CPU hitting 90+c

[Munson5282]

Hey everyone, I've gone through dozens of posts to try to figure out my problem. Recently my cpu temp has been going straight up to 90 and peaking up to 100 and causing my computer to shut down a matter of 30-90 minutes, basically idling.

My tower is a custom gaming rig from Cyberpower PC. The tower is huge with a lot of room and cables routed through a side panel, 9 fans, liquid cooled system that I got 3 years ago.

I have an Intel Core I7-3820 and a Thermaltake CLW0215 to cool it.

I'm pretty good with cleaning it regularly, and since the issues started I took it all apart and dusted every nook and cranny, same issues. So I thought it might be thermal compound issue so I got a new bottle, applied it carefully and booted up. Same as before, straight to the 90s.

So where do I go from here? All the fans are spinning, I went into BIOS and verified the rpm and visually checked them all. Do liquid cooling systems need to be recharged? How do I verify that it's circulating? The other temps in the system were in 40-50 range so I believe it's definitely an issue with CPU fan.

Thanks.

Also should mention I used BIOS, core temp, and various other programs listed on this site's forums to get temp readings, all of them were 90c+.

 

[xephex]

Closed loop coolers don't usually need refilling. Make sure your radiator is not dusty and make sure it has easy access to the vents.

 

[DonkeyOatie]

I know it doesn't run for long, but is the radiator actually radiating? Can you detect any hot air coming out of it? Do the fins get warm?

 

[Munson5282]

Yeah donkey, I don't want to run for too long at those temps. I did more research on closed circuit coolers and a lot of places say they last 2-3 years before the pump fails. I've had mine just over 3, so is there a way to test to see if the pump is working still?

 

[dhamiltongrey]

do you still have an air cooler handy... try sticking the air cooler in and see if it works any better.. if with an air cooler its doing the same you may have a fried cpu.. im dead against water coolers from experience.. neccessary in your car but not so much in your computer.. aftermarket air coolers are just as and sometimes better than watercooling..

 

[DonkeyOatie]

There are ways to test it. I'm assuming that you have no transparent parts, and you cannot see any flow. By looking at radiator warming you see if fluid is transferring energy. Is the pump making a noise? If not 'it's dead, Jim'. If you have doubts, you can take the block out of the case and put it in boiling water and see if the radiator heats up. BE CAREFUL the intersection of Boiling Water and Computers and People is not a happy place.

 

[Munson5282]

There are ways to test it. I'm assuming that you have no transparent parts, and you cannot see any flow. By looking at radiator warming you see if fluid is transferring energy. Is the pump making a noise? If not 'it's dead, Jim'. If you have doubts, you can take the block out of the case and put it in boiling water and see if the radiator heats up. BE CAREFUL the intersection of Boiling Water and Computers and People is not a happy place.

I turned on my system and sure enough it went straight into 90s. One tube was noticeably warmer after 30 seconds or so than the other (out I'd assume) but very quickly the other tube got warm as well (the return tube) and I could fee slight vibrations when holding the tube so it seems it's circulating. The radiator was blowing cool air the entire time though, and I didn't notice a perceptible change in the air. Again, both fans for the radiator are working correctly. So maybe it is the radiator that has failed or something. I don't have a spare air cooler, but at this point I think I might as well scrap the old liquid cooled system and go with tried and true air cooling.

 

[DonkeyOatie]

Great observation!

If noticeably warm fluid is going back, then you have it! Your radiator is not radiating. I don't know the inner gubbins, but is seems as if the hot fluid is mostly bypassing the radiator and going straight back to the CPU.

Looks like the radiator has snuffed it.

 

[Munson5282]

As a last ditch effort before I clicked Submit on an order to purchase a new air cooler I took off the cooler again, cleaned the paste, reapplied and booted up. It stayed low 40s for 10 minutes. So I booted a game that initially caused a crash from overheating and have been running for 30 minutes with temps in mid 40s, peaking at 64.

So hopefully this will be my last post for this topic, but I'll continue to run the game and monitor the temps. Before it was getting to 80-90+ in just a minute idling, so it *looks* like it's back to normal. The thermal paste looks like it could be the issue from the beginning, and a poor reapplication from me made it worse. That's hopefully why I could feel it circulating, but circulating warm fluid. Like I said, I'll monitor and go from there.

Thanks DonkeyOatie, dhamiltongrey and xephex for your suggestions and recommendations.