Water making noise in the reservoir

[Roman2K]

Ever since my water cooling loop is running (less than a week ago), water is in the reservoir has always made an annoying noise, like little waves splashing. From what we can see below, it's because the inlet internal cylinder is so high that it's too close to the surface, so water flowing out of it is making waves.

In this YouTube video, you can see and hear the water moving in the upper part of the reservoir (I apologize for the very bad lighting, the case is located under my desk and that's the best I could capture this morning):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UuE2Edlmezk

The layout:
http://img708.imageshack.us/img708/2554/p1010041j.th.jpg (http://img708.imageshack.us/i/p1010041j.jpg/)
As you can see, the reservoir is an EK Multioption RES X2 - 250 Advanced. The inlet is mounted with the bigger cylinder, the outlet with the smaller.

I thought about mounting the smaller cylinder on the inlet, and nothing on the outlet (so that warm water is not going back into the pump immediately). But that would involve draining the loop beforehand.

Is there any other way I can get rid of this noise, most likely by "calming down" the water at the surface, without draining the loop?
Doesn't there exist some kind of floater that would keep the surface flat?

[Nickel020]

You could use clamps like this one (http://www.aquatuning.de/product_info.php/info/p3684_Schlauchklemme-bis-20mm.html) to cut off the flow so you don't need to drain the whole loop.

[Xtrafresh]

What you need is THIS (http://www.highflow.nl/reservoirs/reservoir-toebehoren/ek-anti-cyclon.html) thing. Excuse the dutch link, but you can hit "afbeeldingen" tab for some more images.

It may be hard to install it without bleeding and refilling the system. The only way that *might* work is screwing the top of the res off and lowering the anti-cyclon in place with a pair of pliers.
Anyway, i'd advise just taking the time to drain & refill. It'll be well worth the effort!

[Alexandr0s]

Xtrafresh, he uses an EK Multioption RES X2 - Advanced, which as you can see here (http://www.ekwaterblocks.com/shop/reservoirs-and-acc/reservoirs/ek-multioption-res-x2-250-advanced.html) already comes with several anti-cyclone gizmos. I believe those anti-cyclone plates you linked wont even fit on the new RES X2.

If the pictures in my link are correct, I believe the RES X2 comes with an anti-cyclone plate. Have you tried using that instead of the cylinders?

[Roman2K]

@Nickel020
Thanks for the link, I didn't know about such tools. I don't understand how that works though. Do you know of a video of someone using it on YouTube for example? (I haven't searched yet.)

@Xtrafresh
That's interesting. The anti-cyclone came with the reservoir but I didn't put it in since I mounted the cylinders instead. I had completely forgotten about the anti-cyclone since then. However, mine doesn't have 2 parallel holes but rather a hole in the shape of the EK logo (picture (http://www.ekwaterblocks.com/shop/media/catalog/product/cache/1/image/5e06319eda06f020e43594a9c230972d/e/k/ek-multioption-x2-res-advanced-anticyclon_600_1.jpg)). And it has to be screwed to the bottom of the reservoir, so I can't just put it there with pliers, unfortunately.

@Alexandr0s
The Advanced version of the RES X2 250 does indeed come with the anti-cyclone. I haven't tried it yet but that seems to be the solution so it looks like a drain/re-fill is in order :rolleyes:.

[Waterlogged]

Add more coolant or a course aquarium filter sponge (found in nearly any pet store with a fish dept).

I wish res makers that include these internal tubes would make different lengths depending on the length of the res instead of a 1 size fits all deal. :shakes: It's nearly impossible to get rid of something like this with such a long return tube.

[Xtrafresh]

ok, i stand corrected :)

Anyway, i think you'll just have to bite the bullet and do a drain/fill. Good luck!

[PiLsY]

Aquarium filter sponge filling the gap between the water and the top of the res does the trick. Have exactly the same issue on my bitspower Mini 80. Just take it out for pics ;).

[autobot]

You can always just add more fluid in your res. Try that and get back to us. :)

[Roman2K]

@Waterlogged & autobot

Add more coolant or a course aquarium filter sponge (found in nearly any pet store with a fish dept).
I would like it to be as simple as adding more coolant, but I fear it might be even worse if there's even a millimeter left of air, allowing waves to form, making water splash on the top as well as folding onto itself like it does now.

