Help with custom water cooling

[Dreaper]

Hey guys new to the forum! Currently i have the h100 by corsair and im upgrading my case, cpu, mobo, ram, and cooling in August and was wondering if the custom loop building kits are worth it and what i will need. all i will be cooling is my CPU  

[RadiatingLight]

if you're only cooling your CPU, then just stick with your AIO.

 

Custom water-cooling loops are very expensive, and are only really worth it for a GPU+CPU loop AFAIK.

[Leonard]

Some of them are worth it and some are not. I assume you will be ding soft tube and not rigid.

 

Tips...

1. get a D5 pump either in a kit or if you plan to get separate parts
2. get high static pressure fans if you live in a country with a high ambient
3. If you buy separate parts make sure the ID and OD of the tube is the same as the fittings and don't trust EK's measurements because sometimes they say one thing but it only works with their tube or fitting and not any random same sized part
4. Even though you are only doing a CPU i would recommend you get a 360mm rad because the price and performance difference to say a 240mm is very far for a little more.
5. don't mix aluminum with any other metal in a loop get all copper and brass components.

[Moress]

22 minutes ago, RadiatingLight said:

if you're only cooling your CPU, then just stick with your AIO.

 

Custom water-cooling loops are very expensive, and are only really worth it for a GPU+CPU loop AFAIK.

They're hardly worth it for just that. Unless you're cooling a dual gpu + CPU setup where the GPUs wouldn't get enough air otherwise, then a custom loop isn't worth it. That is unless you plan on cooling something crazy like a core I9 or Threadripper cpu which could possibly be temperature bound due to their size and being unlocked

[Vigilante505]

Custom loops are more for the hobby of it and the look of it. I had an AIO but wanted to throw money at a cool looking custom loop. I went with the EKWB customizer but their prices for shipping and tax were nuts. I found what parts i can that were the same on newegg and got those so I saved a good chunk when ordering from EKWB. I idle around 32C and top out at 50C under load. My whole kit ran about $700

[Dreaper]

16 hours ago, Leonard said:

Some of them are worth it and some are not. I assume you will be ding soft tube and not rigid.

 

Tips...

1. get a D5 pump either in a kit or if you plan to get separate parts
2. get high static pressure fans if you live in a country with a high ambient
3. If you buy separate parts make sure the ID and OD of the tube is the same as the fittings and don't trust EK's measurements because sometimes they say one thing but it only works with their tube or fitting and not any random same sized part
4. Even though you are only doing a CPU i would recommend you get a 360mm rad because the price and performance difference to say a 240mm is very far for a little more.
5. don't mix aluminum with any other metal in a loop get all copper and brass components.

How much more does Rigid cost? I already have 1080 ti that is water cooled and is closed loop.

[Lurick]

10 minutes ago, Dreaper said:

How much more does Rigid cost? I already have 1080 ti that is water cooled and is closed loop.

Rigid doesn't cost a whole lot more but the main difference is it is not forgiving of mistakes, you need your bends to be very spot on whereas with soft tubing you just need an approximate length, maybe a little extra, and you're good.

[Dreaper]

1 hour ago, Lurick said:

Rigid doesn't cost a whole lot more but the main difference is it is not forgiving of mistakes, you need your bends to be very spot on whereas with soft tubing you just need an approximate length, maybe a little extra, and you're good.

Is there such a thing as people who do it for you? because to me rigid looks a lot better

[Lurick]

46 minutes ago, Dreaper said:

Is there such a thing as people who do it for you? because to me rigid looks a lot better

I'm sure there are people who will do it but it won't be cheap. I'd expect to pay hundreds of dollars for the service.

[Leonard]

3 hours ago, Dreaper said:

How much more does Rigid cost? I already have 1080 ti that is water cooled and is closed loop.

Rigid costs way more unless you find someone who is capable enough to do it for you because you need special tools to bend, cut and smoothen the tube. You will also need rigid fittings and not regular fittings, PrimoChill and XSPC has some of the best regarding leak prevention. 

 

You might be able to add the 1080 to the loop you are creating once the block can accommodate any g1/4 fittings there in you can change the fittings out for some rigid ones.

[Dreaper]

3 hours ago, Leonard said:

Rigid costs way more unless you find someone who is capable enough to do it for you because you need special tools to bend, cut and smoothen the tube. You will also need rigid fittings and not regular fittings, PrimoChill and XSPC has some of the best regarding leak prevention. 

