First loop ever, need major help!

[WaruSaru]

Edit: decided that I'm 100% going to make this loop, budget is up to 400$ USD

 

So as I said, I want to make my first water cooling loop

I really have no idea where to start (i've read a few things around here but decided to make this post).

Basically what I want to ask of you in this post is to first give me a few ready made (not AIO but something you guys already made or something) loops with all the parts you usually need and its price.

here are two ready made loops I really want to take a look at:

 

1. I want to take a look into what it takes to make a minimal loop (might have some budget issues + want to see what are the baisics).

2. And I want a medium level loop (not the highest end loop , but something you could be proud of).

 

I am going to build it in a windowed fractal design define R4, I mean, who doesn't enjoy seeing a nice water cooled R4?

its going to have:

CPU: i5 4670k

MOBO: MSI Z87 GD-65

GPU: MSI gtx 760 2GB gaming edition (TF)

psu: enermax emd 625 awt (620W 80plus moduler), I just might end up replacing it and give it to my sister.

and then Samsung 840 EVO 120GB, an ok 1.5TB WD HDD (maybe I'll add another 500GB), and 2 ok sticks of 4GB 1333Mhz RAM.

there are thing I would have liked to replace (GPU, RAM, HDD maybe PSU) but I already own them so... nope.

 

I'm not looking for a GPU block (maybe only in the "medium" level loop), it really depends on the cost.

I'm not from the us or canada and I think I will have to ship most of the items, so... yea... idk if it tells you anything.

I'm probably going to have access to things like heatguns and some other nice tools from my robotics team if needed (FIRST FRC team #2231 from israel), not sure if im going for clean hard tubing or not.

This pc is going to serve me for about 4~5 years, hopefully as much as possible with as little change to it.

 

Sadly I don't know yet if I'm actualy going to build this loop because of budget and other issues I might have.

If I'm not going to make this loop (which will make me sad) I'm going to get a Noctua NH-U14S which is ok.

If I see that I can afford it and that its not going to be hard to import items / find them in israel I will need much more help and much more part specific help from you guys

 

If you need any more information from me please ask and don't just skip this post!!

It will make me very happy if you guys could help me out!

[Saladin]

@WaruSaru

 

Basic loop:

CPU Block - 60-70 USD

240 mm Radiator - 40-60 USD

D5 vario pump - 90 USD

Reservoir - 30-50 USD

Tubing - 20 USD

Fittings - 10-15 USD

Distilled water - 1-2 USD

Silver kill coil - 6-8 USD

Fans - 20-50 USD

Thermal paste - 10 USD

 

total- 250-300 USD (875-1050 Israeli not including shipping/handling/import/tax)

you could also buy a kit such as http://www.frozencpu.com/products/21641/ex-wat-275/XSPC_Raystorm_AX240_Extreme_Universal_CPU_Water_Cooling_Kit_w_D5_Photon_and_Free_Dead-Water.html?tl=g59c683s2174

 

Edit: On a medium loop you could/would add a GPU block, and slightly more radiator space, and would be looking at 400-450 USD. Hope this helps.

Edited May 25, 2014 by Saladin

[WaruSaru]

@WaruSaru

 

Basic loop:

CPU Block - 60-70 USD

240 mm Radiator - 40-60 USD

D5 vario pump - 90 USD

Reservoir - 30-50 USD

Tubing - 20 USD

Fittings - 10-15 USD

Distilled water - 1-2 USD

Silver kill coil - 6-8 USD

Fans - 20-50 USD

Thermal paste - 10 USD

 

total- 250-300

you could also buy a kit such as http://www.frozencpu.com/products/21641/ex-wat-275/XSPC_Raystorm_AX240_Extreme_Universal_CPU_Water_Cooling_Kit_w_D5_Photon_and_Free_Dead-Water.html?tl=g59c683s2174

ty man!

I will take a look at it and get back here with some thoughts

anyway if this is a basic loop I would like to see a basic+ (or again a "medium" loop) lets say a 400$ us loop.

Its really as costy as I thought it might be and I will have to see if I can get my budget up for it (maybe some I'll put some birthday money fro family into it).

 

now I know I said that I want you guys to give me a ready made loop but I don't really want a kit but an item by item list as if you are going to choose and build this loop yourself, or if you already did build it yourself I would like to see yours if it fits my needs. I want it to be more personalized and less, well less like a kit.

