[SOLVED] Anyone filled cracks in acrylic waterblock with sealant?

[OUTBURSTPAL]

Hey ya’ll, I have some spiderweb cracks in my acrylic CPU waterblock. has anyone ever used a sealant to seal them to stop the cracks from spreading? Is this the best solution if I can’t get a replacement? It’s a monoblock so getting a replacement may not be that easy. What kind of sealant would you guys recommend?

 

[Lutfij]

You might want to identify the cause of the crack since the issue can and will rear it's head albeit with gunked up sealant as an additional piece to look after. You might want to also keep in mind that if the sealant isn't up to the task, the source of one leak will eventually end up being 2 or more sources of leaks. That being said, did you use alcohol on the acrylic block? Does the block leak? Hairline fractures can be left alone.

 

[OUTBURSTPAL]

You might want to identify the cause of the crack since the issue can and will rear it's head albeit with gunk up sealant as an additional piece to look after. You might want to also keep in mind that if the sealant isn't up to the task, the source of one leak will eventually end up being 2 or more sources of leaks. That being said, did you use alcohol on the acrylic block? Does the block leak? Hairline fractures can be left alone.

It’s due to me being an idiot and having the PC on for too long without proper cooling, so the excessive heat has fractured it. The cracks are very thin, and are pretty far back from the front of the acrylic, so I can’t imagine it reaching the front any time soon, well not before I end up upgrading the mobo in the next 5 years anyway. Just my guess. All I’m worried about is them spreading rapidly outside the O ring. If I were to leave the cracks alone, how long would you think it would last before it starts leaking? Most of The cracks are in the center, but there are a few very small ones near the edge of the O ring. But they are definitely just small hairline fractures. And no, the block doesn’t leak. And I didn’t use alcohol on it.

 

[COLGeek]

Can you post a picture of the waterblock (use a site link imgur.com and then reply with the link here)? This would help in assessing your situation better.

 

[Lutfij]

Agreed, we'll need an image to corroborate what you're seeing pertaining to the afflicted areas/components. Heat/stress fracture on an acrylic tube isn't natural btw.

 

[OUTBURSTPAL]

Can you post a picture of the waterblock (use a site link imgur.com and then reply with the link here)? This would help in assessing your situation better.

Here are 2 pictures:
https://ibb.co/FxSQPL4

https://ibb.co/5nNY817

they do look far more serious in the picture than they actually are in person. Although I have realised that at the locations of the cracks there is very little pressure as it’s not a main flow/pressure point of the coolant, so very little pressure would be applied on the cracks. But still I don’t trust it. I think I’m going to seal them if Asrock won’t replace it for me.

 

[OUTBURSTPAL]

Also on the images, the line you’re seeing near the port is NOT a crack. It’s just the design.

 

[Lutfij]

You will need to disassemble the board's unified cooling and inspect both the block and the acrylic fascia since the cracks you've outlined are akin to what we see on an over torqued fitting coupled together with hot coolant producing stress fractures on acrylic, which isn't good for the acrylic in the long run.

Also from the image I can deduce that the high temp caused the coolant you were using to cake/build up around the finned area of the CPU block. The heat caused the coolant to denature(for lack of a better word). I'd also inspect the pump, see if it's needing replacement and if the rest of your loop is clogged up.

I have my reservations with using sealant in that scenario, not when you have a processor that might tamper with the sealant and the material that the fascia is built around. Considering that we're into the 12th Gen for Intel's processors, I doubt you're going to get a cheap replacement for the board's waterblock.

 

[OUTBURSTPAL]

You will need to disassemble the board's unified cooling and inspect both the block and the acrylic fascia since the cracks you've outlined are akin to what we see on an over torqued fitting coupled together with hot coolant producing stress fractures on acrylic, which isn't good for the acrylic in the long run.

Also from the image I can deduce that the high temp caused the coolant you were using to cake/build up around the finned area of the CPU block. The heat caused the coolant to denature(for lack of a better word). I'd also inspect the pump, see if it's needing replacement and if the rest of your loop is clogged up.

I have my reservations with using sealant in that scenario, not when you have a processor that might tamper with the sealant and the material that the fascia is build around.

The cracks only appeared after using the CPU block to test something without any coolant whatsoever. So that’s what caused the cracks, otherwise my cooling solution is completely adequate and I always get extremely low temps. I have never seen my CPU go above 60 degrees apart from when I tested without coolant. (My motherboard has an OLED screen which always shows temps)

 

[COLGeek]

The cracks only appeared after using the CPU block to test something without any coolant whatsoever. So that’s what caused the cracks, otherwise my cooling solution is completely adequate and I always get extremely low temps. I have never seen my CPU go above 60 degrees apart from when I tested without coolant. (My motherboard has an OLED screen which always shows temps)

Lutfij's advice earlier was spot on before you added the additional content.

If this was my expensive rig, I would replace the device. If that isn't feasible at this time, just keep an eye on it. As the damage appears to be internal, I don't think you'll benefit from any sort of sealant or glue (for that matter).