Cooling Mining Rigs Using Liquid Chiller
Cooling Mining Rigs Using Liquid Chiller
Hi All,
I am new in water cooling, I have set a normal water cooling loop for 5 GPUs and here what I have used;
1. 5x Gigabyte 1080 Ti Waterforce WB Xtreme Edition 11G
2. 1x Thermaltake RL480 Radiator
3. 4x Arctic F12 PWM Fan
4. 1x Thermaltake PR22-D5 300ml Pump/Reservoir Combo
5. XSPC fittings
6. Clear Vinyl Tubing 3/8ID X 1/2OD
The setup was as follow;
Pump/Reservoir >>> 5 GPUs (Connected in serial) >>> Rad (with 4 fans attached)
I have used normal distilled water
The ambient temperature was around 20C (dropped by A/C)
The setup worked fine but the GPUs temperature was around 60+C (the lowest) to 70+C (the highest)
It was winter but in summer the outside temperature will go up to 50C, all temps will rise few degrees and thus I will run into overheat.
However, all pipes seems to be stressed and I didn't like that.
and, I wanted to overclock and add more GPUs.
So, I upgraded the water loop and now I am running the following;
1. Added another Rad (in serial)
2. Replace the 4 fans with stronger ones (old 74cfm/fan, new 250cfm/fan)
3. Added circulating chiller/pump (17L/m at 2.9psi) (in serial)
The new setup is;
Chiller >>> GPUs >> Pump/Reservoir >> Rads
So the theory here, The Chiller will chill the water to 18C and will cutoff till it rises to 25C, the water will go to the GPU and will reach the radiator at very hot temp and low pressure, the pump before the rad will make sure the water get more pressure to pass through the radiators and back to the chiller and nearly room temp max, so the chiller will make sure it is between 18C to 25C, and so on.
This worked very well so I added another GPU (making total 6) and now GPUs temps are 47 50 54 56 62 67.
I run into a problem where reservoir build up air so I have to open the cap from time to time to have the air out, as soon as I open the cap the reservoir refills so I have no chance to add water if I should, any one knows why ?
However, I plan to make this bigger as follow;
|--- 5 GPUs ---|
|--- 5 GPUs ---|
|--- 5 GPUs ---|
|--- 5 GPUs ---|
Chiller >| |>-- Pump >-- Rads
|--- 5 GPUs ---|
|--- 5 GPUs ---|
|--- 5 GPUs ---|
|--- 5 GPUs ---|
I think this will work because the chiller 17L/m at 2.9PSI, means each branch will have 2L/m at 2.9Psi which I think it is enough for the water to go through all GPUs, the temps and the pressure will leave each branch at the same temp and pressure as it was only one branch, do you think this will work ?
This means the pipes might be experiencing pressure issues. It could be related to how the components are arranged—whether they're running in series or parallel. Even with a single pump, restrictions can cause problems, and GPU bottlenecks often add extra limits. You may need to adjust the setup, possibly creating separate loops for each group of GPUs.
Hi All,
I’m new to water cooling and have set up a standard loop for five GPUs. Here’s what I used:
1. Five Gigabyte 1080 Ti Waterforce WB Xtreme Edition 11G units
2. One Thermaltake RL480 Radiator
3. Four Arctic F12 PWM fans
4. One Thermaltake PR22-D5 300ml pump/reservoir combo
5. XSPC fittings
6. Clear vinyl tubing 3/8ID X 1/2OD
The configuration looked like this:
Pump/Reservoir → 5 GPUs (connected serially) → Radiator (with four fans attached)
I used distilled water, and the room temperature was about 20°C (lowered by A/C).
The system functioned well, but GPU temps stayed between 60°C and 70°C.
Even in winter, summer temperatures could rise to 50°C, causing overheating concerns.
All hoses seemed under stress, which wasn’t ideal.
I also wanted to overclock and add more GPUs, so I upgraded:
- Added another radiator (in series)
- Switched from old 74cfm fans to new 250cfm models
- Installed a circulating chiller/pump (17L/m at 2.9psi) in series
The arrangement was: Chiller → GPUs → Pump/Reservoir → Radiators
The logic was that the chiller would cool water to around 18°C, stopping when it reached 25°C. The water would flow to the GPUs and then to the radiator at high temperatures and low pressure. The pump would increase pressure before the radiator to maintain flow and near room temperature.
This setup performed well, so I added another GPU (bringing total to six), achieving GPU temps of 47–67°C.
However, I encountered air buildup in the reservoir, so I occasionally opened it to release pressure. The reservoir filled again, making it hard to add water if needed.
I’m planning to expand further.
For reference:
|GPUs| Temps © |
|------|-----------|
|5 | 47–67 |
|6 | N/A |
I believe this design should work, as the chiller’s capacity (17L/m at 2.9psi) ensures each branch handles sufficient flow, keeping temps and pressure consistent across all units.
The air issue might be due to dissolved gases or a leak—possibly related to the high temperatures.
You might consider using a larger reservoir placed in a smaller fridge to lower the cooling water temperature.
You're referring to the idea that 'pipes seem stressed' because it could indicate a flow restriction issue. Are all these components running in series or parallel? I notice you're using just one D5 pump, but even that might face problems with too much restriction. GPU blocks usually handle restrictions better than most water cooling parts.
If you're planning to add so many GPUs, you'll need to rethink the setup. A single pump likely won't be able to manage the restriction in this configuration, even if it's parallel. You might need to create separate smaller loops for each of the five GPU groups you mentioned. Running one pump for 40 GPUs isn't feasible. Even with parallel operation, one D5 pump is probably limited to handling only a few GPUs at a time, which is quite tight.
For this setup to work as a single large parallel system, you'd need a more industrial or commercial pump and then route the tubing from larger diameters down into smaller ones. Also, high-pressure pumps can create excessive force, which might lead to fitting or tubing failure due to restriction.
This approach isn't ideal. Commercial refrigerators and freezers are designed for one-time thermal load removal, not continuous operation like a computer. A continuous heat buildup would keep the compressor running, eventually causing failure. You'd end up with an insulated box where the thermal load keeps increasing.
In older automotive cooling systems, water would evaporate and expand when heated, causing air to be drawn back in. The solution involved a cap that directed excess water into a collection container, keeping the hose's end submerged to recapture the liquid.
The pipes appear to be under significant stress, possibly due to high pressure. The chiller is an industrial model with an integrated pump delivering 17L/m, which necessitates using two pumps. Appreciate your responses.
I understand my mistake. The pump placement was incorrect. Since there are two pumps, they shouldn’t be placed in separate sections of the loop, which causes pressure differences, just as mentioned earlier. This is why water ends up in the reservoir. I added another GPU and it’s functioning properly.
Now I follow this setup:
2 Pumps >>> 7 GPUs >>> 2 Rads
And all temperatures are around 40°C, except one around 50°C.
When I overclock them, the maximum temperature reaches 64°C.
The fix is clear: for a series loop, pumps, blocks, or radiators should be grouped together. I’ll divide the loop into two parallel sections of 5+5 GPUs and update you on the results.