Thoughts on freon and liquid cooling ...

Sepzis

New Member
Well i'm building a freon cooling system for a PC build.
I'm wondering if freon cooling on the CPU will damage the motherboard in any way? gonna use a asus maximus IV extreme-z MoBo. Also any tips on where to get decent liquid cooled ram sticks?
 

Yeti

VIP Member
Can you even get freon anymore? I thought (H)CFCs stopped being sold.
CFCs such as R12 and R22 haven't been used commercially for a while. Their HFC replacements, such as R134a, are most common now. "Freon" is really a trademark of DuPont and their refrigerants, but people often use it as a synonym for "refrigerant" similar to Kleenex and "facial tissue".

Sepzis said:
Well i'm building a freon cooling system for a PC build. I'm wondering if freon cooling on the CPU will damage the motherboard in any way? gonna use a asus maximus IV extreme-z MoBo. Also any tips on where to get decent liquid cooled ram sticks?
What exactly are you planning on doing? What type of system? How cold?
 
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tremmor

Well-Known Member
Im guessing its still the same. I was buying 50lb cans of 22 and 12 then. They stopped selling it years ago to me because i was not licensed. I was able to go into a place like Murrays auto parts and buy a 1 pound can. They still might do it and available at a parts supplier. Just guessing though.
 
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Sepzis

New Member
Well I was thinking about using freon, because i actually have freon at my disposal. The main question is. Will the low temp endanger the MoBo's durability? And for the ram sticks and other parts, i was thinking about using aftermarked LQ cooling, like exos, or something.
 

Juggalo23451

New Member
Well I was thinking about using freon, because i actually have freon at my disposal. The main question is. Will the low temp endanger the MoBo's durability? And for the ram sticks and other parts, i was thinking about using aftermarked LQ cooling, like exos, or something.

if you do that route you will have to ensure your mb is properly insulated from condensation. again no reason to cool the ram if this is going to be a 24/7 rig.
 

Sepzis

New Member
if you do that route you will have to ensure your mb is properly insulated from condensation. again no reason to cool the ram if this is going to be a 24/7 rig.

Not sure what you meen by 24/7 rig. I'm looking to overclock to the max. This rig is ment to be a bit overkill.
 

ScottALot

Active Member
Not sure what you meen by 24/7 rig. I'm looking to overclock to the max. This rig is ment to be a bit overkill.

24/7 rig meaning you can turn it off/on as you please like a regular computer. Usually this title is only available to those who air cool, water cool, phase change, or TEC cool. Freon doesn't seem to be viable for 24/7 use.
 

Yeti

VIP Member
Sepzis said:
Well I was thinking about using freon, because i actually have freon at my disposal.
I would argue that "freon" (still not sure which refrigerant you're referring to) is relatively easy to acquire. What you're planning to do with it is the question.

ScottALot said:
24/7 rig meaning you can turn it off/on as you please like a regular computer. Usually this title is only available to those who air cool, water cool, phase change, or TEC cool. Freon doesn't seem to be viable for 24/7 use.
Are you saying that phase change and "freon" cooling are different?
 

Gary1

New Member
I would argue that "freon" (still not sure which refrigerant you're referring to) is relatively easy to acquire. What you're planning to do with it is the question.

Are you saying that phase change and "freon" cooling are different?

Apparently OP works with Air conditioning or something???? I don't know where he is getting it, or how he got it. His question was Does he need to protect his motherboard and how?? I am sure he is talking about the kind of Freon that is cold, and I am sure it's not important to know what he has.
 

Gary1

New Member
I asked someone I know who knows more about this stuff than I do.He said condensation on the pipes that carry the coolant is a concern as well.
 

just a noob

Well-Known Member
The cryo-z was kind of a flop, it just couldn't hold a decent sized load. The unit was designed back in 2006/2007(I think) for a fairly low heat load. You'd be better off finding a phase change builder to make you a custom unit tuned to your needs.
 

Yeti

VIP Member
Gary1 said:
Apparently OP works with Air conditioning or something????
Even if that is the case, that doesn't necessarily mean much.
Gary1 said:
I don't know where he is getting it, or how he got it. His question was Does he need to protect his motherboard and how??
And that question has been answered: As with all sub-ambient cooling, condensation must be accounted for. Otherwise, it is doubtful that any other thermal issues would arise.
Gary1 said:
I am sure he is talking about the kind of Freon that is cold, and I am sure it's not important to know what he has.
As opposed to the non-cold kind? So him having R134a, boiling point at 1 Bar of -26C, is the same as having some R14, boiling point at 1 Bar of -128C? Regardless, I would have more confidence in him knowing what he is doing if he knew what type of refrigerant he had and how he was going to use it (single stage? cascade? what compressor?). So yes, instead of answering his question I am trying to gauge if this is time wasted on everyone's part. To the OP, Sepzis, I apologize if you do have a vapor compression system in mind and have experience with refrigerants, but your statements don't lead me to believe this. Having refrigerant on hand is typically the least of your worries.
 

Gary1

New Member
I am only here to get answers and no I am not into HVAC but I know a guy who is awesome with the stuff. However instead of taking this subject to him I am thinking about something like the cryo-z. It might not be so easy either.
I would like to know do you need to do something to protect the MOBO?? If so how?? And as for the Freon I will be using what ever A) is installed in phase change, or B) someone more qualified than me to purchase. Sorry for being short but I am not concerned with Freon until I know what I am doing with the components I do have. Honestly If I go ahead and get someone to make this for me and it crashes my mobo and CPU then I have to start over. Also it would be nice to know if its even a good idea.
 

Yeti

VIP Member
just a noob said:
Yeah, I've followed that site off-and-on for many years. A lot of incredible systems on there including that 5 stage cascade.
Gary1 said:
I would like to know do you need to do something to protect the MOBO?? If so how??
Yes, you need to protect against condensation. There are two goals to this:
1) insulating any cold (or potentially cold, e.g. think of conduction paths) to make surface temperatures higher (ideally above the dew point) and
2) eliminating any air pockets that would contain condensible water vapor (for my work I use high-vac systems which, unfortunately can't be done, at least very easily, with computers)
To accomplish this you can use various closed cell foams (e.g. neoprene) and formable dielectric "putties" (e.g. rubber eraser). The site that just a noob linked is a good place to look for various methods and advice for low temperature computer cooling.

Gary1 said:
And as for the Freon I will be using what ever A) is installed in phase change, or B) someone more qualified than me to purchase. Sorry for being short but I am not concerned with Freon until I know what I am doing with the components I do have. Honestly If I go ahead and get someone to make this for me and it crashes my mobo and CPU then I have to start over.
When thinking up a system, I would recommend starting with your goals - what do you want it to do (temperature? potential loading? running 24/7?)? Then you can choose a compressor, refrigerant, etc. that will accomplish your goals.

Gary1 said:
Also it would be nice to know if its even a good idea.
Sure, its a good idea if you want to heavily overclock your computer and you have the necessary money, time, and patience (or just lots of money).
 
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