Water cooling without a cooling block: Modder pumps coolant directly onto GPU chip
Why use a metal cooling block at all? A modder pumps coolant directly onto the bare GPU chip. After various leaks and other mishaps, the temperature of an RTX 2060 Super actually drops to super values.
The YouTube channel TrashBench is known for its crazy ideas. The latest: water cooling directly on the bare GPU die, without a metal cooling block or heat spreader. Despite several leaks and the legitimate concern of drowning expensive hardware, the results are surprisingly good.
Nail polish and 3D printing
"In search of the perfect water block, I asked myself: Why do we even need metal?", says the host of the channel. "Why not just pump water directly over the bare silicon?" For the first tests, an already dead RTX 3060 is used – this way, the design can be safely tried out.
A 3D-printed water block is constructed for it, which directs the special cooling fluid, intended to prevent short circuits, directly over the GPU die. All SMD components next to the chip are preventively sealed with nail polish to prevent short circuits caused by water.
Then proven plumbing tricks are used: washers, gaskets, and hose clamps. The water connections are melted into the 3D-printed part,
Several attempts
The first test promptly leaks. TrashBench therefore seals the 3D-printed block with epoxy resin. This works, but then it suddenly drips from the hose connections – they also get their share of epoxy resin. Finally, he has the first leak-proof prototype.
After successful live tests with a GTX 980, the main experiment follows: fitting, testing, and benchmarking with an RTX 2060 Super. It turns out that the choice of 3D printing material on the 3D printer is anything but trivial. Some materials leak at the edges, others are slightly porous. For tests under power, the YouTuber uses a PCIe riser cable as a precaution, so that any leaks do not drip directly onto the motherboard.
Was the effort worth it?
For comparison, the YouTuber benchmarks not only his direct cooling but also the stock cooler and an all-in-one water cooling (AIO), which he attaches to the GPU. In fact, his DIY project cools best. The GPU only reaches 28 degrees Celsius. With the AIO, it's 36, and with the stock cooler, it's 70 degrees Celsius. In gaming operation, including Heaven Benchmark and Cyberpunk 2077, the card runs without problems.
TrashBench tests whether the principle also works with a CPU using an Intel Core i5-7600K. The conclusion: the size of the cooling chamber plays a crucial role. The GTX 980 had the largest chamber and achieved the lowest temperature; for the RTX 2060 Super, it was smaller, and for the CPU, it was the smallest due to the mounting bracket. With larger chambers, better values would probably be possible everywhere – reason enough for a follow-up video. But one thing is already clear: pumping water directly over bare silicon works.
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