Water cooling spec check

David41

David41

David41

Associate
Joined
23 Apr 2009
Posts
600
Location
Glasgow
Evening all. I was wondering if someone could give my spec the once over
and maybe answer some questions I have. I was going to order one of those
kits from the ek website but decided that they are based quite far away,
which would be a pain if I had to send it back so I decided to order from
UK based companies instead. Anyway, on with the spec.

CPU Block: EK Supreme HF
Radiator: EK Coolstream RAD XT 360
Pump: EK DCP 4.0 (12v DC Pump)
Reservoir: EK Multi option Res X2 - 150 Advanced
Fans: Undecided
Tubing: 3/8" ID 1/2" OD Undecided on colour
Fittings: All compression

The rad will have to be mounted externally due to the size of my case,
probably attached to the back using a rad box. But eventually I'll either
get a bigger case or mount the rad behind my desk similar to the way
JohnTedd has done here.

I imagine it's safe to say that the pump would be able to cope with going
from rad to cpu to res. If I wanted to expand my loop to cool my gpu and
(maybe) add another rad would it be able to cope with
rad(360)>cpu>rad(120/240) >gpu(or 2)>res. I'm just wondering what it's limits are.

Also looking for some advice on fans. I was going to go with Enermax or
Akasa Apache, not sure though. :confused:

Cheers,

Dave.
 
I'd strongly advise getting a bigger, more powerful pump right from the get-go especially if you plan to expand your loop now or in the future. Look at the D5 or a 12v DDC pump. I would never skimp on the pump personally.

Scythe Gentle Typhoons will work well with that rad as will Akasa Vipers which are superb (I use them), great static pressure and quiet, once decoupled from the rad.

If you want to skimp on fans Yate Loons are excellent for the price, but there are better. I used Yate Loons for years but would say that the price of premium fans is money well spent.

The EK rad you specced will easily cope with a CPU and most dual GPUs - with the exception of 480s of course.
 
Cheers for the reply. I've had a look at pumps and I'll take your advice and go for a
12v Laing DDC. It seems you can get it bundled with an acrylic XSPC tank reservoir
which looks pretty good. I think I'll also go for those Akasa Vipers.
I didn't think there was much difference between those and the Apaches but the Vipers
really shift a lot of air so it looks like I'll be going for those.
 
I agree with Mike on the pump, loops can be quite restrictive once you add multiple blocks and rads. I have not used the DDC but can definately recommend the D5.

The radiator is low FPI so you don't need super fans (e.g. 38mm fans, 25mm will be fine) Again I can recommend the Akasa Vipers / Apaches for being high airflow and low noise. Again as Mike says Scythe GT's are good for rads and a lot of people use yate loons due to them being cheap. Something to consider with the fans though is that they shouldn't need to run at high speed to keep things cool (my vipers run 800rpm constant and keep cpu and gpu cool on a triple rad and I don't notice any real performance gains past ~1200rpm) On a very loose basis, if you plan on colour coding the fans to your pc, you can't take the vipers apart so have to mask them up where fans like scythe gt's you can take the blades out (I point this out as I didn't know and wish I had) Out of the two fans you listed, the enermax have some good fans with high airflow so go with which ever you prefer.

Again to agree with Mike, you shouldn't really need any more rads unless you are producing some serious heat, eg, gtx 480's or you go for something extreme like 3 / 4 gpu's in the loop. You touch lightly on loop order as well, as long as res is before pump then it is pretty much insignificant the order of the rest of the loop so just take it the easiest/simplist you can.
 
Thanks again for the words of advice guys.
The more I plan, the more I think I should buy and 800d or something similar
along with the water cooling gear and do it all at once,
it would make things much easier than having a rad hanging
off the back of my case.

I've got one more question regarding additives etc.
I know I should fill the loop with distilled water, but what should/can you add
to it? Also, are one of those silver coils necessary?
 
Word of warning that pump is a noisy bugger. At first it's very quiet but after a month it's Over the top noisy. That said I did re-arrange it a lot.
 
A case more water cooling friendly would be a very wise move. I'm not a fan of external rads at all. Take the time to choose the right case for you, you'll be pleased you did the research in the long run. I love the 800D but I have one so am obviously biased.

If using distilled water then a silver coil is the cheapest and simplest way of keeping your loop free of contaminants. Recommended.

If using a pre mixed coolant then it will likely already contain some sort of biocide so you wouldnt need a coil in that instance.

You could also add a couple drops of Petras Tech PT Nuke which is a concentrated biocide (google it).

Some people use both PT Nuke and a silver coil, I just use a silver coil with distilled water. Whether this is sufficient or not hopefully someone else will confirm or deny.
 
Skeng said:
Word of warning that pump is a noisy bugger. At first it's very quiet but after a month it's Over the top noisy. That said I did re-arrange it a lot.
Click to expand...

Not to contradict you as I know the odd DDC can be noisy but they can also be very quiet if installed correctly and sound dampened.

The Laing D5 is king of the hill where noise/to flow ratio is concerned.
 
Thanks for the heads up on the pump Skeng, but I'll probably still go with it.
There seems to be 2 versions of the pump: Pro 10w or Ultra 18w.
I was going to go with the 18w seeing as there's minimal difference in price,
but unsure if one produces more noise than the other. :confused:

So, I've written up a final shopping list, here goes.

Case: Corsair 700D
Cpu Block: EK Supreme HF Full Nickel
Rad: EK Coolstream RAD XT 360
Pump/Res: 12v Laing DDC-1T Ultra 18w (MCP355) w/XSPC Acrylic Tank Res
Fans: 3x Akasa Viper
Fittings: 8x TFC Compression. Are these good enough quality?
Tubing: 3m Clearflex 60 Hose (3/8"ID 1/2"OD)
Coolant: Distilled Water, not sure how much? w/Silver Kill Coil
Extras: PT Gel-Stuff Vibration Absorption Block

Should come in at just over £400, which is fine as I was thinking £450 tops.
Wasn't sure about the quality of those fittings but I imagine they'll be fine,
just another bargain from OcUK. I also don't know how much distilled water
people usually buy, I was thinking a few liters would be on the safe side but
not 100% on that one. Is there anything that you would change/add to that list?
What do you tend to have to hand when doing a water cooled build?

I've got a week off work either next week or the following week, can't remember.
So that'll be handy, it means I can really take my time having never done
water cooling before. I plan on taking photos as I go and doing a little project log,
I was thinking "Project: Learn by doing", not sure though.
 
Not sure you should use that PT gel with a DDC pump.

Edit/ In fact just checked the spec on a competitor site:

Please note: Do not use this product for the Laing DDC range, overheating can occur

Edit/ You can get a 5L bottle of de-ionised water from Halfords for a fiver. Might want to buy a bit more tubing just to cover yourself, its dirt cheap anyway. Also need a set of tube cutters and some cable ties. As said in a previous post you might want to add a fan controller as those fans will be mighty loud at full speed.

Those comp fittings are fine.

Sent you a link via TRUST re a sound vibration pad.
 
Last edited:
Thanks for the heads up, and the link. I've got loads of cable ties, so I'll get a fan controller
(probably Scythe), and some tube cutters.
 
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