Asetek KT03A-SL35 Extreme WaterChill review

The last major change is the new pump and reservoir. One of the minor issues we ran into with the first Waterchill, using the Hydor L20 and L30, was filling the system. The new pump, a SACEM SL35 unit, is setup in such a way to allow reservoir to be directly connected. Filling and bleeding a new install couldn't be easier.

The SACEM pump is a 900 l/hr (approx 234 gal/hr) unit which is slightly better than an L20 but not as good as the L30. Many watercooling enthusiasts have noted that heat production in a watercooling system comes in many forms including a slight amount from inside the watercooling system itself. One of these heat producers is the inline pump used to circulate the water. asetek claims that the SACEM pump produces less heat due to an improved impeller design.

[rant]Personally, while I understand many of the laws of thermal dynamics I think you have to be really critical of your cooling system to consider heat induction from your pump but a couple BTUs here and there do add up. [/rant]

Building a good watercooler does not stop with the mounted components, for instance what hose you decide to use can play a key role when it comes to the installation phase. If your hose is too stiff it will resist kinks but will also apply unnecessary lateral stresses to your system components, not to mention the stuff is very hard to use. On the other hand if the hose is too flexible it will kink easily and limit how compact your watercooler can be. Asetek has done quite a bit of research into hose construction and is now including a Tubeclair brand of tubing that is really quite flexible and very kink resistant. Having used quite a few different hoses in the past I'm finding the Tubeclair brand to be one of the best overall.