It did help me a lot though so ty!

 

I usualy do much more homework on these things before I start asking around but its 2:40 am now so I'll have to start doing the homework I have to do on it tomorrow.

[Saladin]

ty man!

I will take a look at it and get back here with some thoughts

anyway if this is a basic loop I would like to see a basic+ (or again a "medium" loop) lets say a 400$ us loop.

Its really as costy as I thought it might be and I will have to see if I can get my budget up for it (maybe some I'll put some birthday money fro family into it).

 

now I know I said that I want you guys to give me a ready made loop but I don't really want a kit but an item by item list as if you are going to choose and build this loop yourself, or if you already did build it yourself I would like to see yours if it fits my needs. I want it to be more personalized and less, well less like a kit.

It did help me a lot though so ty!

 

I usualy do much more homework on these things before I start asking around but its 2:40 am now so I'll have to start doing the homework I have to do on it tomorrow.

No worries, ill get a parted out list for you later tonight (gonna log off for a bit and eat) (im in UTC/GMT - 7, so i should have it posted by about 8 am your time) for both a entry and medium loop. As a general word, stick with a D5 type pump, no aluminum or steel in the loop, and a g1/4 fittings, if you do that you should be fine.

[Saladin]

@WaruSaru

 

Basic Loop:

Fittings: Alphacool G1/4 ⅜” ID barbs (6 total ~18)

Pump: Swiftech MCP655-B 12v pump with ⅜” conversion (~90)

Radiator: XSPC EX240 Dual 120mm Radiator (~50)

Reservoir: Bitspower Water Tank Z-Multi 250 Inline Reservoir (~45)

CPU Block: EK Supreme LTX Intel CPU Liquid Cooling Block - Acetal + Nickel CSQ (~49)

Tubing : Bitspower Water Tank Z-Multi 250 Inline Reservoir (4-5 Feet ~16-20)

Coolant: Distilled Water (not purified or tap water, get Distilled from the grocery store) (~1-2)

Antimicrobial: Silver Kill Coil (~8)

Thermal Paste: Noctua NT-H1 (~9)

Fans: Your choice I recommend Noctua NF-F12, Scythe Gentle Typhoon, Noise Blocker eLoops, or Corsair SP120 Quiet Editions (between 20-30 USD each, will need 2)

Total: ~270 USD (~940 Israeli) not including fans, tax, shipping, handling, import fees, etc

 

Honestly, it is not worth water cooling your GPU, it would be expensive and you wouldn't really get much out of it. If you wanted to upgrade the basic CPU loop, you could go to compression type fittings, upgrade the reservoir to a pump res combo (I like the D5 Photon 170 from XSPC 150 USD) plus a pump kit to make it look really nice, and then add an LED lighting kit. Honestly it isn't worth doing more than that until/unless you upgrade your GPU. I should also point out that this build is about the same cost as some of the better basic water cooling kits (I like this one: http://www.frozencpu.com/products/23378/ex-wat-299/XSPC_Raystorm_RX360_V3_Extreme_Universal_CPU_Water_Cooling_Kit_w_D5_Photon_and_Free_Dead-Water.html?tl=g30c321s1310 ). Hope this helps.

[WaruSaru]

@Saladin

thanks man!

you even went the extra mile to give me the price in ils thanks!

 

now I have a few questions:

1. why not a dual 140mm radiator?

2. you put another res instead of tubing, its not really a question I guess.

3. if you already didn't put tubing then ill ask this - are there pros and cons for hard vs regular tubing? what are they? (exept for looks).

4. what gives color to the water? is there anything special i should use?

5. where can I find uniqe / custom cpu blocks?

 

the way I see it if your making a loop you should make it look awesome or you are missing the point.

 

I am going for a red and black color scheme I guess.

 

And thats it for now, I will take a better look at that and at other things and post here again.

