Water Cooling Advice Needed - Never Water Cooled Before

[Major_A]

My motherboard killed itself with a BIOS flash so I ordered a new one assuming that I was SOL. Fortunately, Gigabyte has offered to fix the board so that is where it is now. When that comes back I'll have a case, P45 motherboard, 4GB of DDR2 800, 8800GTS, SB Audigy MP3+, OCZ ModXStream 600W and several hard drives waiting for a computer. To get a fairly decent machine up and running I'll only need to purchase the CPU, DVD-RW drive and aftermarket cooling. Since this isn't going to be my main computer I figured I want to go ahead and give water cooling a chance. I don't have a ton of money and I'm actually a bit intimidated by putting water in a large electrical device. After looking around I think I found the setup I want to try, since it seems it was designed with n00bs in mind.

Link to cooling setup:
Swiftech Swiftech H20-220 Compact
I don't want to cool the GPU with this setup just the CPU. Like I said this is my baby step toward the world of water.

What are your thoughts on this setup? Could I do better assembling my own system? Where do you shop for water cooling components?

Since I'm broke and this essentaially more of an experiment in water cooling I'm planning on buying the Intel E6300 CPU.

All the help here would be appreciated. The lower the price would be more appreciated.

[DL13]

Hi I've bin thinking of doing water cooling my self too and I've bin look at a Cooler Master set up using a Swifteck water block. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6835108110 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6835103045

There's one thing I never like was the thought of having a pump on top of the cpu which is why I like the looks of the CM set up and it look it was design for n00bs in mind too.

[Major_A]

For $260 + shipping I'd be better off building a system from Danger Den.

[Sowser]

If you really want to take a baby step go with the Domino. Self contained water system, just mount it and you're done. I've had mine on a i720 and haven't seen it go above 42C even when highend gaming.

[DMB2000uk]

The original swiftech kit is a great entry level kit (one of the only entry level kits i'd be happy recommending in fact).

If you decide you want to improve it down the line, you can get a better CPU block, take the existing CPU block off the pump, and then just get a new pump top to be able to keep using it, while also gaining more performance from the pump.

Dan

[Major_A]

If you really want to take a baby step go with the Domino. Self contained water system, just mount it and you're done. I've had mine on a i720 and haven't seen it go above 42C even when highend gaming.

Maybe something a bit more challenging. Or at least something to help me see the principle behind the process. Isn't the Domino pre-assembled and ready to go out of the box? I want something that I'll have to bleed the system, refill it from time to time, and see what typically goes bad first, etc...

The original swiftech kit is a great entry level kit (one of the only entry level kits i'd be happy recommending in fact).

If you decide you want to improve it down the line, you can get a better CPU block, take the existing CPU block off the pump, and then just get a new pump top to be able to keep using it, while also gaining more performance from the pump.

Dan

Interesting... It didn't cross my mind that this system was actually upgradeable.

[Skippman]

+1 on the Swiftech kit.

It is upgradable and you can do it in phases. I agree with Dan. If you find that you don't have enough cooling power swap the CPU block out. If that's still not enough or you want to add more devices, swap out pumps. The system can grow as you gain confidence.

I did a ton of research before I built WarMachine (do a search for my name and that's half the threads I started). Dan, Bio-Hazzard, and as much as I hate to admit this, Martin all gave me excellent advice. I've been supper happy with my tripple rad, pump, and cpu block from Swiftech. I've also been supper happy with thier customer support as they shipped me all new screws for my block when one of them was damaged.

As for vendors, Perfromance-PCS and Sidewinder were both great to deal with and seemed to have the most competative prices for water cooling parts. They also carry a whole host of top notch modding parts like Yate Loon fans and such.

[Major_A]

Thanks for the info Skippman. I've already bookmarked the links that you posted.

[Major_A]

As broke as I am I just bit the bullet and ordered an E5200 and the Swiftech H20-220. After seeing Corsair's new contained loop water cooling kit (Hydro H50) I decided not to wait on it. Like I said previously I wanted something a little more challenging and that would give me the basics of a real water cooling loop. Combined with the rest of the components I have laying around this should be a decent build.

