Question HELP! Custom Water Cooling Setup!

JaSoN_cRuZe

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I wish to buy a custom water cooling setup for my upcoming Ryzen build!

I have an Antec P8 case and wish to buy the following items from Aliexpress for my setup, I intend to do only for CPU for now and wish to upgrade to a GPU block down the road.

360 Copper RAD!!

Pump+Reservoir!! -Suggest reservoir size(140 or 190 or 240)??

CPU Block!!

Please suggest me some good fittings and tubing for the above items, This is my first time going for a custom loop.

Please use this link for suggesting compatible fittings and also any other alternatives for the above mentioned items are welcome.

I'm living in India so the shipping is usually very high, so i had selected the above because of the price and free shipping.

Any suggestion or recommendation is highly welcome. Thanks
 

rubix_1011

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Have you read through the watercooling sticky on this site (or any other site)?

What fans are you intending to use on the radiator?

Pump seems similar to a DDC unit, although not familiar with how good this one is.

What tubing size are you needing? Once you determine that, it is relatively easy to find tubing and fittings...just match the tubing inner diameter and outer diameter (ID and OD) sizes to the fitting sizes.

Are you not planning to use a reservoir?
 

JaSoN_cRuZe

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Have you read through the watercooling sticky on this site (or any other site)?

What fans are you intending to use on the radiator?

Pump seems similar to a DDC unit, although not familiar with how good this one is.

What tubing size are you needing? Once you determine that, it is relatively easy to find tubing and fittings...just match the tubing inner diameter and outer diameter (ID and OD) sizes to the fitting sizes.

Are you not planning to use a reservoir?
I might have gone through the basics but wanted to know the pros and cons of using Soft or Hard Tubings?

Tubing size seems to be G1/4.

I already have some case fans which i bought locally not good but OK i think! Fans.

Should i need a reservoir? I will upgrade the loop down the road to the GPU if possible.

Yes, i suppose the pump is DDC.
 
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rubix_1011

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I might have gone through the basics but wanted to know the pros and cons of using Soft or Hard Tubings?

Soft tubing bends as you need, hard tubing requires a heat gun to soften the tubing to be formed. There are pros and cons of each, but those are really only pros and cons as each person sees them, not as either are defined overall for everyone.

For those fans....never heard of those.

Should i need a reservoir? I will upgrade the loop down the road to the GPU if possible.
What is the reason you don't have a reservoir listed now? How will you fill and prime the loop?
What is your approach of upgrading the GPU later and how does that either include or not include a reservoir?

Yes, i suppose the pump is DDC.

Are you certain? I suppose it could be a rebrand, but even with other models, they still state a DDC pump is being used, regardless of what sticker or brand name is on it....a DDC is a DDC and a D5 is a D5. To me, this only 'looks like a DDC' pump in both form factor and reported specs (assuming those are correct and not just marketing).
 

JaSoN_cRuZe

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What is the reason you don't have a reservoir listed now? How will you fill and prime the loop?

The reservoir is listed above with the pump itself, it has an option of adding reservoir till 240mm.
I just don't know what size to get.

What tubing size are you needing?

The tubing size seems to be G1/4.

What is your approach of upgrading the GPU later and how does that either include or not include a reservoir?

I currently have a EVGA 1070Ti, there doesn't seem to be a suitable water block for my card so maybe in the future would buy a GPU with a water block and extend my loop.

Are you certain?

I will ask the seller about the pump but it is listed under the DDC pump components in the seller's website.
 

rubix_1011

Contributing Writer
Moderator
My mistake on the reservoir, sorry about that. Size of reservoir has no bearing on cooling capability of the loop, so choose the size you want.

G1/4 is the fitting thread size which is different than the fitting/tubing size.

