The Chemicals of OC'n  and Insulating your Rig

This is a topic I KNOW will help a lot of people ask on a daily basis  "Where do I find This"  "What's the part number for that?" "What size?" etc...  Well this is going to be a multi part article. The first one is going to cover the chemicals out there to use for insulating you rig against condensation.  There will be more covering water cooling components, Tools, and other aspects of the hobby. This series will all be under the name "The Chemicals of OC'n"

While I DO link to companies that sell the chemicals, or components, I in NO WAY endorse these companies. I am simply doing it to make this document as useful and complete as possible.

First lets cover the biggest group of materials - Silicone

In my searching for info on all the silicones out there, I found out that there are WAY too many kinds of Silicone.

The few silicones we are going to be looking at are the ones that are key to cooling and such. There are other silicones, but for the most part there is no reason to go into them.

RTV =  Room Temperature Vulcanizing.   Essentially all silicones that cure at room temp and solidify, are RTV type silicones.  These are mainly 1 part silicones.  There are some 2 part where you add a catalyst to solidify the silicone base, but for the majority they are all RTV types.  To cure silicone compounds need Air and atmospheric moisture to work.  When exposed to air the compounds in the silicone will rapidly start to solidify on the surface and slower under the surface.   Its this reason that when applying RTV type silicone you should do it in thin layers, letting the first one cure fully before applying the next one. Some 2 part silicones do not need air to cure and can be put on thick and solidly like an Epoxy.

Stuff to beware of with RTV type Silicones

RTV silicone used improperly can actually be far worse to use in some cases then using nothing at all. Thats why this article is being wrote. The 2 issues to beware of with RTV type silicones are:

1. Silicone not fully cured, or curing is Hydroscopic and will allow water to "slip through" it. It will do this until the Silicone is fully cured.
2. Some RTV type sealants use Acetic Acid as part of the curing process.  Acetic acid has a very vinegar like smell. ( it is the prime acid in Vinegar).  This was brought to my attention after I did the RTV "Geek Gear" review and after DH2 in which I used it on the pelts and on the motherboard.

The Reason this is an issue is Acetic Acid is VERY bad for electrical components, and will destroy the inside of pelts even quicker. Not only do you have the water issue for it in a pelt, but now also the dangerous acid. This was brought to my attention by John E. Hagensieker who works as a Corrosion Control / Materials Engineering Technician on the  F/A-18 Hornet program in Iwakuni Japan.  He sent an email to me alerting me to this in August.  It was quite a shock to me to find out how dangerous this stuff is.  Here are a few quotes from the emails he sent me:

" Bottom line is that acetic acid is highly corrosive to electronics and avionics systems. The vapor produced will destroy any nearby electrical circuit where there may be dissimilar metals present. Make sure that you DO NOT use an RTV sealant that contains acetic acid or has a vinegar smell around computer interiors. Beware the blue goo until you make sure it contains no acetic acid."

"Thought it was important to pass the word on about the RTV  There are many sealants from vendors that don't contain corrosives. I prefer Dow Corning myself however you have to take a look at the product Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS) to check the ingredients."

"Here's the MSDS sheet for the 14057 Blue Goo. It doesn't flat out say it has acetic acid (this is not unusual, acetic acid isn't hazardous in the amount used and therefore doesn't have to be on the MSDS sheet by law ) in it but if you look under the firefighting section it says that the hazardous decomposition product is "acetic acid"
Also if you look at the last page Under physical properties it says "Blue paste, acetic acid odor"

Don't use this stuff on motherboards, no way, no how.

I would recommend removing any from an installed motherboard and sufficiently cleaning with isopropyl alcohol and distilled water mix 50/50 any affected parts.  If there is visible corrosion use a rubber eraser to remove any visible corrosion, then clean with the alcohol water mix, dry thoroughly and reassemble."

I think that pretty clearly sums all that up.  SO Now lets look at what there is out there that will work good for insulating your CPU/socket/motherboard.

I do know there are more then I list below, but these seem to be the best at what they do.

Compressed Can Silicone RTV Sealants-

These are good for gap filling, and adhesive uses. These are not really flowable and are more of a toothpaste constancy or thicker.  There are also some "sprays" but I have yet to find any that are Low Odor/Non Corrosive. I know there are more then below, but I am ONLY listing the ones that are specifically listed as non corrosive.

Flowable Silicone RTV Sealants-

These are silicones that have the constancy before starting to cure of thick motor oil.  This is used to coat areas of a motherboard, socket, or to let it seep into small areas to make the area air tight. I know there are more then below, but I am ONLY listing the ones that are specifically listed as non corrosive.

Non-Flowable Silicone RTV Sealants-

These are good for gap filling, and adhesive uses. These are not flowable and are more of a Toothpaste/Gel constancy or thicker before Set. Non Flowable type silicones tend to be a stronger more resistant Sealant.

Neoprene Foam Rubber -

On the Pro/Mini Neoprene was used along with a flowable silicone sealant to make the cold plate and cpu socket.  You can see the oversized slug inside the socket, that I compressed down to make the most air tight area under the socket.

Here is a lil firmness chart I ripped from mcmaster:

Now that we all know what it is and what its used for, now lets see where and what you should buy for this.

Neoprene Foam-

I am going to list 3/8" thick neoprene sheets from McMaster. They are one of the only places I know that sells such a varied selection of neoprene. Check out page 3137 if you are looking for something I don't list below.