h115i suddenly not working

I recently moved the fans on my h115i from below the radiator to above simply to make cleaning the radiator a bit easier. I did not touch the actual heatsink mount, and was pretty careful in the process, but after the move, it seems the unit is no longer cooling the CPU at all. None of the connectors changed, the pump still reads as active on the iCue panel, the lights still work, the fans still run, but the CPU immediately rises to 90+ when I boot the system up.

 

after paying very close attention, I do notice that there is a very slight "crunching" type sound from the heatsink / pump unit that sits on the processor that I did not notice before, but it is only happens for a fraction of a second, and then the unit is quiet.

 

the only thing I can think of is that the pump is somehow ceasing upon startup? Has anyone else run into these options.

 

When I was reinstalling the fans, the tubes running into the pump unit did rotate slightly, but it's obvious they are designed to do that, so I can't imagine that would be an issue.

When you say the CPU "immediately" hit 90C+, do you mean instantly in less than a second? Or does it seem to ramp up 45-50-55-60-65-70... that can be seen with your eyes?

 

The second is indicative of a flow issue, either stopped pump or blocked flow. My money is on the later, but we'll see. You obviously have power. Do you get any kind of reading on the CPU or AIO header for the pump? If you can make it to the desktop, sneak a peak at iCUE/Link and get the coolant temperature from the H115i. That will be the dead give away if this is a flow problem or something else. Value should be less than 40C.

 

Also, feel your radiator exhaust. Cool? Or very warm? Check the tubes. They should feel uniform in temperature. One hot, one cool or hot at the bottom and cool at the top is a problem.

It ramps up over about 30 seconds to a minute. I'll check to see if I can get coolant temp from iCue.

 

The tube exiting the cpu block gets VERY warm right at the cpu but is cooler after that, suggesting that there's probably a flow issue. thanks for the suggestions! Nice to see positive help on here :)

Yes, it seems highly likely there is a flow issue. Unfortunately, this is a common complaint on that specific model and the story usually starts with "I was taking down my radiator to clean it and...". You didn't do it. The conditions to make this happen were already in place inside the radiator. It just was waiting for you to move it.

 

1) You can try tilting the case or even taking the radiator off and shaking it to try and dislodge the blockage. Nothing scientific about this. Just luck if it works. Even if it does, the results will not hold forever and the offending material is in the loop. It will happen again. So...

 

2) Start a conversation with Corsair through the Ticket Support System in the header above. This should lead to a RMA replacement. Make sure you include the temperature ticking up in that 30-60 seconds frame and the warm/cold hose details. Those are hallmarks of this issue and separate it from all the other stuff that can make your CPU hot. This is a cooler issue, not a contact problem.

 

In the meantime, you need something else up there to continue using the PC. You can try and do an express RMA with Corsair with a credit card hold on the new unit, but even that will take at least 5 days. If you can't go without, find a really cheap and easy to install air cooler to tide you over. The other option would be to select a new water cooler of your choosing, then keep the new H115i as a back up or make other arrangements for its future.

Hah, funny story, so I literally just took a screwdriver and tapped along the tubes, and that seems to have fixed the problem for now, but I guess it's something I'll have to keep an eye on. Thanks for all the help!

This just happened to me as well.

 

Hadn't touched the H115i in four years and when finally I do (to clean off dust) I get the ramped up heat scenario where the computer eventually shuts down to prevent the CPU from overheating.

 

Feeling the radiator just after the shut-down it was hot in the corner where the hose from the pump enters the radiator, but the rest of the radiator was cool. To me this is a clear sign of something blocking it near the part where the hot fluid enters the radiator.

 

I have contacted the reseller for a warranty replacement. According to Corsair there's a 5 year warranty for the Hydro series.

So the same thing happened to me to with my H115i.

 

Unmounted the radiator to clean some dust out of it, remounted just the way it was before and suddenly I get these crazy liquid temperatures (44-50) even when my CPU was just under 10% load.

 

I just gave the hot water cable a littleshake and now it seems like it's back to normal.

 

Still, it worries me that its so delicate, especially since my 5 year warranty period is coming to an end in a few months.