Need Advice on Mounting AIO Radiator in Case

J

jimnms

Gawd
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Mar 15, 2003
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I wasn't sure whether or not this should go in cases or water cooling, but since I'm going to have to modify my case one way or another, I figure this is the best place.

I bought a Corsair 100R Silent Edition for my new build. I've had limited time to work on it, but basically I've had it all assembled except the side panels for a week now. I've been running stress tests before I clean up the cables and put on the sides. I have an Arctic Liquid Freezer 120 for cooling. Corsair's page for the case has a picture that shows it with what looks like an H80 in it, which has the same dimensions as the Arctic cooler, and looks pretty much just like my setup.

This past weekend it had passed the tests and I was ready to finish it up. When I tried putting on the "front" side panel, it wasn't catching at the top in the back. I then discovered that it was because there is a lip on the panel that can't go on due to the radiator being in the way. I can push hard and force it in, but it bulges out.

This is what the side panel looks like. You can see the lip that runs at the top, bottom and front of the case. Here is a closer look, which you can see at the bottom left corner is a flattened area so that it clears the mount post for the 5.25" drive bays. That mount post sticks out about as much as the radiator.

Other than getting a new case, I can only see two options:

1) Try to flatten the lip so that it will clear the radiator.
2) Move the radiator to the front, but in order for it to fit in that front fan spot, the radiator will have to be turned on its side, which from what I've read shouldn't matter as far as cooling goes.

For option 1, I could bang it down with a hammer, but I'm worried about damaging the panel. If I go that route, I think I'll use my dremel and try to grind it down instead.

Option 2 requires a little modification too. If you look close at the front fan mounts, they are threaded and use long screws to attach the fan. The holes and screws are a smaller diameter than what are on the radiator, so in order to mount the radiator there I will need to drill out the holes. I can mount one of the fans on the other side of that wall behind the front panel (there is already one in front of the HD bay), so the only space it will take up in the case is the width of the radiator and one fan.

Option 2 sounds like the easiest because drilling out 4 holes should be easier than grinding down that lip. The only down side to that is that it moves the noisiest part of the system up front.

I can't make up my mind. Just when I think I've decided and go to do one or the other, I stop and think then change my mind. I'm reaching out to see if anyone else can think of something I haven't, or offer a suggestion that will me make a final decision.
 
Have you tried putting the panel on while the screws holding the radiator to the case are loose, and then tightening them down while the panel is on? It might just be a matter of moving the radiator over slightly.
 
No, I haven't tried that, but if that works, I might have to do that every time I remove the panel, which would be a PITA. Also, I noticed last night that it seems the radiator is pushing the lip on the case out slightly. The joint where the top and back of the case are bulging out slightly, and the other joints aren't like that.

This new discovery has made me about 52% sure I want to move the radiator to the front now. Last night though I was the other way around though and had my dremel out ready to start grinding away. One reason behind moving it is that there is all of that space going to waste that could be used by the radiator. The radiator fans are not that loud, but it is the loudest thing in the case at idle. I know that space is left open for long GPUs, but I don't think any GPU will be long enough to not fit even with the radiator up there.

I just don't think this case can take a radiator of any size back there despite Corsair showing it off with an H80 mounted in it. My old system, Gaming #2 in my signature, has a Corsair H50 in it. Other than being thinner, the radiator is the same size, so even it wouldn't fit.
 
It's worth a shot, at least. The holes for mounting fans are usually much larger than radiator screws in order to accomidate the larger fan screws, so sometimes you can just move the radiator over and then tighten it down in place. Of course, that's only possible if there's room on the other side of the radiator. What lip are you talking about being pushed out? The rail that the side panel attaches to, or the lip on the panel itself?

As for option two, are your radiator screws threaded all the way to the head, or just the last third? You might be able to thread them through and then put the fan and radiator on and screw them down, as long as the screws aren't too big and the shanks don't damage the threads on the case. That's what I did on my nzxt H230
 
Nobu said:
It's worth a shot, at least. The holes for mounting fans are usually much larger than radiator screws in order to accomidate the larger fan screws, so sometimes you can just move the radiator over and then tighten it down in place.
Click to expand...

It is worth a shot, and I'll try it since I'll have to loosen the screws anyway to remove the radiator. I'm pretty sure it won't work though. The design of this case is unconventional, but not entirely in a bad way. The internal dimensions lengthwise are larger than most cases of its size because the MB sits flush with the back of the case, where as most cases have the MB inset about 1/2 an inch. This means the lip for the PCIe cards sit outside the case rather than inside, which give extra clearance inside, but it also moves the MB toward the back of the case about 1/2 an inch, which means radiators designed for traditional cases are now 1/2 inch closer to the components on the MB and air coolers are 1/2 inch closer to the rear of the case. The second fan of the radiator is actually sitting on top of the heatsink/pump because of this. None of the reviews I read about this case mentioned that, so had I known this, I probably would have selected a different case or planned for a different cooling solution. The Corsair page showed an H80 installed, so I figured there would be no problem.

The lip that seems to be bent out that I'm referring to is the lip on the top of the case itself that the side panel attaches to. If you view the full size image, you might notice that the screws going into the radiator are angled down slightly. I noticed the clearance problem immediately when I fit the radiator. I didn't think it was going to fit at all, but it did. I think when I tightened the screws that it pulled the radiator up and bent that part of the case out a little.

Mounting the radiator in the front will definitely require me to drill out the holes. The stock threaded holes are a smaller diameter and finer thread than the screws that come with the radiator. I can't use the screws that come with the case because they're only long enough to go through the fan and into the case.

The reason 48% of me wants to flatten the lip on the side panel is that it was kind of a hassle to install the radiator to begin with. Now that it's installed, if I modify the side panel I'll just be done with it. The other 52% of me is worried that I'll totally screw up the side panel while attempting to flatten/grind down that lip, and moving the radiator to the front in that large empty spot seams easier. I've measured and the radiator should fit if its turned sideways, but if I've measured wrong, I'll have to put the radiator back and modify the side panel anyway.

It's going to be at least tomorrow before I get a chance to do either one though, so I'm still rolling the ideas around in my head.
 
I went ahead and mounted it in the front. I think it's better this way. I make use of the room up front and still have room for a long GPU. I mounted one fan on the front side of the case with the radiator and the other fan on the inside. This is what it looked like after mounting:


I had to tidy up the cables, then the case closed right up.
 
Cool, good to see you were able to get it in there. Just one thing I'd note: since the radiator is installed lower than the pump, make sure you pay attention to the sound the pump makes--if the coolant level ever gets too low (due to evaporation), the pump could be left high & dry.
 
I know you just got it fitting right but nobu is right about the rad possition. since the rad is lower if there is any air in the aio or if there is ever evaporation leading to air in it then it will collect in the cpu block and the pump will run dry. was there any reason you did not mount it in the back where your exhaust fan is? if it fits there that would be the better location. that way the top of the rad will be higher than the cpu block and any air would collect there instead of in the block.
 
ah I get it. I just misread and didn't look at the pic links. I thought your whole issue was the front face not fitting then I saw your recent pic post...
 
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