying a new one bruh

[@kira_15_R3D]

thanks for making this vid! very interesting!

[@fofo69]

thanks for the vid!

[@MadGamin]

@David Zhang, How difficult would it be to replace the tubing? Are you able to remove the tubing from the proprietary fittings? Thanks for the vid.

[@adrianTNT]

Does anyone know the range of liquid temperature it can handle ? Does it have a problem if liquid is at 60-70 degree Celsius for example ?

[@plasmancer6104]

If I was to make an sff case and a really short loop from cpu block to gpu block to a 240mm rad, would an aio's pump be strong enough for that?

[@emanuelarriaza3710]

Well I can say my 7 year 240 mm aio is still kicking i opened it and man it needed a change it was permeating but its still running and for many more years to come

[@ramblindj2156]

Frickin awesome, just saved me 70 bucks, mine was completely clogged. I've cleaned it & & away we go, Thanks for the video, ^5

[@ccricers]

I'm thinking of buying one of these pumps just because it is a very low profile pump/block combo and take the tubes apart to build a custom loop around it. Anyone know what the ID and OD of the tubing it uses?

[@bedahlaptopkomputer3357]

now i understand how it works, thanks guys

[@poordelir]

2:34 is what I was looking for. Thanks

[@sharpvijay]

nice bro... thanks for uploding

[@ezwider4652]

Do these require any special tool / screw driver? Is it just a Phillips

[@babycyte]

Thank god i went for the aircooler nh-d15 instead of an AOI

[@ROMORoo7]

David Zhang:: Running into your video, after long research was a relief, thank you, i just have a question, from my understanding, they last from 2 to 3 years, then they need to be replaced??? and the most important question for me, do these Liquid Coolant Radiators AIO come with Liquid solution Ready to just install ?? Hope you Can reply, it's important for me to know this?? and thank you again for the video.

[@tecktonalex]

FINALLY THE VIDEO I WAS LOOKING FOR thanks LIKED

[@loel2010]

nice video! that fluid was supposed to be green or blue like the most anti-freeze fluids...actually i think is the same fluid as the engine coolant on a car but i am not sure...Anyway i need one detail if you can give me... i have the h60 cooling about 5 years now :P yours h60 how old is it? i have start to thinking that i must change that fluid...

[@Pertamax7-HD]

great video sir

[@itskidkelly]

Does anyone know the name of the tiny Triangle screws that hold the cold plate to the pump? I just lost one and need to get a new one lol

[@quickz187]

After taking it apart is it possible to clean it and refill it?

[@Renegade0056]

You probably could but you'd have to bleed the system of air bubbles when resealing the system. Air in the system causes improper cooling / temperature fluxuations, the less the better. AIO's don't have a purge valve so you'd have to make one yourself. Pretty much works like a car radiator.

[@BugsBunns]

Many CPU coolers have a filling port on the side of the block/pump. You just need to find a corresponding nozzle online (Ebay for instance). I had to replace the liquid in my Corsair H60 once, and it was VERY much clogged. But DO NOT take it apart for fun, it's a messy job that is OBVIOUSLY going to ruin your warranty.

[@jasonschannel9526]

You can refill. I did it with mine. Although, I wouldn't recommend using the fluid I chose. Although, I'll probably replace it if I notice any issues down the road with it. I'll get some distilled water. When I shot my video it was late at night and I just wanted to move along with the project so I used 50/50 diluted anti-freeze. I read that if you go this route you should do a mix of 1 part anti-freeze and 9 parts distilled water.

[@jasonschannel9526]

Steve Vachaviolos I didn't want to replace anything, just get it working again. I did bleed the system about 5 times. That might be a project for the future if the system gets clogged up again.

[@jasonschannel9526]

project for another day :)

[@roxjeruben]

Will you rebuilt it? You can try pushing some compressed air through the radiator to see what comes out.

[@alberto9911]

really nice video, awesome video and audio quality. also it is only around 4 minuts...hate this unnecessary long videos... would you like to make a video where you show how you record and editing?

[@HelloDavid]

+alberto9911 Honestly I'm still learning so it would be silly for me to try and teach this stuff right now. I guess because I have a short attention span myself I don't enjoy making long videos. The big guys (eg. MKBHD, TLD, Austin, HardwareCanucks) provide a lot of inspiration and information on this stuff already so definitely check them out. Thanks for the comment.

[@MattyCampbell7]

I want to buy a liquid cooler but would like to ask does anyone know if I have to put water in it when I get it or if it’s ready for installation straight out of the box

[@sylasmitchell9550]

Is It possible to remove the cold plate without spilling water im pretty sure i have a build up in my cold plate output filter and this is resulting in low performance please i really need help i cant find anything on the internet that answers this!

