Question Installed a 280mm AIO radiator, but can only fit 1/2 of screws

[Dranakin]

So, I purchased and installed an H115i Pro last night, but while my case appears to be able to fit two 140mm fans side-by-side on the top, I couldn't get the radiator screw holes to fully align with my case. If I move it a certain direction, some holes align while others do not. As a result, I could only screw in four out of the eight screws to hang my radiator from the top. I opted to screw in the back half that hangs over the CPU and GPU side.

It seems okay if I try to tug on it, but I'm probably be more comfortable if I try to secure the other half of it. What should add to the front half the radiator to secure it? Can't use zip ties because there's no exit for the screen holes on the radiator (I don't think). Would two-sided Velcro/command strips work, or would the heat melt away the sticker sides? Thanks for any advice.

 

[Crosslhs82x2]

Can you get the 4 corners of the rad holes lined up.?

 

[Dranakin]

Can you get the 4 corners of the rad holes lined up.?

Unfortunately no, I can only shift it between a "set" of four screw holes: one set towards the rear of the case and one set towards the front.

 

[Crosslhs82x2]

Did you look up your case for radiator support?
I have the h110i and mounted it with just the 4 outside corners.

 

[Dranakin]

Did you look up your case for radiator support?
I have the h110i and mounted it with just the 4 outside corners.

Unfortunately, I have a proprietary / pre-built case, so no easy way to get the specs for this case. I just bought a 140mm fan and looked up some measurements to try to get a sense if I could fit it or not.

 

[Crosslhs82x2]

If you feel comfortable with zip ties on it thats totally up to you.
As some prebuilts don't always move over to aftermarket cases well.
Or it could be a case mod of drilling holes from a template for mounting holes and any other hole needed to lessen any air flow restriction.

Have you attached the pump
Any problems mounting there?

 

[Dranakin]

If you feel comfortable with zip ties on it thats totally up to you.
As some prebuilts don't always move over to aftermarket cases well.
Or it could be a case mod of drilling holes from a template for mounting holes and any other hole needed to lessen any air flow restriction.

Have you attached the pump
Any problems mounting there?

I installed the rest of the AIO without any issues and have been able to run a few stress tests. The radiator hasn't fallen (thank goodness).

 

[Crosslhs82x2]

Good you should be ok.
Just don't forget about when moving it around.

 

[Karadjgne]

What we have here is failure to communicate...

On the part of the case manufacturer and any reasonable facsimile of intelligence.

Yours isn't the first case to just throw in fans with no consideration of distances between them. While you can mount 2x fans, there's a whole lot of gap between then that shouldn't be there.

Me, if it was my case, I'd pull the rad back out, take exact measurements between at least the 4x corners and drill some new holes in the top of the case to fit the rad. Since at least 1 fan lines up, this'll give 6x screw support without the majority of the weight of the rad sitting on the center screws.

 

[Crosslhs82x2]

So theres 2x for a case mod.

 

[rubix_1011]

Drilling some small holes is the simplest case mod you can do.

My recommendation would be to completely mask and cover everything before drilling - the last thing you want is a shard of steel falling into a PCIe or DIMM slot or landing elsewhere it could cause a huge issue.