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| Pump |
| The heart of the system |
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| NOTE: |
The first two pumps which we received from Asetek, though shipped carefully, did have a small leak along the seem where the reservoir met the pump. However, Asetek readily rectified this issue and we had replacement pumps in just a few days. While we did have some minor issues initially, which ultimately could have been the luck of the draw as the last pump worked flawlessly, kudos goes to Asetek for their fantastic customer service while dealing with this issue. |
The first piece of hardware we took a serious look at was the heart of the system, the water-pump. Straying away from their older designs, Asetek decided to implement their new 900 l/hr SACEM Pump. Featuring an integrated reservoir with new push fittings, the pump offers a high flow rate and consumes only a small foot-print within the computer chassis. Consisting of only two separate components, the pump/reservoir and the base, the assembly of the unit was very simple. By simply dropping the pump onto the base, we where greeted by a satisfying *click* which indicated the pump was securely locked into place.
Looking at the front of the pump, one can clearly see the square box which houses the magnetically driven impeller and the clear plastic cylinder which acts as the reservoir. Protruding from both the top and side of the pump, more clearly noted by their blue endcaps, one can see the push fittings. Also, to aid in preventing leaks, which is especially important on the pump due to the water pressure, Asetek has wrapped the threads of both push fittings with white teflon tape to fill the gaps between the threads of the pump and the fitting itself.
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| right side |
mounting base |
on mounting base |
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| removing the reservoir cap |
looking inside the reservoir |
pump with cap removed |
The pictures above demonstrate the processes of attaching the pump to the base and the removal of the cap on the reservoir. If you are anything like us, you are probably looking at the lid and have thoughts of it "falling off" during transport of your system. But, in the case of this pump, once the lid is put in place it is not likely to fall off at all. If you look at the image at the bottom left you can see the line where the rubber o-ring has made a watertight seal between the lid and the reservoir. As well, once the pump is filled with water the moisture in the little bit of air left at the top of the reservoir helps keep the o-ring soft, thus helping keep the unit sealed.
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| Control Module |
| The brain of the system |
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In the pictures of the pump above, you can see a small power cord leaving the rear of the pump. If you follow that cord to the end, you come to the Control Module for the WaterChill system. This little black box, which is about the size of a small cell phone, houses a circuit board which includes the 3v power adaptor, fan connector and a small jumper which controls the voltage that is supplied to the system. Also, leading from the back of the control module is the main power adaptor which draws its current from the PowerSupply via another power cord.
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| control module |
connections |
power plug |
The only configuration option available with the control module lets you run the system at a the quiet 7v option, or the substantially louder 12v setting. Though 120mm fans are known for producing high CFM levels with minimal noise, by running the system at the 12v setting the fans are quite loud due to the turbulence caused by the air passing through the radiator. However, in comparison to a fully air cooled tower, the WaterChill system still produces noise levels which are in notably lower. In the picture below you can see how the entire pump/control module systems are connected; all in all, not an excessively complicated system.
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entire pump system
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