[@Hadgerz]

Ahhh the Water 2.0...I had an issue with mine recently. Just tapped on the pipes a bit and the water started flowing normally again. My question is how can DEBRIS get inside a closed loop?! Unless the debris is parts of the cooler itself breaking down into the water D:

[@polioarm]

i have exactly that CPU cooler. the problem is that tape and glue one the cold plate, you see it at 1:15 . my cooler went crazy the other day so i took it apart and it was full of that glue, i washed it out and removed the tape and cleaned the coldplate. then i fill it with normal water, while it was turned on and screw the cold plate back on, it sound and works like it was brand new again

[@havoc3258]

Anyone know what cooler this is? I want to cool a node 202 so I will need an AIO that I can easily take the tubes off and reconnect them on the other side

[@Cyberscout00]

Hi David, thanks for the video. I am building my own closed loop liquid cooling system and would like to know what king of pump is this ( the magnetic system) ?

[@NaturalBornCamper]

THANKS!! I wanted to know how water flowed inside radiator to know if 14mm tube would be the bottleneck of the flow. Guess the radiator channels are so small that the bottleneck is definitely in there, no point getting larger tubes!

[@vincog]

so after this video, that liquid cooler cannot be used again? or cannot be cleaned out and refill again??

[@PaciDrifter]

I would also suggest maybe building a custom loop if you are interested in those things as it really makes your pc feel custom

[@HelloDavid]

+PaciDrifter Yeah I couldn't take the stock fan anymore. I had some custom liquid cooling gear laying around so I just rigged up a quick loop for my CPU. It's pretty ugly in my case right now. lol. I do enjoy building custom loops but in the end I always just prefer a zero maintenance air cooling setup.

[@turxa]

This is the thermaltake cpu cooler. I have the 3 fan rad model myself.. hope this doesn't happen to mine :O How long did you have yours before it carked it?

[@yahtadi5152]

It would be more great if you add "How to re-assemble and re-fill the liquid"

[@yahtadi5152]

What is that suppose to be? Greater? much great? Ah yes.. "Better".. Am i getting close?

[@m.a6416]

It would be great if ------

[@YarugumaSou]

Just play the video backwards

[@caioaugustoerthal7424]

@@yahtadi5152 Greater should be the word, but you would probably know that by now lol

[@r3negadeh3ro]

Play the video backwards

[@amazinsupa]

Do you have any idea where I can get a cold plate to replace mine? I'm having no luck at all. For the EVGA GTX 1080/1070 Hybrid Waterblock Cooler. Thanks in advance.

[@chadwickrogers9291]

Took mine apart and it looked the same way if not worse, how do you remove the hoses on he radiator?

[@maxsil333]

Thanks for the video! My cooler also failed a while back and i'm taking it apart now to find out why it broke Did you ever find out where the debris came from? I'm thinking friction from some part of the impeller spinning grinds it up. or it's poor quality and the hoses degrade somehow?

[@dunxy]

I hope you washed your hands after touching that stock HSF! Cool vid, couldn't you just flush and re assemble the AIO if the pump is actually functioning and its just flow rates? You sure its glycol based coolant as well? Apparently (im relatively new to water cooling) some plastics have issues with glycol based solution's. I use a non-glycol based racing coolant 50/50 with distilled water in the custom loop i have.No discoloration or any other issues to speak of in the couple of months its been in use.

[@IceJackal1984]

is it possible to use one of these on my gtx 1080 without using bracket ?

[@Dantai]

Hi! Were you able to clean, refill, fix and reuse your liquid cooler?

[@michaelbauers8800]

Nice looking AIO, seems to have been well made. My cooler just died, maybe I should take it apart like you did. It made a lot of noise before dying ( I thought the noise was from hard drives, because that's what it sounded like, and I use some hard drives still, due to the cheap cost, for more storage for games.) I wonder what caused the debris in the coolant?

[@jims11762]

Mine started making an odd clicking sound it was bothering me so I took it out and switched to sock cooler.(Had it 6 years or more.) i3770K cpu The stock cooler worked but the temps got very high. So I got another liquid cooling unit and all is well.

[@peterpopofff]

the debree in it makes me wanna open mine up and see whats inside to make sure it works XD

[@benr4469]

Great video. I don’t understand How the liquid got dirty if it’s completely sealed. Do These liquid systems have frequent problems?

[@Woyta]

That foam is not for noise and vibration. It works like a expansion tank. But instead of bubble of air it is a foam. Bubble in pump is problem. Foam does not travel through loop.