[SOLVED] heat pipe too long

[youssef v100]

https://imgur.com/a/2VTDCPf

I have noctua u12 redux cooler, it has long heat pipe that block's the glass from closing , can i cut it to reduce it or is there any solution??

 

[rgd1101]

what the case? did you check the cpu cooler max height?

 

[youssef v100]

Xigmatek aquarius plus the glass closes but not fully closed

 

[rgd1101]

158mm for the case
158mm cooler.
it is cooler tight on the motherboard?

 

[youssef v100]

Not all the pipes are the same this one is only the longest between them

 

[geofelt]

You were cutting it close with 158/158mm.

If the single heat pipe length is abnormally long, you could try to exchange the cooler as defective.
I would try that first.

If you want to try to fix things yourself, carefully apply pressure to the cooler to bend the pipes to make room. You run the risk that you may damage the cooler.
But, heat pipes do bend a bit and I think if you pushed down on the whole cooler, you might gain 1mm out of it. I have done this successfully with a different noctua cooler to effect ram clearance.

 

[MadsModsat]

I tried to grind down a heatpipe on a cooler that I had no use for. You can only grind surprisingly little off the end of a heatpipe, before you reach the hollow core, and the cooling fluid immediately evaporates.

I managed to grind down roughly 1 mm, before the core was breached. I have attached a picture of the cooler which shows the heatpipe after I cut away the tip, maybe you can use it for reference.

As you can see the heatpipe wall is thinner on one side, so it's hard to predict how much you can grind away

EDIT : The heatpipe appear a bit thicker in the image because it is a close up, but roughly 1 mm to work with where the pipe wall is thickest.

In your case I would be very hesitant to begin grinding down the heatpipe, as you gain very little and risk damaging the cooler instead.

 

[geofelt]

I would NOT try to grind down the heat pipe.
But, they will bend some.
If you squash down from the top of the cooler, I bet you will gain the few mm that you need.

 

[CountMike]

I tried to grind down a heatpipe on a cooler that I had no use for. You can only grind surprisingly little off the end of a heatpipe, before you reach the hollow core, and the cooling fluid immediately evaporates.

I managed to grind down roughly 1 mm, before the core was breached. I have attached a picture of the cooler which shows the heatpipe after I cut away the tip, maybe you can use it for reference.

As you can see the heatpipe wall is thinner on one side, so it's hard to predict how much you can grind away

EDIT : The heatpipe appear a bit thicker in the image because it is a close up, but roughly 1 mm to work with where the pipe wall is thickest.

In your case I would be very hesitant to begin grinding down the heatpipe, as you gain very little and risk damaging the cooler instead.

That just killed about 25% of cooling capacity.

 

[Phaaze88]

Things like that is the reason I skip over air coolers whose height matches that of the chassis' stated air cooler clearance, and instead look to models that are at least 1mm shorter, when recommending air coolers to other people.
If you turned the screws securing the cooler to the cpu all the way - when they stop, then that's it. I'd suggest not trying to tighten them any further.
I'd also suggest returning that cooler for something a little shorter.

@MadsModsat
All in the name of science!

 

[MadsModsat]

That just killed about 25% of cooling capacity.

Yes, you are completely right about that, and I also suspect that the GPU would be hotter on one side than the other.

But it is a cooler I no longer have any use for, and I was interested in finding out how quickly the liquid in heatpipes evaporate when the pipes are damaged. I was also curious about how thick the pipe walls are. It was never supposed to function as a cooler again, and luckily I had all my questions answered when I cut the cooler open