New to water cooling

[eth_jones]

Hi guys,

 

I have been building pc's for a little while now, but never ventured into water cooling, not even ever buying an AIO. I was wondering what the cheapest (roughly) custom cooling setup could cost. I'm not talking about the PC components, just the water cooling parts really. Imagine this is for a system with just one GPU and relatively large case

I have little to no idea what exactly it takes, I'm thinking a pump, a reservoir, a few pipes, and blocks for the CPU and GPU, is that right? How much would the most basic config of these parts cost?

[Enzo1001]

You'll need a radiator too there is an excellent thread about this that you should check out:

 

[Enzo1001]

4 minutes ago, eth_jones said:

Hi guys,

 

I have been building pc's for a little while now, but never ventured into water cooling, not even ever buying an AIO. I was wondering what the cheapest (roughly) custom cooling setup could cost. I'm not talking about the PC components, just the water cooling parts really. Imagine this is for a system with just one GPU and relatively large case

I have little to no idea what exactly it takes, I'm thinking a pump, a reservoir, a few pipes, and blocks for the CPU and GPU, is that right? How much would the most basic config of these parts cost?

oh and also, its not necessary to cool the gpu just if you want to

[Semper]

One block, two fittings, and tubing/tubing clamps for each component in the system (Pump/res (either combo or separate), water block(s) radiator(s))

Expect to pay somewhere around $800 (USD) for a complete loop that includes a CPU and GPU block.

If you've never designed a loop yourself, Corsair's configurator is a good place to start. It's by no means the end-all-be-all though. You're best off looking up custom loops in your system to get an idea of what you'll be doing and/or what layout you like best.
https://www.corsair.com/us/en/custom-cooling-configurator/your-pc-configuration

[bowrilla]

13 minutes ago, eth_jones said:

Hi guys,

 

I have been building pc's for a little while now, but never ventured into water cooling, not even ever buying an AIO. I was wondering what the cheapest (roughly) custom cooling setup could cost. I'm not talking about the PC components, just the water cooling parts really. Imagine this is for a system with just one GPU and relatively large case

I have little to no idea what exactly it takes, I'm thinking a pump, a reservoir, a few pipes, and blocks for the CPU and GPU, is that right? How much would the most basic config of these parts cost?

One cooling block that fits your application, a pump/res combo that fits into your case, a radiator that fits into your case and is not too small (the bigger the better), then at least 2 fittings per component and tubing, at least distilled water as a coolant + biocide, either vinegar or some houshold cleaner to prep your radiator (Cilit Bang is known to work well). Make sure not to mix metals. Stick with copper and/or nickel-plated copper. Stay away from aluminium stuff.

 

Even when going for cheap but decent stuff, a radiator 240-280 radiator costs between 50-80 bucks, so does a CPU block (GPU blocks more like 100-180), the pump res incl. a pump 100+, a regular compression fitting for flexible tubing is like 3-4 bucks each (you might also need some adaptor fittings and turns and stuff) summing up easily to 40+ (always buy at least 1 more fitting than you need), add another 20 bucks for tubing, 10-20 bucks for the coolant, biocide and another 5-10 for the Cillit Bang stuff or vinegar to clean your rads before building the loop. It's hard to get anything done under 300-350 bucks. Bigger loops, better parts, more complex tube runs, etc and you will easily go beyond 600-800.

 

Bottom line: you don't do custom loop water cooling because it has outstanding price to performance ratings ...

[eth_jones]

@Enzo1001 @Semper @bowrilla Maybe a project for another time going on the cost of it all ahahaha, Thank you for your input  you guys

[-rascal-]

EKwb sells complete CPU water cooling kits.

Basically, they put all the parts you need into a box with instruction manual(s)

Pump / reservoir / fittings / coolant mixture / tubing / CPU block / radiator / fans thermal paste, etc, etc.

Starts at $260 USD.

 

If you want, you can get a GPU waterblock, more tubing, extra pair of fittings, some plugs, and you can cool both CPU + GPU, too.

You'd want a 360mm radiator kit though, rather than the 240mm.

 

[Devryd]

you dont need to spend that much money, if you dont want complete High end stuff.
I got a CPU Block from aliExpress for 15€ (about 15$) and a 280mm copper radiator for 40€. I added a few meters of 8mm clear tubing(5€) from home depot and a cheap aquarium pump from ebay  (6€). Now, I also have a GPU Block (not full cover) for also about 15€ and I added a fan below the GPU to cool the VRAM and Power stages. It works fine and I think I paid about 80€ plus shipping, so still under 100$. An EK block might give me 2 to 3 degrees better cooling, but I am fine with this and my System is really quiet

[Mick Naughty]

Plenty of options out there to go cheaper. Especially with using an older card. I just sold a block for that card for 40 bucks. 
Only thing I’d spend a decent amount on is the pump. Just a good d5. A simple $10 res. Some tubing and barb fittings. No need for clamps or compression fittings at first. 
Then a rad from China if you’re not in a rush.