Melted tubing, Alphacool

Greenlund

n00b
Joined
Oct 28, 2012
Messages
5
Hey guys and girls.

A few days ago I had the unfortunate experience of a tube, melting in my rig... Right when my gf and I were about to watch a movie together :-(

Suddenly a really loud BANG came from my computer and it shut it self down.

Anyone else ever had a tube melt on them?

My local reseller never heard of this before...

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I should have mentioned that the tube was very hot and so was the cpu block and the fittings
 
Did you verify your flow? It sounds like you had a restriction somewhere, causing the overheating and then rupturing.
 
If everything was really hot to the touch, there are two possibilities:

1. Your pump failed. However, melting would create a hole, not a split open like that. Nor would it make any noise.

2. Your system was running too hot for one reason or another. Maybe the fans on the radiator weren't on or something. The buildup of pressure from the expansion of water coupled with the higher heat caused it to rupture. This would definitely make noise.
 
I think you might be on to something tsumi... A combination of a restriction somewhere and the pump just kept on doing it's job, and this ultimately led to a melted/ruptured tubing...

Gonna buy some higher quality tubing and definitely a flowmeter too.

Thanks all :)
 
I'd open up your CPU block and check on the innards, I've seen some cases wehre if the radiator isn't rinsed / flushed properly, and then used with certain tubes + additives, it can cause some pretty nasty reactions which can cause buildup and eventual blockages in your waterblocks.
 
I didn't find the 74C max working temperature of Tygon R-3603 particularly comforting. Maybe silicone tubing (232C max temperature) would be a safer alternative?
 
If your loop is operating at a temperature of 74 C, you better rethink what you're doing.
 
I didn't find the 74C max working temperature of Tygon R-3603 particularly comforting. Maybe silicone tubing (232C max temperature) would be a safer alternative?

cant imagine a properly running loop reaching 85' F coolant temp, let alone 74'C
 
It's good practice to clean out your loop smile annually and change the tubing when needed. I used to change my tubing once a year, and I always used primoflex.
 
The idea is to get tubing that doesn't soften and burst shortly after your pump dies, giving you a second chance to fix the problem.
 
That looks like you had a blockage somewhere in your loop, causing the tubing to explode like that. If you look at the 3rd picture, you can see the tubing was ballooning near where the rupture was.
 
She blowed up.

My guess is this is the inlet side of the CPU block, there was an obstruction, pressure built up over time and bam.:eek:
 
many good ideas, thanks all :)

I know I'm gonna get high quality tubing from now on (Primochill Advanced LRT) and a Koolance flowmeter connected to a Lamptron controller ;)
 
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