Oh and I decided that I am going to do the loop so yay

[WaruSaru]

Doing it step by step and taking my time.

as of now, if I wont find any cool and uniqe cpu blocks I will go for one of these:

http://www.ekwb.com/shop/blocks/cpu-blocks/supreme-ltx/ek-supreme-ltx-acetal-nickel-csq.html

http://www.ekwb.com/shop/blocks/cpu-blocks/supremacy/ek-supremacy-clean-csq-nickel.html

http://www.ekwb.com/shop/blocks/cpu-blocks/supremacy/ek-supremacy-nickel.html

http://www.xs-pc.com/waterblocks-cpu/raystorm-cpu-waterblock-intel (with red faceplate)

 

 

that D5 photon 170 res/pump does look nice, just might take it.

not sure if I want that or one of those frozenQ fusion ones

[Saladin]

~snip~

1.You could do a 140, but there is no real need to do so, a dual 120 will handle your CPU and provide 120mm of overhead, also it is harder to find Static Pressure fans in 140mm as well as there being clearance issues on many cases.

 

2.Oops, I meant to link this: Tygon 2475 Ultra Chemical Resistant Plasticizer Free Tubing - 3/8" ID, you will need about 1.5-2 meters (5-6 feet), you could also do various different colored tubing, just make sure the internal dimension (ID) of the tubing matches up with the fitting size.

 

3. Hard tubing is much more difficult to work with, it requires additional tools (heat gun, sand paper, hack saw or pipe cutter, etc), whereas soft tubing can be installed with scissors and cable ties, hard tubing is more expensive, requires practice to get the bends correct, the fittings are more expensive, and it is more likely to leak.

 

4. Color can come from the following: Colored tubing (in my opinion the best choice), coloring additive (drops or fluid to mix with your distilled water), or from a premixed coolant, I dislike premixed coolant as it tends to "gunk" up your loop and must be changed more frequently (about every 5-6 months) and is much more expensive (you may need 2 liters for a simple loop and this will cost you, 15-20 USD per liter). If you use colored tubing you can add LED lighting (regular or UV) and get a very good color effect.

 

5. I get my water cooling components from FrozenCPU.com and Performance-pcs.com there are lots of different brands, and price ranges, pretty much all of them are good as long as the only metals are copper, brass, and nickel, stay away from aluminum and steel

 

Hope this helps.

[WaruSaru]

@Saladin

Yea it did help ty

 

I have everything you said is needed for hard tubing except the practice, if they are more likely to leak even if they are done right (are they?) then I guess I wont go for them.

 

Not sure if I will go for colored tubing or addtive, will have to see.

 

I think I will go for one of the cpu blocks I linked to in the last post, if I go for colored tubing I think I wont go for the clear ones.

 

And now a stupid question:

Where does the water go in the frozenQ fusion res? the inside tubes or the outside of those tubes?

If they go outside those tubes (and I will choose to go with their res) I think I will go with black fusion (only black tubes there) and red addtive for the water (I guess also UV / red lights?), outside tubes will be clear cause of the already colored water.

If they go inside those tubes (and I will choose to go with their res) I will go with colored tubings and whatever colored inside tubings, guess red.

 

After we will clear this, what part of the loop should we choose next?

[Saladin]

~snip~

Happy to help, in the res you mentioned the twisted tubes are for effect, they light up, the liquid is around them in the outer part.

[WaruSaru]

Happy to help, in the res you mentioned the twisted tubes are for effect, they light up, the liquid is around them in the outer part.

ok good.

 

will addtive also "gunk" or is it only some of the premix?

also, how frequently should you replace the water in the loop?

if the pc will not be on for most of the week days, will it be a problem?

[Saladin]

ok good.

 

will addtive also "gunk" or is it only some of the premix?

also, how frequently should you replace the water in the loop?

if the pc will not be on for most of the week days, will it be a problem?

The 'gunk' is algae and bacteria that grows off the impurities in the loop (all loops have them, even distilled water), this is the reason for a silver kill coil or bio-cide drops (you don't need either if you use premixed coolant but premix doesn't carry heat as well as distilled water). With premixed coolant you need to completely clean the loop (drain it, flush all components with water until it comes out clear, replace tubing and coolant) every 6-8 months at the out side, with distilled water, you simply drain the loop and replace the kill coil reusing the tubing. Distilled water is much cheaper and easier to get than premixed coolant, if you use colored tubing and LED lighting you will have almost the same effect as colored fluid with much easier/cheaper maintenance.