@Waterlogged & PiLsY

Aquarium filter sponge filling the gap between the water and the top of the res does the trick. Have exactly the same issue on my bitspower Mini 80
An aquarium filter sponge seems like a great alternative. Does the sponge have to fill the entire gap between the water surface and the top of the reservoir?

@Xtrafresh

Anyway, i think you'll just have to bite the bullet and do a drain/fill. Good luck!
Thanks ;). I will do that as a last resort to insert the anti-cyclone.

--

So what I will try tomorrow morning is (in order):

Unscrew the top of the reservoir and remove the taller of the internal tubes/cylinders since it's the one to blame. I will do that wearing laboratory gloves or a plastic bag cleaned with deionized water. If that doesn't work:
Add more coolant, filling the reservoir up to the top. If that doesn't work:
Add an aquarium filter sponge, either squeezed a little under the water surface, or floating. If that doesn't work:
As a last resort, drain the loop, remove both internal tubes/cylinders and screw in the anti-cyclone.


I will keep you posted about the outcome. Thanks for all your suggestions!

[Sideroxylon]

Put your pump on a controller and turn it down. I use a bigNG and miniNG to control my pump and all my fans for the same reason. They're a lil pricey but well worth it imo. I've been using them for years now. One of the best investments I've made for my cpu and sanity.

[clone38]

Or put a fitting on the top hole of the res and run a short bit of hose to a fillport this way the res is filled and will stop making any noise.

[Waterlogged]

On the "more coolant", sometime all it takes is a little more coolant to add enough extra mass to quiet things down.

On the "sponge filter", I use these (http://www.petco.com/product/13797/Hagen-Elite-Mini-Underwater-Filter-Foam.aspx?CoreCat=OnSiteSearch) when I have to. They fit 50mm res's snugly and are a little looser in a 60mm (like the EK Advanced) but should still work (they do in my 60mm Koolance), you could always use both in the pack to keep them from moving if you have to.

[Roman2K]

@Sideroxylon

Put your pump on a controller and turn it down.
I thought of that but all the slots of my fan controller are taken, and more importantly, I'm afraid that that would slow down the flow enough that less heat would be dissipated, so I would lose one of the advantages of water-cooling.

@clone38

Or put a fitting on the top hole of the res and run a short bit of hose to a fillport this way the res is filled and will stop making any noise.
That's a smart idea!
Unfortunately, as you can see on the photo in the first post, there is no room for a hose hanging out of the top fill port.

@Waterlogged
Thanks for the information. But...

--

I solved the problem by going for method #1: removing the taller cylinder. To do that, I removed enough coolant for the upper part of the cylinder to be above the surface, and used a pair of pliers wrapped in paper towel to gently unscrew it. The result is perfect: no more noise, as you can hear in the following YouTube video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OtxK-8zPy8U

There is just a tiny vortex now, but it's so small it's silent.
Thanks for all your input, greatly appreciated :up:.

[Waterlogged]

@Waterlogged
Thanks for the information. But...

--

I solved the problem by going for method #1: removing the taller cylinder. To do that, I removed enough coolant for the upper part of the cylinder to be above the surface, and used a pair of pliers wrapped in paper towel to gently unscrew it. The result is perfect: no more noise, as you can hear in the following YouTube video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OtxK-8zPy8U

There is just a tiny vortex now, but it's so small it's silent.
Thanks for all your input, greatly appreciated :up:.

Cool beans! :up: Yeah, those inlet tubes shouldn't go past half way into the res, otherwise you get this problem. . .but, the res makers all make them go at least 2/3 to 3/4 of the way for some stupid reason. :shrug:

[JoeBar]

BTW why are u using the Y fitting and don't use different inlet/outlet ports?

[Roman2K]

@JoeBar
I know it looks like a Y-fitting from the photo but it's not :D. There are actually both an inlet and an outlet ports (with a 45° adapter on each), but the photo only lets us see the inlet which is hiding the outlet.

