Water cooling fittings questions ( EKWB ) first time builder

[Guy_7_]

So i'm building my first loop and would like to ensure I'm actually buying the correct fittings for my needs. I am using EK blocks so I thought I may as well stick to EK for my fittings and tubes also.

But first I have a question which may sound stupid but do i actually need a pump top? or are they just for aesthetics?

My plan so far:
12/16mm PETG tube
2 radiators
1 gpu block
1 cpu block
1 reservoir
separate pump under psu shroud
12 HDC 16mm fittings

and then for a drain valve but was unsure how to go about it so I thought:

Pump >>> EK-AF extender 6mm M-M >>> EK-AF T-Splitter 3F >>> EK-AF extender M-M >>> EK-AF ball valve 10mm >>> EK-ACF Fitting 10/13mm >>> 10/13mm softline tube

is this all correct? is there anything you would change?

the more I look at it the less sure I become.

any help would be much appreciated!

 

[machinhigh]

So yer doing a cooling loop okay cool how about I point ya here then you'll have a better idea where you wanna go with the build.
https://www.ekwb.com/custom-loop-configurator/

all the best.

 

[Guy_7_]

So yer doing a cooling loop okay cool how about I point ya here then you'll have a better idea where you wanna go with the build.
https://www.ekwb.com/custom-loop-configurator/

all the best.

I just went through all that and it doesn't answer either of my main questions about the drain line or requiring a pump top

 

[faalin]

No you don't need a pump top, pumps come as a complete unit. depending on what pump you are going with you can get different tops for looks or mount right to the reservoir.



This is my last build, runs a mix of EK and XSPC. It runs a D5 pump that is mounted right to the bottom of the reservoir.

For my loop there is no way to remove all the coolant from the whole system, so I pull the plug on the bottom of the quad block and it will drain all the coolant from the top tube, cpu block, MB block, GPU's, and Reservoir.

Do you know what case you will be using?

 

[Guy_7_]

No you don't need a pump top, pumps come as a complete unit. depending on what pump you are going with you can get different tops for looks or mount right to the reservoir.



This is my last build, runs a mix of EK and XSPC. It runs a D5 pump that is mounted right to the bottom of the reservoir.

For my loop there is no way to remove all the coolant from the whole system, so I pull the plug on the bottom of the quad block and it will drain all the coolant from the top tube, cpu block, MB block, GPU's, and Reservoir.

Do you know what case you will be using?

Cheers for the reply and lovely build you have there!

so could i just order this and be done?
http://www.candccentral.co.uk/Alphacool-VPP655-(Laing-D5)-Variable-Speed-Pump-Single-Edition.html

or is that just the motor? aha

and I'm using a phanteks evolv atx

Just realised I have no way of mounting the pump where I wanted it so I may have to rethink my plans slightly or just get a pump res combo

or maybe get the drill out but I feel it would go wrong somehow

 

[faalin]

That pump is suppose to be mounted to a res, or you would have to buy a top for it for a stand alone pump.


What part will you be water cooling? The biggest thing is if your doing your GPU if they make a block for it.

So looking at the case it looks like they thought of water cooling when they built it. For your cpu radiator space I would start with 240mm for stock to mild overclocking, then move to a 280mm to 360mm for high overclocks.
If your adding a graphics card to the loop you need to add another 120mm for each card.


Looking at your case I would run a 360mm radiator on the top and then fit in whatever I could to the front depending on size. looks like the PSU cover takes up some of the lower fan and the top radiator will take up some of the upper fan. Might be able to build a bracket to mount a 240/280 in front and a second 240/280 on the top.

 

[Guy_7_]

That pump is suppose to be mounted to a res, or you would have to buy a top for it for a stand alone pump.


What part will you be water cooling? The biggest thing is if your doing your GPU if they make a block for it.

So looking at the case it looks like they thought of water cooling when they built it. For your cpu radiator space I would start with 240mm for stock to mild overclocking, then move to a 280mm to 360mm for high overclocks.
If your adding a graphics card to the loop you need to add another 120mm for each card.


Looking at your case I would run a 360mm radiator on the top and then fit in whatever I could to the front depending on size. looks like the PSU cover takes up some of the lower fan and the top radiator will take up some of the upper fan. Might be able to build a bracket to mount a 240/280 in front and a second 240/280 on the top.

So pump tops are actually required okay that clears that up aha, this was the main thing confusing me I must admit.

I will be cooling a 4790k and a 390x with potential overclocking in the future.
I have ek blocks for both and I also already have 360mm and 240mm nemesis GTS black ice rads for top and front.

The rads are pretty thin and I plan on having some quiet fans going at low rpm.
Was looking at the corsair SP120 quiet edition but they don't have a 140 variant so I may go with bequiet shadow wings 2 but they are rather pricey!

The case has accounted for water cooling by removing the HDD cage under the PSU shroud but what I intend to do is to keep the HDD cage where it is as I need the storage and have the pump between that and the PSU and the tubes to go through the GPU power cable slot near the front.

At this rate though I feel it would be easier to just get a pump res combo and far go the extra hassle (and save a few pennies) just not sure it would look as clean as I had in my mind also I would have to get a shorter res.

 

[faalin]

You could go with a ION res/pump from XSPC, has a very clean look

 

[Guy_7_]

You could go with a ION res/pump from XSPC, has a very clean look

Thank you for your help faalin, I think combo unit is the way to go.
Don't suppose its possible to split a combo into standalone units if I change my mind in the future?

Much appreciated

 

[faalin]

You could go with a ION res/pump from XSPC, has a very clean look

Thank you for your help faalin, I think combo unit is the way to go.
Don't suppose its possible to split a combo into standalone units if I change my mind in the future?

Much appreciated

It depends on the pump/res that you get.

If you look at mine, the lower part is the pump which is a D5. The vertical ribbed part is a locking ring, if you unscrew it you can mount a front to it and have a stand alone pump. I know the mcp35x have a removable top on them as well, my last build used two of these with a top plate that ran them in series.