[WaruSaru]

The 'gunk' is algae and bacteria that grows off the impurities in the loop (all loops have them, even distilled water), this is the reason for a silver kill coil or bio-cide drops (you don't need either if you use premixed coolant but premix doesn't carry heat as well as distilled water). With premixed coolant you need to completely clean the loop (drain it, flush all components with water until it comes out clear, replace tubing and coolant) every 6-8 months at the out side, with distilled water, you simply drain the loop and replace the kill coil reusing the tubing. Distilled water is much cheaper and easier to get than premixed coolant, if you use colored tubing and LED lighting you will have almost the same effect as colored fluid with much easier/cheaper maintenance.

ok great then! colored tubing it is

can you give me some (or one) example for good red (if see through) or black (if not) colored tubes? maybe even acrylic ones

[Saladin]

ok great then! colored tubing it is

can you give me some (or one) example for good red (if see through) or black (if not) colored tubes? maybe even acrylic ones

Here you go.

 

Rigid acrylic: Primochil or Monsoon.

Red: http://www.frozencpu.com/products/20600/ex-tub-1851/PrimoChilll_12_OD_Rigid_Acrylic_Tube_-_1x_36_Single_-_Red.html?tl=g30c633

Black: http://www.frozencpu.com/products/20604/ex-tub-1853/PrimoChilll_12_OD_Rigid_Acrylic_Tube_-_1x_36_Single_-_Black.html?tl=g30c633

 

Flexible: Any brand you like

Red:http://www.frozencpu.com/products/12995/ex-tub-868/Masterkleer_PVC_Tubing_12_ID_34_OD_-_10ft_Retail_Pack_-_UV_Dark_Red.html?tl=g30c99

Black:http://www.frozencpu.com/products/12985/ex-tub-864/Masterkleer_PVC_Tubing_38_ID_12_OD_-_10ft_Retail_Pack_-_UV_Black.html?tl=g30c99

[WaruSaru]

Here you go.

 

Rigid acrylic: Primochil or Monsoon.

Red: http://www.frozencpu.com/products/20600/ex-tub-1851/PrimoChilll_12_OD_Rigid_Acrylic_Tube_-_1x_36_Single_-_Red.html?tl=g30c633

Black: http://www.frozencpu.com/products/20604/ex-tub-1853/PrimoChilll_12_OD_Rigid_Acrylic_Tube_-_1x_36_Single_-_Black.html?tl=g30c633

 

Flexible: Any brand you like

Red:http://www.frozencpu.com/products/12995/ex-tub-868/Masterkleer_PVC_Tubing_12_ID_34_OD_-_10ft_Retail_Pack_-_UV_Dark_Red.html?tl=g30c99

Black:http://www.frozencpu.com/products/12985/ex-tub-864/Masterkleer_PVC_Tubing_38_ID_12_OD_-_10ft_Retail_Pack_-_UV_Black.html?tl=g30c99

 

for whatever i pick, should I just choose the fittings that fit the tubes od and id or should i choose the tubes id and od by some other component? (like the res / pump / whatever else)

[Saladin]

for whatever i pick, should I just choose the fittings that fit the tubes od and id or should i choose the tubes id and od by some other component? (like the res / pump / whatever else)

The dimensions need to match, if you are using barb type fittings then you need to match the ID, if you are using a different fitting (compression, monsoon) you need to match both ID and OD.

[WaruSaru]

@Saladin

 

i forgot about this question -

if the pc will not be on for most of the week days, will it be a problem?

[nj4ck]

Are you sure you want to watercool your GPU? I'd save the money and get a better GPU first, then watercool the whole thing later on.

[WaruSaru]

Are you sure you want to watercool your GPU? I'd save the money and get a better GPU first, then watercool the whole thing later on.

