As the evidence shows, Asus’ high-end ROG Z690 Formula motherboards suffer irreversible damage after a year and a few months of use due to the corrosion of the EK waterblock covering the VRMs.
Z690 Formula motherboard waterblock gets corroded
The ROG Z690 Formula motherboard was released by Asus more than a year ago, and one of its main features was a waterblock that covers and cools the motherboard’s VRMs. This waterblock, which is from EKWB’s CrossChill III waterblock series, is connected to the system’s open-loop cooling system, and its task is to cool the motherboard’s power circuits and improve their performance.
During the launch event, Asus announced that the waterblock used in the ROG Z690 Formula motherboard is made of nickel alloys. But as reported by TechPowerUP, in this waterblock, instead of copper, nickel-plated aluminum is used. Combining alloys in a non-standard way and using them inappropriately together is very dangerous, and it is not even the first time that Asus makes such a dangerous mistake; The first generation of ROG Formula motherboards also had such a flaw in their design, and the corrosion of the waterblock had become their bane.
Now, after a year has passed, Reddit and other hardware forums are full of topics about severe corrosion in the VRM waterblock of this motherboard. These topics are not new topics and sometimes they have been created for several months. But the reason that this issue has been raised again is that Asus and EK companies have finally decided to react to this issue. The EK statement reads in part:
“…Unfortunately, Asus and EK have noticed a corrosion problem in the VRM waterblock. We are working on this issue and trying to provide support to users. Asus is working on an alternative hybrid VRM cooler to offer users. For more information about this, refer to the local Asus dealers…”.
As EK’s statement indicates, Asus is working on an alternative solution for this motherboard. Of course, this new block is made again by EK. Let’s not forget that we are talking about an expensive $800 motherboard, and all these talks were raised while the users of this high-end motherboard were left alone for several months.
