Corsair H70 leaking fluid that smells like anti-freeze from my truck/van!

[soarwitheagles]

Hi all,

I purchased Corsair's H70 after using their H50 for about one year. The H70 had considerably better benchmarks than the H50, especially once you get up into the higher levels of over clocking.

Everything went fine for about one month of usage. I had the motherboard die on me so I RMA's the motherboard. After receiving the motherboard back, I began to reassemble the system. Much to my alarm, I discovered the H70 had sprung a leak at the attachment point where the hose meets the "L" elbow protruding from the motor [see pic please].

I am not sure what could have caused this. I did not apply any undo pressure to the H70.

I was shocked to find absolutely no incidents of the H70 leaking at Corsair's forum, or when I googled H70 leaks. So it appears this may be a first.

I did have some questions:

1. Has anyone here had an H70 leak?
2. What would cause my H70 to leak?
3. Why does the fluid smell so strongly like anti-freeze [is it truly Ethyl Glycol]?
4. Why does it keep dripping [is the unit under pressure or something like that]?
5. Have you any recommendations?

Please do not recommend one of the monster air-cooled CPU coolers [such as The Noctua NH-D14 120mm & 140mm SSO CPU Cooler that weighs in at a preposterous 1240 grams]. I am no longer comfortable applying somewhere in the vicinity of 1240 grams of pressure per square inch on my processor/motherboard.

I would appreciate any and all good advice and suggestions.

Thanks,

Soar

 

[Slaymate]

Contact Corsair as I'm sure they'll take care of this for you.

 

[KJamesJR]

Yeah like Slaymate had mentioned, contact Corsair.

What you could do now/in the future is get a small hose clamp and tighten the hose up around the elbow joint. I don't know much about water cooling PC's but it's not to far off from how a radiator in a vehicle works. In all honesty, I would certainly not be mixing fluid with electronics without hose clamping every joint anyways. That's just asking for trouble.

 

[soarwitheagles]

Yeah like Slaymate had mentioned, contact Corsair.

What you could do now/in the future is get a small hose clamp and tighten the hose up around the elbow joint. I don't know much about water cooling PC's but it's not to far off from how a radiator in a vehicle works. In all honesty, I would certainly not be mixing fluid with electronics without hose clamping every joint anyways. That's just asking for trouble.

King James,

Yes, I have had similar suggestions at other forums. I am concerned that adding a hose clamp may cause further problems once I receive a new unit. It is possible these units are not made for a hose clamp and perhaps a hose clamp could actually cause a leak. I will not do it.

I am very disappointed in this Corsair product as well as their RMA process and procedures.

I paid very good money for this unit being under the impression it was manufactured with excellence. Obviously someone dropped the ball big time on this unit and in so doing placed my entire system at risk. That is unacceptable. To add insult to injury, the insist that I pay the shipping and will not send me a new unit until the receive this unit that is dripping like a waterfall. When I attempted advanced RMA procedures, they assured me they would connect me immediately with a rep. Yeah, right. I was connected to a voice mail prompt that asked me to leave personal information.

They have their heads up their....well, we are not allowed to say such things here so I will refrain.

Soar

 

[S0ULphIRE]

It is possible these units are not made for a hose clamp and perhaps a hose clamp could actually cause a leak.

Seems to me that all it is is a pipe with another pipe fitted over the top. In which case, a hose clap will stop it leaking. I don't see how it could possibly *cause* a leak. You've got nothing to lose now anyway, seeing as it's already leaking, so you may as well give it a shot right?

 

[BlackDawg]

Use a hair dryer or low heat setting on a heat gun to heat the hose just a little, give it a twist, then let it cool and test the leak again.

 

[soarwitheagles]

Seems to me that all it is is a pipe with another pipe fitted over the top. In which case, a hose clap will stop it leaking. I don't see how it could possibly *cause* a leak. You've got nothing to lose now anyway, seeing as it's already leaking, so you may as well give it a shot right?

SP,

Thanks for your reply. Actually, I have a lot to lose if I attempt to modify, alter, or repair this unit. Corsair may void their warranty if I do so. I RMA'd the unit this morning. They'll be sending me a replacement.

Use a hair dryer or low heat setting on a heat gun to heat the hose just a little, give it a twist, then let it cool and test the leak again.

BD,

Thanks for the suggestion...but I already RMA'd the unit this morning.

Now I must wait who knows how long to receive a new unit.

Soar

 

[KJamesJR]

Well, if the reviews thus far have been of excellence then I am sure you were just that 1:1,000,000 customer with a bad one. Best of wishes to you and your next cooler... I would personally be afraid and have reverted back to air.

EDIT: Upon reviewing the photo a second time I have this question; Are there any grooves around the male elbow joint? If not this is a serious design flaw, for the grooves would have help with greatly with gripping the inside of the female hose. Thus reducing the risk of slipping/leaks.

 

[soarwitheagles]

Well, if the reviews thus far have been of excellence then I am sure you were just that 1:1,000,000 customer with a bad one. Best of wishes to you and your next cooler... I would personally be afraid and have reverted back to air.

EDIT: Upon reviewing the photo a second time I have this question; Are there any grooves around the male elbow joint? If not this is a serious design flaw, for the grooves would have help with greatly with gripping the inside of the female hose. Thus reducing the risk of slipping/leaks.

Not sure about the grooves but Corsair was sold thousands upon thousands of these units with nearly no leak problems whatsoever. I suppose I will take my chances once they ship me a new unit.

Have a good one!

Soar

 

[LuvzDaHead]

WARNING!!!!!

I must join in here and tell you that from what I have read you are not alone.
Here's some links for you all to read:

Major H70 failure photos:
http://forum.corsair.com/v3/attachment.php?attachmentid=8345&d=1303094733
http://forum.corsair.com/v3/attachment.php?attachmentid=8346&d=1303094748
http://forum.corsair.com/v3/attachment.php?attachmentid=8347&d=1303094762
http://forum.corsair.com/v3/attachment.php?attachmentid=8348&d=1303094773
http://forum.corsair.com/v3/attachment.php?attachmentid=8350&d=1303094866
This is a total pump failure and you know what the result is.
Kiss your system goodbye. Water and surface mount electronics DO NOT MIX. You now are the proud owner of $3,000 or more worth of scrap junk. Might as well toss it in your pool.
Here is the owner of this story, please read for yourself.
My H70 pump has blewn up and caused a major leaked - The Corsair Support Forums

If I find out more I will advise you. Keep in mind I just ordered one of these for myself and, but after reading this I think I will let it run on the table for a month before I install it in my server as I have $10,000 worth of hardware in this server.




-----------------------------------------------------------

H50: leaking
H50 leaked - Page 2 - The Corsair Support Forums
H50 leaked - The Corsair Support Forums

H70: leaking toasting several entire systems over $2,000 in damage on one system alone:
Newegg.com - CORSAIR Hydro H70 CWCH70 120mm High Performance CPU Cooler
sort by lowest review first and see the number of users with leaking systems.

H70: leaks:
My H70 pump has blewn up and caused a major leaked - The Corsair Support Forums



More H50, leaking:
Corsair H50 Leak! go with the H70