Gurgling sound in liquid cooling system?

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   I just got my brand new Bolt III. It's awesome!

Except there's a gurgling sound in the radiator. It's more or less constant. It doesn't go away when the fans are turned down or anything.

Is this normal? It's fairly loud and is somewhat bothersome. I've never had liquid cooling before though so I'm not totally sure what to expect.

If there's an issue with it, what should I do to resolve?

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zpconn Members Profile Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Newbie Joined: 02 Jul 2015 Online Status: Offline Posts: 29	Quote Reply Topic: Gurgling sound in liquid cooling system? Posted: 22 Jul 2015 at 5:51pm
	I just got my brand new Bolt III. It's awesome! Except there's a gurgling sound in the radiator. It's more or less constant. It doesn't go away when the fans are turned down or anything. Is this normal? It's fairly loud and is somewhat bothersome. I've never had liquid cooling before though so I'm not totally sure what to expect. If there's an issue with it, what should I do to resolve?

hoserator Members Profile Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List DS Veteran We don't need no stinking "Avatars" ! Joined: 08 Oct 2014 Online Status: Offline Posts: 7966	Quote Reply Posted: 23 Jul 2015 at 2:49am
	Hi zpconn, Which cooling system did you order? If an open system with reservoir or has a liquid level window, make sure you have enough liquid in it. It shouldn't make any noise at all.

bprat22 Members Profile Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List DS ELITE DigitalStorm East -- (Unofficially!) Joined: 08 Jun 2011 Online Status: Offline Posts: 20391	Quote Reply Posted: 23 Jul 2015 at 3:10am
	If the fluid level is good like hoserator suggested, it could be just bubbles in the system from bouncing around during shipping. Give it a couple of days running to bleed the system. Check cpu and gpu temps with HWMonitor just to be sure. Good luck.

Tidgxor Members Profile Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List DS ELITE The Kokopelli kid Joined: 17 Sep 2010 Online Status: Offline Posts: 13000	Quote Reply Posted: 23 Jul 2015 at 6:57am
	One of my friend's had a liquid cooled rig that did this same thing for about 3 or 4 days after shipping. Then it stopped and hasn't done it since. Obviously keep an eye on your temps, but I'd see if the system is working out the shipping jumbles. Of course always feel free to give DS a call in the meantime.
	My Two Digital Storm Rigs: Mr. Bojangles (HAF-X, 2010) & Mrs. Bojingles (Bolt I, 2013).

FrankW Members Profile Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List DS Veteran Joined: 22 Feb 2010 Online Status: Offline Posts: 2254	Quote Reply Posted: 23 Jul 2015 at 7:15am
	The Bolt 3 uses the Swiftech H220x cooler. You should be able to see the liquid level on the front of the cooler. You should note the level of the coolant and look at it often to make sure there are no leaks. As previously stated you probably have air in the system and should bleed the system. You can Email Bryan at [email protected]. Tell him you want to bleed your H220x system. Bryan works for Swiftech. Ask him to send you the instructions on how to bleed the system. DS may have the same information. Frank Edited by FrankW - 23 Jul 2015 at 7:16am

zpconn Members Profile Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Newbie Joined: 02 Jul 2015 Online Status: Offline Posts: 29	Quote Reply Posted: 24 Jul 2015 at 9:54am
	Thanks for the responses so far. I'm going to give it 4-5 days to just see if it will work out on its own before pestering DS. Since it's the Bolt model it's easy to lay on its side, so I'm trying to alternate between having it up-right and horizontal. I've noticed that when horizontal the gurgling nose is significantly quieter. Not totally gone, but nearly so. When I put it upright again, within an hour the gurgling sound will be back. I haven't seen any indications that the fluid level is depleting or anything. There are definitely some large visible air bubbles in the fluid indicator. When I get back this evening I may take a quick video so others can see and hear exactly what it's doing. Edited by zpconn - 24 Jul 2015 at 9:55am

Alex Members Profile Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Admin Group Digital Storm Supervisor Joined: 04 Jun 2012 Online Status: Offline Posts: 16314	Quote Reply Posted: 24 Jul 2015 at 2:53pm
	If it does not go away after a few days, try this unit to bleed the system: 1. While it's sitting on the desk like normal and running, lift the system up from the front so that it's at a 45' angle. Keep it lifted for 1 minute to see if that helps bleed the air out. 2. If that did help, repeat the process of ra while and that should help.


zpconn Members Profile Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Newbie Joined: 02 Jul 2015 Online Status: Offline Posts: 29	Quote Reply Posted: 24 Jul 2015 at 3:53pm
	I've had success with turning it at an angle. In particular, turning it completely horizontal gets rid of most of the gurgling for ~15-30 minutes, but within an hour so far it's always back. I took a video of what it was like when I got back from work today: https://www.dropbox.com/s/6uwnk4xx2x3fnnk/2015-07-24%2017.41.05.mp4?dl=0 It's completely upright in this video and had been running all day. After recording that, I laid it on its side and took a second video: https://www.dropbox.com/s/x35a8y6q6ldmczn/2015-07-24%2017.45.42.mp4?dl=0 You can see that the gurgling sound is nearly gone here but there appear to be rather large air bubbles. It's upright again and the gurgling sound is still mostly gone right now. However, if I listen very closely I can still hear it, and when I've tried this the last few times it always comes back so that it's just like the first video within an hour.

Alex Members Profile Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Admin Group Digital Storm Supervisor Joined: 04 Jun 2012 Online Status: Offline Posts: 16314	Quote Reply Posted: 25 Jul 2015 at 12:59pm
	You will hear the system running, as there is a pump and motor running, especially when the fans are really quiet. What you also see are the bends the cooler has in it's tank to break the flow to mix the fluid when it drops in. You should be ok from what I see now.


zpconn Members Profile Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Newbie Joined: 02 Jul 2015 Online Status: Offline Posts: 29	Quote Reply Posted: 25 Jul 2015 at 3:39pm
	Just to be clear, the gurgling sounds from the first video are normal and expected? It sounds almost like a fish tank. The second video shows what it's like immediately after tilting the computer around, but it always starts making the sounds from the first video within an hour. I'm confused because another poster above said it shouldn't make any noise at all.

db188 Members Profile Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List DS Veteran Joined: 29 Jul 2014 Online Status: Offline Posts: 2115	Quote Reply Posted: 25 Jul 2015 at 4:20pm
	that sound is caused by turbulence. when you bleed a system of air, you need to top off the fluid (i can see from your vids that you need to). try adding some. you shouldn't hear a "gurgling" sound at all in any orientation afterwards. tilt the thing at an angle, open the filler cap (to equalize), run the pump and let all of the air bleed out and then top off the fluid as you go. this takes a little time, but it will be worth it. also, make sure you place paper towels around the components and loop so you don't get any fluid on them. to be perfectly honest, DS should've handled this during their breaking in period, and it makes me wonder what testing/QA they do with their custom/semi-custom water loops. Edited by db188 - 25 Jul 2015 at 4:34pm

Gurgling sound in liquid cooling system?

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