[SOLVED] My Liquid Cooling only seems to be working correctly for a couple of weeks, then I have to change thermal paste

[yotmato]

This is my system:

Motherboard: MSI MS-7B94
Cpu: Intel I9-10940X
Cooler: Lian Li Gallahad AIO360

The setup is on a Lian Li case.

Description of the problem:

My normal CPU temps are as follows:

• Idling: ~30-35 Celsius
• Gaming: ~50-55 Celsius
• Intel benchmark utility: ~70-75 Celsius

But after a couple of weeks, the temperatures will start slowly degrading, to the following:

• Idling: ~50-55 Celsius
• Gaming: ~70-80 Celsius
• Intel benchmark utility: ~100 Celsius

Sometimes it even degrades to the point where I have 85-90 while gaming.

I'm stuck in a cycle where, every couple of weeks i'm forced to change the thermal paste (arctic MX-2). That seems to fix the issue for another couple of weeks. I'm pretty tired of this however, so I would like to get to the bottom of what is happening, but my hardware knowledge is very limited.

Any ideas of what I could try would be highly appreciated.

Thank you

 

[drivinfast247]

Maybe there are air bubbles gathering on the pump head over time. What case? Where is the radiator?

 

[yotmato]

Hi @drivinfast247

The case is from Lian Li aswell, this liquid cooling is build for it, the radiator its in the front of the case:

About the air bubbles, interesting theory, does it make sense that they seem to dissapear for a while, when I take out the setup, clean it, and reapply the thermal paste?

Cheers for the help

 

[Paperdoc]

Yes, that might make some sense. To change the thermal paste I bet you remove the pump unit from the CPU, clean it off, then re-install with new paste. There is a lot of moving things around and changing orientation, so any air in the tubing and pump unit will be moved to a new location every time. But once it's back in operation, the air will be pushed around in the loop until it collects in one stable location, and that might be inside the pump. It becomes a blockage for liquid flow. Especially if the bubble is inside the pump, an air-bound pump cannot make the liquid flow because the pump cannot pump AIR.

Consult Lian LI Tech Support for how to deal with air bubles and possible loss of liquid from the loop.

 

[faalin]

what Lian Li case do you have? or better yet could you post a picture of the setup. you can use https://imgur.com/ to host the image.

Few things to check.

Is the pump still running, you can put your finger on top the CPU block and feel the vibration.
Are the crews loose when you have to remove it and re paste? could happen with pump vibration.
What is the highest point in the system? Air rises, so if your tubes are at the top of your case there's a chance it can force a air bubble to the pump. Best fitment with a front mount is to have the hoses at the bottom of the case, so any air gets trapped in the very top of the radiator with no chances of air being forced all the way down into a tube.

If there is air in the system, you need to contact Lain Li because its a closed loop system, there is no way to fill it and that means water/coolant is leaking somewhere.

 

[yotmato]

Thanks for the help guys.

Is the pump still running, you can put your finger on top the CPU block and feel the vibration. => I'll check whenever the temperature gets borked again
Are the crews loose when you have to remove it and re paste? could happen with pump vibration. => Nope, they are as tight as I left them

What is the highest point in the system? => Here is a picture:

https://imgur.com/AzqjEH0

View: https://imgur.com/AzqjEH0

 

[faalin]

If the hoses allow it flip the radiator over so the hoses are at the bottom of the case. This, in case there is any air in the system, will be caught at the top of the radiator and not have a chance to make it to the pump.

Give this a watch Gamers Nexus

 

[drivinfast247]

Thanks for the help guys.

Is the pump still running, you can put your finger on top the CPU block and feel the vibration. => I'll check whenever the temperature gets borked again
Are the crews loose when you have to remove it and re paste? could happen with pump vibration. => Nope, they are as tight as I left them

What is the highest point in the system? => Here is a picture:

https://imgur.com/AzqjEH0

View: https://imgur.com/AzqjEH0

Flip the pump 180° so the hoses exit the top.