Cool It Eco A.L.C

[Probrian]

Ok so on 16th of August I switched my PC on in the morning to settle in for a session on Skyrim. About 10 minuets into it I heard a POP, then a struggling fan, then the PC switches itself off.

Being quiet familiar with the internals of the PC (Ex repair tech for Time Computers) I decided to open up the case and take a look. To my dispair there was a liquid all over the internals covering several components. The motherboard, processor and graphics cards (2x Crossfire) amoungst others were contanimated. I investigated further and the source of the liquid was the Cool It head unit on the processor. It had ruptured spraying the cooling fluid in all directions.

I spoke to PCS and they advised me to email Cool It to get this sorted out. After some discussion with them they basicaly said they would replace my Cooler, but if there was any other damage to my pc resulting from there component failing it was pretty much tough luck and refered me to there terms and conditions. This I felt was unlawful, but as there a Canadian company and not governed by UK law then I was up the proverbial creek without a paddle!

I then spoke to PCS again who have RMA'd my PC back to try and get things sorted out for me. I appricate there efforts in helping me get this resolved but due to the type of issue and PCS having to deal with the manufacturers of my components I have now been without my PC for 22 days and counting. There seems to be no light at the end of the tunnel either as so far PCS are still awaiting a replacement/repaired motherboard from Asus. Should this come back they could fit it and find other problems with other components and then were back on the waiting for manufacturers to repair / replace thoes roundabout.

My problem with the ECO A.L.C is by no means a rare one either with countless other reports on the net of others in exactly the same position as me. If you are buying a new pc I strongly urge you to concider standard headsink & fan cooling as opposed to water cooling!! Or at the very least ensure the manufacturer of the water cooler covers any damage to your components should the cooler fail.

I hope I get my PC back soon as I am somewhat lost without it!

 

[tom_gr7]

gutted mate, was the system within warranty?

The older eco I's were unfortunately prone to bursting.

I hope that you get everything sorted mate, really feel for ya.

 

[abdulhamid]

The older eco I's were unfortunately prone to bursting.

Not according to Coolit, their position was that it is very rare and most cases are user related. They even tried to say that they might have been able to cover damage to other parts if they were able to examine the ECO ALC. At the same time their instructions to PCS is to dispose of any RMA. How do you send something over to them if the instructions are the product should be disposed of. Coolit are a BUNCH OF MUPPETS!!!!

 

[Probrian]

gutted mate, was the system within warranty?

The older eco I's were unfortunately prone to bursting.

I hope that you get everything sorted mate, really feel for ya.

Thanks for your comments. I only took the standard warranty with the PC of 1yr parts and 3yrs labour and the PC is now 2yrs old. The motherboard and graphics card(s) however have a 3yr warranty from the manufacturer. The difficulty is they probably dont cover liquid damage in this warranty. PCS have kindly agreed to dry the components out fully and attempt to get replacements from the manufacturer(s) for me. Thanks to PCS and a great deal of luck I may come out of this without being out of pocket, only time will tell.

Thats the one thing I wont get back though, the time I have been without my PC due to CoolIts poorly manufactured part. Will never shop with them again!

 

[Probrian]

Not according to Coolit, their position was that it is very rare and most cases are user related. They even tried to say that they might have been able to cover damage to other parts if they were able to examine the ECO ALC. At the same time their instructions to PCS is to dispose of any RMA. How do you send something over to them if the instructions are the product should be disposed of. Coolit are a BUNCH OF MUPPETS!!!!

Agreed!! They said that its extremely rare for there product to fail even when I provided them with several reviews of exactly that happening across multiple websites, Amazon, New Egg ect. They suggested it was my own fault that it had failed as I was responsible for the ongoing maintenence of the cooler!!??!!

I have several other descriptions I would use for CoolIt as a company but none of them are fit for posting here.

 

[tom_gr7]

Not according to Coolit, their position was that it is very rare and most cases are user related. They even tried to say that they might have been able to cover damage to other parts if they were able to examine the ECO ALC.

That was my own opinion based on how many threads I have read concerning a burst or a leak. How can they claim its user related? Liquid coolers are supposed to require no maintenance at all.

I will tell you what I don't like about Coolit,

- Coolit built the Eco I, from what I have read on here, they wont cover your rig if it bursts. I assume that is because it would certainly cost Coolit a ton of money as there has been so many leaks/bursts.

- Coolit built the Eco II, I don't know if they will cover your rig if it bursts. If I had one i'd certainly make sure my PCS rig was in warranty, then again, I've not read of any coolit II model leaking.

- Corsair sell the Eco II model under the names of h60, h80 or h100. But Corsair will cover your rig if one of said models leaks, I have this on email from Corsair customer support. But why do Corsair claim to cover your rig, but not coolit?