HpvEk82.jpg


1070Ti block (hybrid) from Alphacool
https://www.performance-pcs.com/water-cooling/water-blocks/water-blocks-vga.html?vga_series=2828

Maybe it is, and if so, that's good news. You might just want to verify either by research or email to see. I'm not saying that if it isn't a DDC, it is bad, it just seems strange that they don't mention it being a DDC since that would be the primary selling point if it were.
 
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JaSoN_cRuZe

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My mistake on the reservoir, sorry about that. Size of reservoir has no bearing on cooling capability of the loop, so choose the size you want.

G1/4 is the fitting thread size which is different than the fitting/tubing size.

HpvEk82.jpg


1070Ti block (hybrid) from Alphacool
https://www.performance-pcs.com/water-cooling/water-blocks/water-blocks-vga.html?vga_series=2828

Maybe it is, and if so, that's good news. You might just want to verify either by research or email to see. I'm not saying that if it isn't a DDC, it is bad, it just seems strange that they don't mention it being a DDC since that would be the primary selling point if it were.

Thanks for the suggestion, I will go with a 140mm reservoir,

I have decided on this soft tubing which is 3/8"ID & 5/8" OD.

I will go with the compression fittings for this soft tubing.

How many fittings should i go with, based on the components i think 6. Do i need anything else?

Side Note: Confirmed it is a DDC not a D5. The same product with other sellers mention them as DDC motor.
 

rubix_1011

Contributing Writer
Moderator
The pump size in the image looks far more like a DDC than a D5; a D5 is larger and is more rounded (like a barrel).

For fittings, you will need 1 input and 1 output for each component. You also would want to ensure that any other ports that would not be otherwise plugged to prevent coolant spillage.
 

JaSoN_cRuZe

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The pump size in the image looks far more like a DDC than a D5; a D5 is larger and is more rounded (like a barrel).

For fittings, you will need 1 input and 1 output for each component. You also would want to ensure that any other ports that would not be otherwise plugged to prevent coolant spillage.

This will be my water cooling kit config,

View: https://imgur.com/vtciV96


Went with the 3/8"ID & 1/2"OD because of my MID Tower Case,

Will buy these exhaust plugs. for plugging the additional hole on top of the reservoir.

Do i need a 90 degree or some other fittings for my setup? Can i use distilled water as coolant?

Any suggest on coolant additives? Is this setup OK?

Thanks for the help.
 

JaSoN_cRuZe

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These sellers also raised the price of many products listed above especially the pump & reservoir and also included hefty shipping charges to all products:mad::mad:

The fittings when combined with their shipping cost doesn't look cheap.

So i will wait for some better prices during Black Friday deals with Free of Shipping costs.

So my final list will be,

1 * reservoir pump combo
1 * reservoir holder
1 * pump heat spreader/cover
1 meter of 3/8"ID & 1/2"OD Soft Tube
8 * Compression Fittings
1 * 360 Copper Rad
1 * CPU Block
1 * Exhaust Plugs
1 * GPU Block
 

EndEffeKt_24

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These sellers also raised the price of many products listed above especially the pump & reservoir and also included hefty shipping charges to all products:mad::mad:

The fittings when combined with their shipping cost doesn't look cheap.

So i will wait for some better prices during Black Friday deals with Free of Shipping costs.

So my final list will be,

1 * reservoir pump combo
1 * reservoir holder
1 * pump heat spreader/cover
1 meter of 3/8"ID & 1/2"OD Soft Tube
8 * Compression Fittings
1 * 360 Copper Rad
1 * CPU Block
1 * Exhaust Plugs
1 * GPU Block
Buy 2 meters. Its cheap and you really dont want to run out of tubing on the last connection.
 

rubix_1011

Contributing Writer
Moderator
Are there not any 'kit' options available? Usually, vendors will have kits that fit a variety of CPU sockets and include everything you need (perhaps minus distilled water to mix with a coolant).

However, you are doing it the DIY way (which is how I do it) and picking the parts you specifically want....you don't have to buy all the same brand if you don't want to as long as you aren't mixing aluminum with copper/brass/nickel/silver/gold, etc.
 

