Do heat pipes go bad?

[brianjson]

Considering what is inside a heat pipe how long does it take to absorb through the copper pipe?

 

[cjl]

They will last basically indefinitely if undamaged, though if they get even a tiny puncture, they will be useless nearly immediately.

 

[JohnnyLucky]

To the best of my knowledge there is nothing but air inside the copper heat pipes of a tower style cpu heatsink. I have the original version of the Thermalright Ultra 120 that I purchased a few years ago and it is working properly. I have not noticed anything out of the ordinary. I do not know if there is some sort of protective coating on the interior or exterior surfaces of the heat pipes.

Last August I did a case mod with a black and copper theme. I made two small copper panels for the case. After cleaning and prepping the panels I used vinegar to etch the panels. Then I sprayed them with a high gloss clear coating. The copper panels show no signs of tarnishing.

 

[cjl]

To the best of my knowledge there is nothing but air inside the copper heat pipes of a tower style cpu heatsink. I have the original version of the Thermalright Ultra 120 that I purchased a few years ago and it is working properly. I have not noticed anything out of the ordinary. I do not know if there is some sort of protective coating on the interior or exterior surfaces of the heat pipes.

Last August I did a case mod with a black and copper theme. I made two small copper panels for the case. After cleaning and prepping the panels I used vinegar to etch the panels. Then I sprayed them with a high gloss clear coating. The copper panels show no signs of tarnishing.

There's a lot more than air - if it were just air, they wouldn't work nearly as well. They actually use a liquid at low pressure so the heat causes it to evaporate. This gas condenses on the cool end of the heatpipe, depositing the heat there, and transporting far more heat than just a pure copper tube would.

 

[JohnnyLucky]

GEE! I learned something new today! Cool!

 

[daft]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heat_pipe

 

[knotknut]

Your PC will be way out dated by the time the heat pipe rotts through.
No worry!

 

[bpm75]

Normally the heat pipes are lined to create a wicking effect and the conducting fluid would have an anti corrosion fluid mixed in if it was going to react. So in short, no, dont worry about it. If you puncture one though, thats completely ruined its cooling properties as the pressure it works on is lost!