 

You might be able to add the 1080 to the loop you are creating once the block can accommodate any g1/4 fittings there in you can change the fittings out for some rigid ones.

the 1080 ti already has liquid cooling, it has its own closed loop that it came with

[Leonard]

9 hours ago, Dreaper said:

the 1080 ti already has liquid cooling, it has its own closed loop that it came with

I understand that, i am just telling you your options and how to approach it. You can do another loop for the CPU and leave the GPU on its own loop and you can also include the GPU in this proposed loop you are considering.

[Dreaper]

4 hours ago, Leonard said:

I understand that, i am just telling you your options and how to approach it. You can do another loop for the CPU and leave the GPU on its own loop and you can also include the GPU in this proposed loop you are considering.

Ive never dont custom cooling so i dont know that much but is it just easier to get a kit?

[W-L]

8 minutes ago, Dreaper said:

Ive never dont custom cooling so i dont know that much but is it just easier to get a kit?

A kit basically just puts together all the parts you need for a basic loop, as for cost wise if your looking at getting a proper loop started it will be around $500 USD for a CPU and GPU. 

[Dreaper]

1 hour ago, W-L said:

A kit basically just puts together all the parts you need for a basic loop, as for cost wise if your looking at getting a proper loop started it will be around $500 USD for a CPU and GPU. 

well it will only be for the CPU

[W-L]

Just now, Dreaper said:

well it will only be for the CPU

If your only planning on doing a CPU loop a large AIO or starter custom kit isn't a bad idea, you can get a larger rad for a starter kit for the future if you watercool your GPU.

[Dreaper]

29 minutes ago, W-L said:

If your only planning on doing a CPU loop a large AIO or starter custom kit isn't a bad idea, you can get a larger rad for a starter kit for the future if you watercool your GPU.

My GPU is already water cooled by its own thing it came with

[W-L]

1 minute ago, Dreaper said:

My GPU is already water cooled by its own thing it came with

In that case since you already have an AIO for the CPU and one built into the GPU there wouldn't be much difference from a custom loop if it's only for a CPU. 

[Dreaper]

56 minutes ago, W-L said:

In that case since you already have an AIO for the CPU and one built into the GPU there wouldn't be much difference from a custom loop if it's only for a CPU. 

Well i wanna do it for the look of it too because i feel it looks so much better

[W-L]

Just now, Dreaper said:

Well i wanna do it for the look of it too because i feel it looks so much better

That's up to you then, but just know that there won't be a huge difference in terms of performance between it and using an AIO. 

 

Here are some good options for kits between a more value oriented solution and higher quality kit:

https://www.ekwb.com/shop/ek-kit-l240-1

https://www.ekwb.com/shop/ek-kit-p240

[josh23]

if you are cooling your CPU only you will need a CPU block,pump and res. Also wouldn't use pastel fluent because they create clogs in the loop. But if its only cpu i would stick with aio because its exspensive.

 

[Leonard]

8 hours ago, Dreaper said:

Ive never dont custom cooling so i dont know that much but is it just easier to get a kit?

With a kit you will essentially be doing a custom loop just that someone else picked out compatible parts for you but you will have to put them together, meaning you will have to measure your runs from port to port and cut the tube to length and you will also have to leak test. most kits do not include the coolant therefore you will have to get that. Depending on the length of your runs and the size of the reservoir and radiator will equal the amount of coolant you will need, i recommend you have 1.5 to 2 liters on hand to fill your loop. 

 

Just remember to get a kit with a D5 pump, you won't be sorry in the future.

[Leonard]

Just now, Leonard said:

With a kit you will essentially be doing a custom loop just that someone else picked out compatible parts for you but you will have to put them together, meaning you will have to measure your runs from port to port and cut the tube to length and you will also have to leak test. most kits do not include the coolant therefore you will have to get that. Depending on the length of your runs and the size of the reservoir and radiator will equal the amount of coolant you will need, i recommend you have 1.5 to 2 liters on hand to fill your loop. 

 

Just remember to get a kit with a D5 pump, it will cost more but you won't be sorry in the future.

 

[documnt]

8 hours ago, Dreaper said:

Ive never dont custom cooling so i dont know that much but is it just easier to get a kit?

Check out Jayz 2 Cents, I built my first soft tube loop following his videos and then also built my first hard tube setup using his and singularity computers videos. 

[Dreaper]

can anyone link me some shit that is good for just the cpu?