Does Res Size Really Matter?

[TrueSpoon]

I am quite a noob and look and looked else where but could not find a answer.
I need to water cool 2 r9 280x's with with res, it is a small res too.

http://www.performance-pcs.com/ek-reservoir-combo-dcp-2-61.html

I would be able to mount this one inside my case due to it's size.
Now..the question is if i were to get a bigger 250ml res, what would be the difference? i would also have to mount that res OUTSIDE on top of my case if i were to get one that size.


I would really like to know, the cooling in Florida sucks. the temperatures her get in mid 90's all day and it terrible for me and my system! i need to get my water cooling soon or i wont be able to use my computer

 

[nucolos]

When i saw the title i was ready to start talking about resolution, and that console gamers dont undestand anything and ubisoft ceo is just a stupid guy. Then i actually read the question and i didnt understand anything. LOL.

The reservoir is very important, not vital, but yeah, important, and i believe you need a bigger one, look for those ones that can fit in the optical drive bay, they are not the best ones, but at least you can feat one in there.

 

[TrueSpoon]

When i saw the title i was ready to start talking about resolution, and that console games dont undestand anything and ubisoft ceo is just a stupid guy. Then i actually read the question and i didnt understan anything. LOL.

The reservoir is very important, not vital, but yeah, important, and i believe you need a bigger one, look for those ones that can fit in the optical drive bay, they are not the best ones, but at least you can feat one in there.

Do you think this one is good?
http://www.performance-pcs.com/phobya-dc12-400-12volt-pump-alphacool-lighttower-all-in-one-reservoir-combo.html#Specifications
My case doesn't include optical drive bays. i'd drill holes on the top of my case and mount this on it's side

 

[ahnilated]

You don't cool with a reservoir, you cool by heat transfer from the radiator. The larger radiator with more fins transfers off more heat from the liquid flowing through it. The reservoir is just there to allow you to fill the system and check the level of water as well as get all the air out of the loop.

 

[DarkSable]

There's absolutely no need to have a huge reservoir. There are many of us who run entirely without them, and just use t-connectors to add fill and drain lines. (I don't recommend this, it's an absolute PAIN.)

The only benefit of a larger reservoir is that you wouldn't have to top off your loop as often. (I actually mount my reservoirs on the back of my case just as practice, since again, it makes things easier to fill. (Plus it gets a lot of comments, in a good way.))

 

[DarkSable]

I de-selected the best answer because, well, it was incorrect. Sorry Nucolos, but he doesn't need a bigger one and it's not important to even have one, it just makes life easier.

EDIT: I just noticed that both the reservoirs you've linked are combos meant to be paired with a pump. (Or which already come with a pump.) Is that intentional?

 

[TrueSpoon]

I de-selected the best answer because, well, it was incorrect. Sorry Nucolos, but he doesn't need a bigger one and it's not important to even have one, it just makes life easier.

EDIT: I just noticed that both the reservoirs you've linked are combos meant to be paired with a pump. (Or which already come with a pump.) Is that intentional?

The first one would be mounted internally, the first one only has one pump compatible that i found which is http://www.performance-pcs.com/pumps/ek-dcp-2-2-12v-dc-water-pump.html#Details

Is that enough for my my 2 gpu's?

 

[andy_Man]

If you think about it, the reservoir will only affect how fast the loop gets up to it's max temp.

If the water in your water loop eventually gets too hot, adding more water into the loop won't keep it from hitting the same temp, it will just take more time.
This is how I see it. I might be totally wrong.

It's more about the Radiotor+fan setup.

 

[DarkSable]

...mate, you know that you can have your pump be a separate thing, right?

I would go with just a plain old reservoir mounted on the back of your case, and have the pump itself be internal. That's not a particularly good pump, though - I would go with a Laing D5 variant... swiftech makes one that's PWM controlled, which is just lovely.

