Is it hard to make a custom loop?

[agentxisepic]

Hi, I've not yet dabbled in liquid cooling yet of any sort and I'm looking into a New PC build and was wondering if It is 

A. Worth the time and effort

B. Extremely Difficult

C. How much money would I be dropping?

 

To this point the extent of my knowledge is anything you can find on YouTube but ive mostly just skimmed the surface of Liquid Cooling Videos. Just looking for some advice for a beginner.

[Tsuki]

take a look at this thread here

 

[ARikozuM]

Yes, yes, and yes. 

Depends, depends, and depends. 

 

I'd look at JayzTwoCents on Youtube for some water-cooling guides. 

I'd go to EKWB configurator to see what it'll cost you for a custom loop. 

[Navbryce]

1. Sorta. Expense, time, and risk all play against it. When I say "risk", I'm not talking about leaks. My greatest fear is corrosion/biological growth. Because if it occurs, it essentially ruins expensive water cooling components--or mandates difficult maintenance.

2. No

3. A lot

 

A lot of people might not account for maintenance after they make a loop. Not only does maintenance take a while, but it also can be expensive--if you want to replace tubing, buy water...

[agentxisepic]

Just now, Navbryce said:

1. Sorta

2. No

3. A lot

 

A lot of people might not account for maintenance after they make a loop. Not only does maintenance take a while, but it also can be expensive--if you want to replace tubing, buy water...

In your opinion is it worth all the time money and effort? Should I just stick with High Quality Air Coolers and lots of case fans?

[agentxisepic]

2 minutes ago, Tsuki said:

take a look at this thread here

 

Thanks, didn't see that

[Navbryce]

Just now, agentxisepic said:

In your opinion is it worth all the time money and effort? Should I just stick with High Quality Air Coolers and lots of case fans?

Good question. I've had a custom loop for about ~7 months. If you want to be practical, stick with Air Coolers. They're relatively cheap, quiet, and require no maintenance. If you want your rig to look cooler or want to challenge yourself, go custom loop.

[agentxisepic]

Just now, Navbryce said:

Good question. I've had a custom loop for about ~7 months. If you want to be practical, stick with Air Coolers. They're relatively cheap, quiet, and require no maintenance. If you want your rig to look cooler or want to challenge yourself, go custom loop.

Hmmm, I think based on that and Ill stick with Air Coolers then as I will be in School and I probably wont be able to afford it anyway. Thanks for the Opinion/Advice

[unknownmiscreant]

12 minutes ago, ARikozuM said:

Yes, yes, and yes. 

Depends, depends, and depends. 

 

I'd look at JayzTwoCents on Youtube for some water-cooling guides. 

I'd go to EKWB configurator to see what it'll cost you for a custom loop. 

As for the EKWB configurator, get one their kits. about 100-150AUD cheaper than buying everything seperatly, plus you get pump bracket, bridging connector, fan splitter, leds.

 

It can be expanded to a gpu block very easily.

 

I ended up getting a kit, as I was looking at buying seperatly all the parts in the kit for more $$.

[xentropa]

My biggest problem was.

 

Case not big enough and not properly measuring everything.  Radiators didnt fit, so some case modification was required, etc.  

 

Not long enough tubing.

 

Not enough fittings.

[unknownmiscreant]

10 minutes ago, xentropa said:

My biggest problem was.

 

Case not big enough and not properly measuring everything.  Radiators didnt fit, so some case modification was required, etc.  

 

Not long enough tubing.

 

Not enough fittings.

My biggest problem was trying to find a decent GPU that would fit in a compact mid-tower with a push-pull 40mm rad in the front, and trying to mount the pump, (that ended up external, on the back of the case.

[PrimeSonic]

8 hours ago, agentxisepic said:

A. Worth the time and effort

B. Extremely Difficult

C. How much money would I be dropping?

A. Not really

B. No, but you have to be ready to improvise when plans don't pan out

C. No less than $200-$400 with things easily going much higher as you add more blocks and radiators.

 

Custom water cooling is something to get into only if you really want to.

I know that sounds odd but take it in.

 

There's not enough of a performance benefit and there are other ways to deal with noise from air cooling.

It's expensive and can get labor intensive. (I must've spent the entire weekend building my first loop)

It will require maintenance every so often depending on your coolant, which means it might not be as much "set and forget" as some may like.

 

So really, the best advice I can give is to only go for custom water cooling if you really want to.

That's really the only justifiable reason in my book.

If you like how it looks and enjoy building in a PC case and don't mind the added effort and expense, then go for it.