Obscure H80 question I can't seem to find the answer to.

I recently bought a Corsiar H80 for overclocking purposes. However, I did not take into account that I will soon be moving from CA to UT in the distant future.

My question is, will a major elevation change do anything to this product? i.e. cause leaking or pressurized explosion?

Also I am idling around 36-38c with room temperatures around 24-27c (75-80f).

Is that a normal idle temp for my room temperature. Also, I am overclocked to 4.0ghz, so that may also effect that temperature.

Thanks!

No elevation should not cause any leaks or over pressurization.

As far as your temps go, they are fine for an overclocked CPU. Some people get better ,some worse. Temps will depend heavily on each CPU, case, fans, ambient temp, and so on.

Interesting question. I doubt there is any significant pressure within a H-series cooler, as the liquid never reaches the boiling point (100C, 212F) or anywhere near it AFAIK.

As altitude increases, the boiling point of water decreases due to the decrease in pressure, but not to the point where it would boil at the working temps of these coolers. You would really need to be at a very high altitude before it is possible for that to become an issue.

Air is also less dense at higher altitudes, but again I can't imagine that being significant where people can live, versus being at the top of Mt. Everest. I wonder if any noticeable change in cooling ability will be seen at higher altitudes. Perhaps a few degrees worse? I'd be interested to know if you find there is a difference.

Your idle temps are dependent on several things. You have an Intel CPU, so do you have EIST, aka SpeedStep enabled? C-States enabled? Those power saving options lower the CPU speed so it runs cooler at idle and low usage. Is your OC constant, always running at 4GHz? Do you have the CPU voltage specifically set, or does it vary? How much case ventilation do you have? How fast is your H80's fan running at idle? Are you using outside air or internal case air to cool the radiator? So many variables add up to a not so simple answer.

Our H-series coolers use a mixture of Antifreeze and water so the boiling point is much hotter than it would ever get...

Yet another important point! The "anti-freeze", which could also be called anti-boil, plus the pressure in a car's radiator, allows the boiling point to be greater than plain water. Of course, not exactly the same thing as a H-series radiator system.

I don't know the ratio of water to anti-freeze (ethylene glycol) in a H-series radiator, but in automobiles it is usually 50/50 or 60/40. Given the amount of this additive sold for full-blown water cooling systems, I guesstimate the ratio to be 90/10 - 80/20 (water/additive) which AFAIK won't raise the boiling point as much as a more equal mix does. But the point of the additive is simply to inhibit the growth of "stuff" in the coolers fluid, but it's good to know we won't be boiling the liquid in these coolers under any circumstances.