For enthusiasts who appreciate extravagant, albeit somewhat pricey and seemingly unnecessary gadgets, 52Pi’s water cooling kit designed for the Raspberry Pi 5 SBC might be an intriguing choice. This meticulously engineered cooling solution is available for $120 on Seeed Studio, where we came across the kit.
While the active cooler and official case have demonstrated effective cooling for the Raspberry Pi 5, various companies have introduced fanless cases for the latest Pi single-board computer. Opting for Raspberry Pi 5 water cooling becomes particularly relevant when aiming to overclock the Raspberry Pi 5, and 52Pi asserts that the Broadcom BCM2712 processor can comfortably run at 3.0 GHz while maintaining a relatively cool temperature of 55°C.
Comparison of Raspberry Pi 5 temperatures: one without (on the left) and the other with (on the right) the water cooling kit
The contents of the 52Pi’s water cooling kit include:
- Main water cooling unit featuring an RGB LED fan, water tank, and base
- Water cooling radiator (identified as the orange component atop the Raspberry Pi)
- Black heatsink
- 2x Silicone hoses
- 12V/2A power adapter (US)
- 4x M2.5*10 hexagonal screws
- L-key hex wrench
In addition to the CPU temperature peaking at 55°C when operating at 3.0 GHz, the temperature reportedly remains around 37°C under full load at the stock 2.4 GHz frequency. While mounting and usage instructions were not readily available on Seeed Studio or the 52Pi website at the time of writing, Leepsvideo acquired a unit, and you can find guidance on assembly in his video review.
This water cooling solution is not the first unconventional approach from 52Pi, as we previously examined the 52Pi ICE Tower cooling fan designed for the Raspberry Pi 4.
