External RES

[karl0508]

Hey guys 

 

I want to build my first water cooling loop in my APU build but i built in the N200 so what i want to know is

 

is it ok to mount the res external? i was gonna put mine on the top then use a eisberg SOLO on the CPU block and a 240mm rad at the front

 

I will hard line as i have a plumber as a dad so i can easily do copper piping 

 

What do we think?

[Enderman]

copper piping in a watercooled PC is not the same as copper piping in a home

if you think its easy you should probably reconsider going with soft tubing for your first loop

[Interfectorem]

copper piping in a watercooled PC is not the same as copper piping in a home

if you think its easy you should probably reconsider going with soft tubing for your first loop

Bending copper pipes is not hard. I can't say the same for acrylic or PETG since it involves heat. Also, @OP, like @Enderman said, household copper piping isn't the same as computer copper piping.

[Enderman]

Bending copper pipes is not hard. I can't say the same for acrylic or PETG since it involves heat.

cutting them to exact length, smoothing the edges so that they do not damage the o-rings, finding the right fittings for the tubing, and nickel plating them to prevent corrosion and oxidizing is though

[Interfectorem]

cutting them to exact length, smoothing the edges so that they do not damage the o-rings, finding the right fittings for the tubing, and nickel plating them to prevent corrosion and oxidizing is though

I never thought of nickel plating. good point.

[Enderman]

I never thought of nickel plating. good point.

yeah, got to do that if you dont want the copper to change like this

[brandishwar]

There's a big difference between copper *pipe* and copper *tubing*. Rigid copper pipe cannot be bent easily, and nowhere near the bend radius as annealed copper tubing. The annealed copper you can bend using a regular tubing bender. But the downside with annealed copper tubing is you first need to straighten it. And there are really only two methods I've seen: use a bench vice, vice grips and mallet, or pay a bit for a tubing straightener. The least expensive one I've found is from KwixUK and will cost about $100 total to purchase and ship to the US. I've built out two copper tubing loops, so I can attest to how well that one works. Question is whether you want to go that far. Just in tools I spent approaching $200 -- the straightener, bender, cutter (and spare blades), and reamer. Plus there's polishing the outside of the tubing when you're done.

 

You can certainly mount the res externally as well: you'll just need passthrough fittings to get the flow into and back out of the case. If you don't want to do any mods for that, Koolance and AlphaCool make expansion slot brackets with G1/4" pass throughs. The biggest consideration here is making sure gravity can still adequately feed your pump so you don't lose flow and risk running it dry.

[karl0508]

yeah, got to do that if you dont want the copper to change like this

I know that the piping was different 

 

What i meant by easy was that bending the pipe isn't going to be that bad 

 

I have all the equipment i need to do it

[W-L]

I know that the piping was different 

 

What i meant by easy was that bending the pipe isn't going to be that bad 

 

I have all the equipment i need to do it

 

In general terms it is plumbing so it's doable with the correct type of materials for watercooling, as for external mounting a res I've seen it done before just be wise do where you are putting it so it doesn't get bumped or hit easily. 

 

 

For oxidization if you want the bright cooper look there are sealers than stop oxidation, most are a lacquer or clear coat type application. For nickel tubes there are some prefinished ones on the market.

 

Note FCPU still MIA just a reference:

http://www.frozencpu.com/products/25255/ex-tub-3390/Alphacool_Brass_HardTube_10mm_x_13mm_-_200mm_-_Black_Chrome_18423.html?tl=g30c633

[brandishwar]

I know that the piping was different 

 

What i meant by easy was that bending the pipe isn't going to be that bad 

 

I have all the equipment i need to do it

 

I skeptical you know what's involved here, and hopefully your father (the plumber) will be able to set you straight on that.

 

I researched copper pipe and couldn't find a tool that could bend copper pipe with a tight enough bend radius for a computer water cooling application. Conduit benders tend to have at least a 6" CLR, and the tightest CLR I could find in a bender die, if I recall correctly, was 3". The tubing bender I have bends 1/2" annealed tubing at a 1-1/2" CLR. If you have a bender for Type L or Type M copper pipe (again, not Type L annealed copper tubing, the stuff that comes in coils at the hardware store instead of 6', 8' or 10' straight lengths) capable of that or better, I'd love to know what it is.

 

Otherwise the only way you're getting tight turns with pipe is using elbow joints, a blowtorch, solder and flux.