 

[faalin]

There's absolutely no need to have a huge reservoir. There are many of us who run entirely without them, and just use t-connectors to add fill and drain lines. (I don't recommend this, it's an absolute PAIN.)

The only benefit of a larger reservoir is that you wouldn't have to top off your loop as often. (I actually mount my reservoirs on the back of my case just as practice, since again, it makes things easier to fill. (Plus it gets a lot of comments, in a good way.))

+1 you don't need a big res for water cooling, I use this one of one of my build and it does not hold much water.

 

[jdcranke07]

I agree with DarkSable. The reservoir size is based on ease of access and aesthetics. The number of radiators and the fins per inch of each radiator is really what determines the cooler capabilities. If you really wanted to get technical, the material that the water block contacts are made out of and the material that the radiators are made out of and whether you have static pressure fans on the radiators is what determines the maximum potential cooling of the loop. Also, if you have higher RPM static pressure fans the cooling will improve a little bit. If you have high CFM fans and low static pressure, this will kill your cooling potential as well.

 

[DarkSable]

If you think about it, the reservoir will only affect how fast the loop gets up to it's max temp.

If the water in your water loop eventually gets too hot, adding more water into the loop won't keep it from hitting the same temp, it will just take more time.
This is how I see it. I might be totally wrong.

You are 100% correct.

This is why the guys with tubing going down to a water cooler as their reservoir are just wasting water and making themselves look like fools when they go to game for a night-long session.

 

[TrueSpoon]

...mate, you know that you can have your pump be a separate thing, right?

I would go with just a plain old reservoir mounted on the back of your case, and have the pump itself be internal. That's not a particularly good pump, though - I would go with a Laing D5 variant... swiftech makes one that's PWM controlled, which is just lovely.

Would that work that res though? i don't want to buy it and realize it does not fit, the website says
"Compatible only with EK-DCP 2.2"

 

[jdcranke07]

...mate, you know that you can have your pump be a separate thing, right?

I would go with just a plain old reservoir mounted on the back of your case, and have the pump itself be internal. That's not a particularly good pump, though - I would go with a Laing D5 variant... swiftech makes one that's PWM controlled, which is just lovely.

Would that work that res though? i don't want to buy it and realize it does not fit, the website says
"Compatible only with EK-DCP 2.2"

Res compatibility is based on the fittings you have. Just make sure you have the correct thread size on the fittings.

Update: This is only if the res was not made to be only physically attached to a pump.

 

[TrueSpoon]

...mate, you know that you can have your pump be a separate thing, right?

I would go with just a plain old reservoir mounted on the back of your case, and have the pump itself be internal. That's not a particularly good pump, though - I would go with a Laing D5 variant... swiftech makes one that's PWM controlled, which is just lovely.

Would that work that res though? i don't want to buy it and realize it does not fit, the website says
"Compatible only with EK-DCP 2.2"

Res compatibility is based on the fittings you have. Just make sure you have the correct thread size on the fittings.

Update: This is only if the res was not made to be only physically attached to a pump.

okay so i need to invest on a seprate res and pump. or do i but the pump made for the res i own already

 

[jdcranke07]

...mate, you know that you can have your pump be a separate thing, right?

I would go with just a plain old reservoir mounted on the back of your case, and have the pump itself be internal. That's not a particularly good pump, though - I would go with a Laing D5 variant... swiftech makes one that's PWM controlled, which is just lovely.

Would that work that res though? i don't want to buy it and realize it does not fit, the website says
"Compatible only with EK-DCP 2.2"

Res compatibility is based on the fittings you have. Just make sure you have the correct thread size on the fittings.

Update: This is only if the res was not made to be only physically attached to a pump.

okay so i need to invest on a seprate res and pump. or do i but the pump made for the res i own already

Honestly, it's really what is best for your system. If you have the space for the pump/res combo in one structure then do it being as you have the pump for the res already. However, I like the separate pump and res deal since I have no room for the size res I wanted and the pump to be one unit. Plus, I'm hiding my pump in the bottom of my case to where you can't see it as well.