 

I'm pretty sure I wrote somewhere that I'm not going for a gpu block... I wasn't sure I wanted to do it from the beggning and I'm sure I wrote that.

anyway maybe I should edit the first post the better fit the state I am in right now, I'll edit it soon i guess.

that state is this:

I am definitely making a loop.

only cpu block, have a few options to choose from, don't think I should choose right now.

going for colored tubes and not addtive or premix.

not sure if going for hard acrylic tubes or regular ones, I have every thing I will need to bend the tubes maybe except an angle to bend the tubes around (I can arrange a few things), I have a lot of aluminum like in the hardline workshop post, the only thing I don't have and hope that come with the tubes is a silicone fuel line.

and well yea maybe we covered some more things Im not sure

[nj4ck]

I'm pretty sure I wrote somewhere that I'm not going for a gpu block... I wasn't sure I wanted to do it from the beggning and I'm sure I wrote that.

anyway maybe I should edit the first post the better fit the state I am in right now, I'll edit it soon i guess.

sorry, I admit I didn't read through the whole topic :lol:

[WaruSaru]

sorry, I admit I didn't read through the whole topic :lol:

 

yea thats ok you're not the only person who doesn't always read through the whole topic

[WaruSaru]

So three questions:

1. already asked this like 3 times I think... if the pc will not be 'on' for most of the week days - I'm going to the military soon and I won't be able to use my pc a lot (maybe kinda stupid investing in something so much and then not being able to use it a lot, but im doing this), I will only be home like 2 and a half days a week or maybe even 4 days at home after 12 days at the military, it can be all sort of things... any way, if the pc will spend all that time turned 'off' can in harm the loop?

 

2. is there any easy way to design how you want your loop to be? with regular tubes its kinda easy I guess because you are free to make changes, but if I want to do hard tubing its going to be kinda hard to figure out the exact lengths, needed bends (shape) location of all sort of things... is there an easy way to do it? should i have the case and everything else first and only then see where everything should go?

 

3. I forgot what it was

[Saladin]

@WaruSaru

 

1. Cant really harm the loop though you may have to do maintenance on it more often due to algae build up because the liquid wont be flowing over the silver kill coil (if you use a premix this isnt an issue).

 

2. You need the parts before you design the loop. If you have water cooled before you can sort of lay it out in your head but you always need to make adjustments. The only real rule is that the pump needs to be after and below the reservoir to make sure that the pump never runs dry. In general it is better to have shorter runs than longer runs. Depending on where you put the radiator and were the pump and reservoir are the loop will be very different. I highly recommend that if you have never water cooled before you stick with soft tubing and stay away from hard tube. If you want to upgrade later you can change out the fittings and get the hard tubing.

[WaruSaru]

@Saladin

 

I remmembered what 3 was...

where and how would I mount / put the res? (how does it usually mount and where should I mount it) should I just look for video guides?

 

about 1. thats what i meant so yea ok.

 

about 2. well I guess it is kinda hard to do for a first try... I don't think I will upgrade it later cause of lack of time, thats why I wanted to to it the best I can now, soft tubes can also look great if you put effort into setting them and choosing them.

 

so again, if I use premix I will have the replace the tubes and coolant + flush the other components of the loops clean every half a year correct? don't think its worth it for me.

 

If I use only distilled water with the silver coil and colored tubes, I would only have to replace the water and the coil every year? or every what period of time exactly? considering my case (not talking about the r4 ofc ) will I have to replace other things as well? do any other thing?

[Saladin]

@Saladin

 

I remmembered what 3 was...

where and how would I mount / put the res? (how does it usually mount and where should I mount it) should I just look for video guides?

 

about 1. thats what i meant so yea ok.

 

about 2. well I guess it is kinda hard to do for a first try... I don't think I will upgrade it later cause of lack of time, thats why I wanted to to it the best I can now, soft tubes can also look great if you put effort into setting them and choosing them.

 

so again, if I use premix I will have the replace the tubes and coolant + flush the other components of the loops clean every half a year correct? don't think its worth it for me.

 

If I use only distilled water with the silver coil and colored tubes, I would only have to replace the water and the coil every year? or every what period of time exactly? considering my case (not talking about the r4 ofc ) will I have to replace other things as well? do any other thing?

3. You can mount the res wherever you want (if its a bay res it can go in one of the 5.25 bays, if its a tube, mount it in the case somewhere) just keep the pump below the res so it doesn't run dry. They usually come with mounting hardware so you just use that.

 

As for replacing the liquid, if you are using distilled water you can simply replace the kill coil and the water when the liquid gets cloudy (you will see it in the res) if you replace the kill coil more frequently and top off the res you can go a long time without completely draining the loop. How often you need to replace stuff is hard to say as there are too many variables. I replace the kill coil every 6 months whether it needs it or not and drain the loop completely at least every year (usually to do some upgrade or change the tubing runs for fun).