I did originally have a Coolit Eco I, amended it in because I didn't know if the Titan Fenrir would have fitted in my case, massive lack of research on my part, as it would have fitted fine....I took out my Eco I as I became paranoid about a possible leak. I only knew because I have been active on the forums, I wouldn't have had a clue otherwise. I really feel for anyone who has had a unit leak/burst, and I hope they get sorted soon.

Just read ya last post Probian, for them to say you haven't maintained the cooler, is nothing short of a lie, as they actively say you don't have to do anything at all!

 

[steaky360]

That was my own opinion based on how many threads I have read concerning a burst or a leak. How can they claim its user related? Liquid coolers are supposed to require no maintenance at all.

I will tell you what I don't like about Coolit,

- Coolit built the Eco I, from what I have read on here, they wont cover your rig if it bursts. I assume that is because it would certainly cost Coolit a ton of money as there has been so many leaks/bursts.

- Coolit built the Eco II, I don't know if they will cover your rig if it bursts. If I had one i'd certainly make sure my PCS rig was in warranty, then again, I've not read of any coolit II model leaking.

- Corsair sell the Eco II model under the names of h60, h80 or h100. But Corsair will cover your rig if one of said models leaks, I have this on email from Corsair customer support. But why do Corsair claim to cover your rig, but not coolit?

I did originally have a Coolit Eco I, amended it in because I didn't know if the Titan Fenrir would have fitted in my case, massive lack of research on my part, as it would have fitted fine....I took out my Eco I as I became paranoid about a possible leak. I only knew because I have been active on the forums, I wouldn't have had a clue otherwise. I really feel for anyone who has had a unit leak/burst, and I hope they get sorted soon.

Just read ya last post Probian, for them to say you haven't maintained the cooler, is nothing short of a lie, as they actively say you don't have to do anything at all!

I was going to add its basically a selling point that these are "sealed units" and require no after sale care. Hence their popularity (closed loop Water Cooling in general) over standard WC setups. But I think you've essentially made that point!

Seems a bit naff that they are essentially refusing to accept any blame for a component which should still be working fine as it is still under warranty! I think corsair just have a better after sales team mate, they seem to be pretty good with the old customer service stuff!

Probrain, I do hope you get everything sorted out! Worst thing about all of this is there is literally nothing you could have done to prevent this short of not using that cooler in the first place, but how would you know!. Fingers crossed for you bud!

 

[Probrian]

I was going to add its basically a selling point that these are "sealed units" and require no after sale care. Hence their popularity (closed loop Water Cooling in general) over standard WC setups. But I think you've essentially made that point!

Seems a bit naff that they are essentially refusing to accept any blame for a component which should still be working fine as it is still under warranty! I think corsair just have a better after sales team mate, they seem to be pretty good with the old customer service stuff!

Yeah, I just want to get it out there to any other PCS customers that

A) If you have a CoolIt ALC I in your system I would seriously concider it to be a time bomb and replace it

B) If you are buying a new machine I wouldnt do business with CoolIt due to there appauling customer service. Go with the Corsair version!

Thanks for your comments though guys, much appriciated. I just hope that when the replacement motherboard arrives next week PCS dont find any other faults in the graphics cards etc as already being without my PC for a month is killing me!!

 

[Zynced]

Well this isn't very good news for me

My computer is currently in 'pre-production' phase, and I've chose the Coolit ECO II ALC as I plan to overclock in the future and wanted a solid cooler.

Can I have some recommendations on what to do here? As Probrian above me explained this cooler could be trouble for the future, should I be amending my order or is the chances of this event happening to me very slim?

 

[steaky360]

As Tom said earlier in this thread there have not been any (or very few if any) reports of failures of the Eco 2 units.

You could always go for a cheaper cooler now and upgrade it yourself when you want to delve into overclocking etc?

 

[Rakk]

My computer is currently in 'pre-production' phase, and I've chose the Coolit ECO II ALC as I plan to overclock in the future and wanted a solid cooler.

The OP is I believe talking about the earlier version of the ECO ALC ie. not the one you have ordered, I know I definitely saw some (about 5 I think, so nota hideous amount given how many must have been sold) forums posts about the earlier version having a few issues like springing leaks, but haven't seen any such complaints about the ECO II ALC yet

 

[Probrian]

Well this isn't very good news for me

My computer is currently in 'pre-production' phase, and I've chose the Coolit ECO II ALC as I plan to overclock in the future and wanted a solid cooler.

Can I have some recommendations on what to do here? As Probrian above me explained this cooler could be trouble for the future, should I be amending my order or is the chances of this event happening to me very slim?

I can only comment on the CoolIt ECO I ALC as thats the one I had in my rig. One thing I will say though Zynced is I would concider your options carefully as my dealings with CoolIt have shown me that there customer service is practicaly non existant, this is backed up by a great deal of other peoples opinions. If you do a search for reviews on the ECO I ALC you will find many reviews saying the same thing. Im sure as your PC has not been dispatched yet PCS would be happy to change the cooler. This is a matter for you too decide though.