 

[DarkSable]

Buy a reservoir that was not made to be paired with a pump. Buy a pump that's not made to be paired with a reservoir. Put barbs on them and put tubing between. Done.

What does "or do i but the pump made for the res i own already" mean?

 

[DarkSable]

Honestly, it's really what is best for your system. If you have the space for the pump/res combo in one structure then do it being as you have the pump for the res already. However, I like the separate pump and res deal since I have no room for the size res I wanted and the pump to be one unit. Plus, I'm hiding my pump in the bottom of my case to where you can't see it as well.

Just as a side note, the pumps that are paired with reservoirs are frequently not as strong and reliable as other options, and more importantly, the combo is going to be much noisier because of much less ability to dampen vibrations.

 

[TrueSpoon]

Buy a reservoir that was not made to be paired with a pump. Buy a pump that's not made to be paired with a reservoir. Put barbs on them and put tubing between. Done.

What does "or do i but the pump made for the res i own already" mean?

Sorry i was typing fast, i meant or do i buy the pump that goes with the res i own. but you already answered that. thank you this watercooling is gonna get pushed back a month now but i hope it is worth it

 

[DarkSable]

Sorry i was typing fast, i meant or do i buy the pump that goes with the res i own. but you already answered that. thank you this watercooling is gonna get pushed back a month now but i hope it is worth it

So you already own the reservoir you linked in the first post? I can't tell from the images, is the part that's meant to go on your pump able to be closed off with a standard fitting?

 

[TrueSpoon]

Honestly, it's really what is best for your system. If you have the space for the pump/res combo in one structure then do it being as you have the pump for the res already. However, I like the separate pump and res deal since I have no room for the size res I wanted and the pump to be one unit. Plus, I'm hiding my pump in the bottom of my case to where you can't see it as well.

Just as a side note, the pumps that are paired with reservoirs are frequently not as strong and reliable as other options, and more importantly, the combo is going to be much noisier because of much less ability to dampen vibrations.

Sorry im asking all of these questions.. it's probably to much for you xD but can you suggest a pump to go with this http://www.performance-pcs.com/bitspower-water-tank-z-multi-150-pom.html#Additional-Information

 

[jdcranke07]

Honestly, it's really what is best for your system. If you have the space for the pump/res combo in one structure then do it being as you have the pump for the res already. However, I like the separate pump and res deal since I have no room for the size res I wanted and the pump to be one unit. Plus, I'm hiding my pump in the bottom of my case to where you can't see it as well.

Just as a side note, the pumps that are paired with reservoirs are frequently not as strong and reliable as other options, and more importantly, the combo is going to be much noisier because of much less ability to dampen vibrations.

This is true, but also its more of a personal decision on the noise and consolidation topics. I use a MCP35X2, so no matter what mine would need to be separate from the res.

 

[DarkSable]

This is true, but also its more of a personal decision on the noise and consolidation topics. I use a MCP35X2, so no matter what mine would need to be separate from the res.

Oh, absolutely, I just wanted to point out that the smaller area had a cost to it.

TrueSpoon, you can use quite literally any standard threaded pump with that thing. I would personally go with the Swiftech MCP655 pump, and you'll have to buy a pump top and housing for it. If that's too expensive, the Swiftech MCP35X that jdcranke is the second best option, and is quite a bit cheaper.

 

[synphul]

I'd have to agree with DarkSable, res size shouldn't matter so much. Looking at autos, the reservoir makes up a relatively small area of the coolant capacity. Most of that is for maintenance purposes, allowing the system to remain operational as some of the coolant boils off and evaporates and the coolant level slowly drops over time (without adding to it). Having a reservoir of some sort would probably be beneficial if nothing else to help keep bubbles from entering the pump area and for ease of topping off as well as allowing for coolant level to expand/contract though that effect I believe is much smaller on a pc system vs a much more volatile situation like cooling an engine block.