Fluid XP

Provided by: Integrity PC
Estimated Retail: $49.99 ($25.00 per bottle if bought in the gallon quantities)
Review Date: June 4th, 2004
Written By: James S.

You've gone or want to go water cooling but you’re afraid of the effects that could potentially happen with a broken hose or other leak? Well in steps Fluid XP that takes the place of water. It cools like water, but unlike water it does not have the conductive devastation when it contacts electronic components. When I got this, I wondered what good is it really. Water is almost free; however, Fluid XP is not.

Packaging:

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At first I thought I had received a power supply. As it turns out, Fluid XP was packaged in a power supply box. The box was filled with broken pieces of packing foam. Not the most professional packaging but the bottle is plastic. Therefore, Fluid XP is not very fragile. The important thing is to prevent against leaks and there were none of them. I found out after posting this review that Integrity PC ran out of boxes because their product was selling fast. To get the product to me, they packed it in what they could; therefore, your box will not be a power supply box.

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Properties:

Here are the properties of Fluid XP as they are posted on the Fluid XP homepage:.

• Non-Conductive
• Environmentally Safe: Non-toxic
• Biodegradable: All FDA approved food grade ingredients
• Long Lasting: 5+ year shelf life
• Robust: Not prone to mechanical shearing (Pumping)
• Corrosive inhibiting: Neutral pH (pH of 7) and non-electrolytic
• Does not cause galvanic corrosion or rusting: (if spilled in system, no need to clean between chips board etc.)
• Versatile: Formula can be tailored for various viscosities and systems

Description:

Fluid XP looks like ordinary water. When you open it up, you think that it might feel gooey or weird since it has many properties like anti-corrosive and non-conductive. Surprisingly, it feels the same as water.

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Testing:

I did the daring act of spilling some Fluid XP on my board. Booted the system. No shorts at all, system works great.

Fluid XP has its good points; however, how are the temps? I'll test it using the Evercool WC-201 water cooling system I reviewed earlier. The test system is a 2.6 P4 at stock speed and Radeon 9700 pro at stock speed. The idle temp will be obtained through 3 hours of the computer sitting and running nothing but Windows. The load temp will be obtained after 5 hours of playing Halo. Both values will be the maximum that motherboard monitor 5 records in the time of the testing.

The values are in the margin of what the makers of Fluid XP claim to be the tolerance of the product.

Conclusion:

Now to the real question, is it really worth it? To me it is, especially since the water cooling kit that I have has already broken. For only 50 dollars, I save the 800+ that makes up this system if a leak happens. I feel that if you are new to water cooling, this is a must buy since it allows for mistakes without the dire consequences. You also have a substance that will fight foreign particles and other things from clogging up your precious water flow and ruining your 200 dollar water cooling system.

Pros:

• Non Conductive
• Big enough bottle to last you for quite awhile
• Keeps foreign substances from forming in your water tubes
  

Cons:

• Price, water is almost free
• Still could cause your temperatures to rise a bit

Rating:

Very Good

(Ratings Possible: Terrible, Very Bad, Bad, Fair, Good, Very Good, Excellent)