Either way I hope you never suffer the same problem I have as its been a nightmare to sort out!

 

[Tom DWC]

The Eco II does seem to be much more reliable, but I really don't rate them at all anymore. My original one leaked but luckily it was still under warranty with PCS and the damaged parts were replaced.

I've recently removed the 2nd one as its performance has decreased alot and I don't wanna run the risk of it ever happening again now said system is well out of warranty.

Personally my opinion now is that water cooling should be done at enthusiast level or not at all, so a dedicated WC loop. If that's not for you then any decent air cooler can usually almost match performance and one aimed at near silence can be just as quiet. But that's just me.

Gutted for you Probrian, know first hand what it's like, hope you get everything sorted.

 

[Probrian]

This has finaly almost been sorted out now. The motherboard replacement came in this morning and has been fitted. Unfortunaly one of my GPU's is toast. I spoke to the returns department today and they have taken out the faulty GPU and are going to deal with Asus for me to try and get that replaced. The PC however has been dispatched back to me so I will hopefully receive it tomorrow. When they get a replacement for the GPU there going to send it out to me to fit myself.

No games in crossfire for now, but im glad to finaly be getting my PC back! Im thankful to PCS for sorting this whole mess out for me and CoolIt can learn alot from PCS's great customer service!!

 

[Kalisnoir]

So figure I should shot my 10 pence worth in....

Coolit are by far the best company I have seen in the computing world!

No but seriously, I hope their company becomes bankrupt sooner rather than later, because it inevitably will with such horrid customer service. My Coolit ECO I also burst about 2 months ago after approx a year and a half. I clean my computer fairly regularly, more than enough to not have a big build-up of dust each time it is cleaned. My PC also made a pop, sounded like something had literally fell out of my computer so I opened it up, saw liquid everywhere, and at this point my video feed to the monitor went off, and sound stopped playing so I promptly turned it off and unplugged it at the back. It was late so I had to leave it, next morning I went out and got some rubbing alcohol (practically pure alcohol, could feel my brain cells blow their own brains out as I smelt it...) and a anti-static microfibre cloth, cleaned literally everything (apparently Coolits coolant can bend the laws of physics and pass through solid objects). After cleaning it I left it to air dry for a full day, to which I then used a hair dryer to finish the drying procedure, put everything back together, everything was fine minus what I assume was my top graphics card (I had 2 x 1GB GTX 460's).

TL;DR - Was not a built up of dust on fan/radiator, Coolit blamed me, I was "lucky" to receive a replacement cooler, wouldn't replace my graphics card, Coolit suck.

*Edit - Should mention despite receiving the new ECO II, I am leaving in the £15 air cooler I bought because it is much quieter and I'd rather just get a proper custom watercooling loop.

 

[Tom DWC]

Funny story: I eventually got round to replacing the cooler on my desktop this week (been too preoccupied with my new lappy) cause in the end I managed to get a £19 Gelid Tranquillo Rev.2 for free, which I just couldn't pass up.

This is basically a budget cooler focused on acoustics, not performance, and yet it is not only much quieter than the Eco ever was both at idle and under load, it is also outperforming it by eight degrees with a 600MHz overclock using the same settings the system had when new. Newly applied thermal paste aside, this is funny.

 

[tom_gr7]

I found that the standard stock fans on alot of cpu coolers are noisy, just a cheap way to make the cpu better. Needs to spin faster to move more air.

 

[Tom DWC]

I found that the standard stock fans on alot of cpu coolers are noisy, just a cheap way to make the cpu better. Needs to spin faster to move more air.

9 times out of 10 yeah.

I had no intention of getting this particular one, was gonna get the one you suggested but then, who says no to a freebee? I think it's a bit embarassing for Coolit that this one is quieter and better performing given it's not much more than a stock cooler would cost while the Eco was almost three times as much. I guess I never had anything to compare it to originally, but in hindsight it did a pretty poor job. Unless it was never right in the first place and I never realised any different of course.

 

[Probrian]

Oh Dear! The saga continues. Having had my PC back now for a couple of days and stressing the remaining GPU I kept getting CTD's in games, BSOD's and frequent messages from Windows informing me that the graphics had stopped working and needed to be reset.

It seems my 2nd GPU didnt survive unscathed as previously thought. This has got progressively worse until today it finaly gave up the ghost and the little red warning LED on the motherboard came on to let me know this card had finaly given up too.

I have decided to bite the bullet and go out and purchase a Radeon 7770 to replace the 2x 5770's. Im going to try send this one back to the manufacturer and get a replacement as its still under warranty. I will then sell the two replacement 5770's to try and recoup a bit of my outlay.

I just hope this is the end of this sorry saga!!

**Fingers Crossed**

 

[tom_gr7]

gutted mate,

dont tell the manufacturer about the leaking eco, just say its randomly failed.

Hope it gets sorted.

What cpu have you got in now?