[JoeBar]

U got a nice illusion there m8... :D

However a side inlet from the mb block would be cleaner though...

[Roman2K]

Unless I misunderstood what you said, the motherboard block is connected to the inlet of the reservoir.
The flow goes: Reservoir > Pump > GPU block > Radiator > CPU block > MB block > Reservoir.

[JoeBar]

In my opinion u should use the side as res inlet from the mb block and not the bottom.

[Roman2K]

In my opinion u should use the side as res inlet from the mb block and not the bottom.
Oh, I see, sorry!

You are probably right, though it might be a tight fit with the power connectors on the back of the graphics card, but I will keep that in mind for when I will drain the loop.

[NaeKuh]

extend a 90 on that top port.. add tubing and bring it up to the top of your case as a fillport on the side.

This way u can top off your res complete... the excess will go into the tubing... which is connected to the top of your case as a fill port.

http://img824.imageshack.us/img824/2554/p1010041j.jpg

[Roman2K]

@NaeKuh
Wow, thanks for having taken the time to do all that for me! That would be perfect for both avoiding the noise caused by water coming out of the taller cylinder and filling the loop conveniently. However, I solved (http://www.xtremesystems.org/forums/showthread.php?p=4447245#post4447245) my problem by removing the cylinder in question so I won't have to go through the trouble of buying the 90° adapter and most importantly, drilling a hole for the fillport (I would hate to fail at doing it given that the case cost me a whole lot of money -- France).

[JoeBar]

First of all fill your loop a bit more till res is full. If problem persists, drain and install the anticyclone and use the 45 adapter to the mb block using the res side as inlet.

[HanMies]

I also have a noisy EK Multioption, although I think for different reasons. I use the top inlet with a short tube extending under the water level. The problem is that the inlet pressure shoots air bubbles downwards with sufficient pressure for them to be sucked in by the pump outlet at the bottom, thus "recycling" the bubbles back into the loop.

I was thinking of getting this (http://www.ekwaterblocks.com/shop/reservoirs-and-acc/reservoir-acc/multioption-res-x2/ek-multioption-res-x2-t16x12-80mm-cyc.html) so that the water (and air) coming into the res is not pushed directly downwards but to the side. Hopefully the bubbles will then be able to rise to the top rather than being sucked into the pumps (2 x 10W DDC serial).

Do you think this will work?

[Roman2K]

@HanMies
Weeks after I had resolved the issue as mentioned above, I reorganized my loop, this time with the inlet at the top. Like you, I used a tube, the medium one out of the 3. I expected your problem to happen but it didn't. Which of the 3 tubes have you chosen?

Also, for the record, I changed the reservoir and went with the XSPC Single Bay (Plexi), I like it a lot more than the Multioption: tidier loop, solid, no noise or cyclone effect, easy to fill :up:.

[HanMies]

@HanMies
Weeks after I had resolved the issue as mentioned above, I reorganized my loop, this time with the inlet at the top. Like you, I used a tube, the medium one out of the 3. I expected your problem to happen but it didn't. Which of the 3 tubes have you chosen?

Thanks for reply! If memory serves I have the medium one at the top and the shortest one on the bottom (don't really know why). Unfortunately the inlet is directly above the pump intake but this can't really be helped.

The problem is related to flowrate. When starting up or if I crank up the pumps, it does seem to suck in some air which is a bit surprising considering that there is around 15cm of water above the end of the pump suck tube. However, when the pumps are turned down to about 9V, the bubbles and the noise slowly disappear. The flow rates are around 4 lpm at 12V and 2.8 to 3lpm at 9V.

Did you measure flowrates when you had the inlet at the top and did you use a tube or the anticyclone plate at the bottom?

BTW, I previously used a single 5.25 bay res (Aquacomputer Aquabox), but moved away from that for this exact same reason: there the inlet was maybe 2cm above the suck tube so that air was sucked in also at 9V. Might be due to bad design of that particular res.

EDIT: Looking at the XSPC res, it seems to have walls to increase the distance between inlet and outlet and also a barrier around the outlet to remove bubbles. On the other hand, the Aquabox has a "waterfall effect", guaranteed to create bubbles! Well, a lesson learned.