E5200
Swiftech H20-220

Parts laying around:
Gigabyte GA-EP45-UD3P
Patriot Extreme Performance 4GB DDR2 800 (5-5-5-12)
EVGA 8800GTS 320MB
SB Audigy MP3+ or Chaintech AV-710
1TB Samsung F1 (32MB cache) or I can go 2X1TB Samsung F1 in RAID 0 (I have 3 of them sitting around)
Samsung 22X SATA DVD Burner
OCZ ModXStream 600W
Chieftech knockoff Dragon full tower case

Now for a question:
Is there that much difference configuring your radiator in a push/pull configuration? Since I am broke (hopefully I have a new job lined up) I don't want to waste money on more fans if the return isn't that great. I can always get more/better fans down the road.

[DMB2000uk]

Congrats on making the jump.

You'll do fine with them just on pull for now. If you do find yourself craving after another couple of degrees performance (best case scenario) then you can look into getting some more for a push/pull config.

Dan

[Skippman]

To my understanding there shouldn't be any difference either way with the whole push/pull configuration. The key seems to be two things.

1.) Keep you hose runs as short as "possible".
2.) Keep your bends as smooth as possible.

This is a liquid you're moving. The smoother you can keep your bends the better the flow will be through the loop. If you find yourself putting a sharp bend in the system you're gonna cause the hose to collapse and it'll restrict your flow rate. Think of it like putting your thumb over the end of a water hose. Sure you get high pressure, but you're getting that at the expense of volume. In this case it's not so much how much pressure there is, as how much volume you move.

The key to building a water system seems to be making sure you seat the water hoses all the way down. I can't stress that enough. The hose should go completely over the barb and all the way flush to the base of the connector. Then, make sure you're clamping as close to the base of the barb as you can. You're wanting to pinch the hose behind the barb at the base, not in front of the barb at the tip.

That's my 2 cents as a mid level water cooler. I'm basically running a beefed up version of the kit you've bought. Feel free to look at my thread or Dan's thread to see what we mean about gradual bends. My systems been running under water now for almost 8 months and I've not had a single cooling problem. I really don't know why I never made the jump sooner. When I build WarMachine 2.0 I'm going to take it to the next level and water cool my GPU's and my NB if possible.

[Major_A]

I have a POS 300W PSU that came with a case that I plan on leak testing the kit with. Unless it can remain leak free for 48 hours it's not going in the system. If it is leak free then bombs away.

[stopthekilling77]

I have a POS 300W PSU that came with a case that I plan on leak testing the kit with. Unless it can remain leak free for 48 hours it's not going in the system. If it is leak free then bombs away.

If you get the tubes installed correctly, its REALLY unlikely that there will ever be any leaks. Believe me, it was a BEAST to get my tubes installed, had to use a bit of vaseline and it still was tough. if you can, heat up some water and put it in a bucket and soak the tubes in the hot water before you try to get the barbs on them. Obviously its best to do this well away from your computer components, but the tubing is much easier to manipulate once the tubing is warmed up, then you can dry off everything and install it in the case.

[Major_A]

Thanks for the suggestions stopthekilling77. Everything you guys are telling me is very good information for me to refer to when it's time to build.

[Skippman]

I have a POS 300W PSU that came with a case that I plan on leak testing the kit with. Unless it can remain leak free for 48 hours it's not going in the system. If it is leak free then bombs away.

Ain't gonna work chief. Cause you're going to have to take the system apart to get it in the case in the first place.

Built it in the machine. Make sure all the parts you're going to need are firmly seated and that you have good solid connections. If you have to screw in barbs, use Teflon tape. When it's time to leak test the system, hook the power to the pump up to a separate one from the one that's running your system. That way you can have your whole system assembled and leak tested without worrying about the COMPUTER running. Like STK said, it's very unlikely you'll have a leak.

Also, you might want to spend the extra $20 and buy a real computer coolant as opposed to water. I like the stuff from Feser One and have been using it for over 7 months. The stuff is completely dielectric, meaning it doesn't conduct electricity. So even if there IS a leak, it won't damage anything. The stuff I use is also UV reactive so if I do leak, it will show up under the black light I use to light my case and be immediately visible. I haven't had a single leak to date.