JaSoN_cRuZe

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Are there not any 'kit' options available? Usually, vendors will have kits that fit a variety of CPU sockets and include everything you need (perhaps minus distilled water to mix with a coolant).

However, you are doing it the DIY way (which is how I do it) and picking the parts you specifically want....you don't have to buy all the same brand if you don't want to as long as you aren't mixing aluminum with copper/brass/nickel/silver/gold, etc.
The perks of having it DIY for me is that,
Better performing pump for price.
Better radiator for the price.
Lesser probabilty of paying customs on import because of smaller packages.
Slightly lesser shipping costs.
Applying different set of coupons to reduce overall price.

All the selected components are combination of Copper Brass and Nickel.

I just need kill coil or some biocide for my distiled water.
 

JaSoN_cRuZe

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Kill coil doesn't do much of anything, it is mostly the equivalent of snake oil. You would be far better off with some form of anti-microbial coolant or growth inhibitor.
Can i use any of these....
Algae Remover

These are used for fresh water fish tanks. Can i use them in slightly higher concentration to prevent algae? Also im afraid to use pt nuke because of nickel coating in my cpu and gpu block.

Or

Can i use this Colloidal Silver 10ppm.
 
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Karadjgne

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Without resorting to Automotive radiator and water pump lubrication liquids that are designed to balance negative affects of heat and coolant on aluminium....

Seriously, that's like taking a fiance to the best steak house in town, then ordering chicken nuggets.
 

JaSoN_cRuZe

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Can I ask why you are choosing these items rather than a watercooling coolant that is made to work with the cooling components?

There are plenty of coolants available to meet the needs of a watercooling loop.

There are no custom water cooling support in India.

There is only Thermaltake coolant which i can find online and it is overpriced.

Many youtubers suggest distilled water with a biocide of choice.
 

rubix_1011

Contributing Writer
Moderator
Very strange that you can order all the parts for watercooling but not any coolant.

Yes, you can use distilled water and anti-microbial additives but you will need to pay close attention to the color and consistency of the water during the lifetime it is used. There is a good chance that the effects of the additive can dissipate and growth can still occur.
 

JaSoN_cRuZe

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Very strange that you can order all the parts for watercooling but not any coolant.

Yes, you can use distilled water and anti-microbial additives but you will need to pay close attention to the color and consistency of the water during the lifetime it is used. There is a good chance that the effects of the additive can dissipate and growth can still occur.

All the parts i bought are imported from china and they don't sell coolant even if they did there is a high chance of leaks during shipping so they won't.

I will drain and refill the loop every 6 months will that be OK.
 

Karadjgne

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Don't know. It's going to be a trial and error thing. There's no way to know just how effective the biocide is, or it's ability to stand upto a constant temperature that's 30°F higher than room temp for long periods of time. You could go to turn on the pc after 5 months and 2 day, and be looking at pond scum that grew overnight.
 

JaSoN_cRuZe

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Don't know. It's going to be a trial and error thing. There's no way to know just how effective the biocide is, or it's ability to stand upto a constant temperature that's 30°F higher than room temp for long periods of time. You could go to turn on the pc after 5 months and 2 day, and be looking at pond scum that grew overnight.
Now that is whole other level of scare.

Then are you suggesting i should use this Thermaltake T1000.
 

Karadjgne

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Or something similar, yes.

I'll put it this way. When you need to put oil in the car, you use automotive grade oil of the correct weight for the engine. 10w30 or 5w20 etc.

You really do not want to add Vegetable oil, based on the assumption that oil is just oil, all the same right?

So what's in that biocide? Is it acid based or alkaline? Formulated for copper? Rubber corrosive? How effective is it, how long does it last, what concentration does it need, will using too much or too little affect anything?

EK, AlphaCool, Corsair, Thermaltake or any of the other pc specialist cooling liquids have already tested that, answered all that and more.

Just do not use pastels or chalk based, stick with the clears/translucents.