External Watercooling with small case?

[Dominic-Toretto]

Hey all,

I currently have a Thermaltake Core P5 TG edition watercooled build. Loop specs are as follows:

Hardware Labs Black Ice GTX 420mm
XSPC Photon 270 Pump Res
Heatkiller IV CPU Block
Heatkiller IV GPU Block

I really like the aesthetics of this case, but I have the following issues

1. I wish I could add more rad space
2. It is an absolute pain to work on, having to drain the entire loop every time if changing any parts etc

So I have been thinking about grabbing something like a MORA-3 external radiator, and mounting the pump/res to it outside of the case.

I was then thinking of downsizing my build to a small M-ATX, and just running the tubes in via quick-disconnects via a PCI pass through.

In my head this should give me a much easier time draining the loop and general maintenance, along with giving me more cooling capacity, while taking up less space

Are there any draw backs to this approach? Apart from the extra space for the external rad box?

Edit: Just also had a thought that I could put quick disconnects in to my existing loop, and have the Mora 3 just sat next to the Core P5 as well, I guess that is another option.

Thanks

 

[khemist]

I done the external thing using an XSPC 480mm rad on a stand i just stuck under my desk but drilled some holes for pass throughs in the back of the case and connected the qdc's between rad and the pass through exit as i didn't like the pressure there seemed to be with tubing hanging off them connected straight to the case.

I had the fans spinning almost at max speed and as it was under my desk i could hardly hear it and i had great temps, this was in a Caselabs BH7 case.

 

[Dominic-Toretto]

<snip>

I done the external thing using an XSPC 480mm rad on a stand i just stuck under my desk but drilled some holes for pass throughs in the back of the case and connected the qdc's between rad and the pass through exit as i didn't like the pressure there seemed to be with tubing hanging off them connected straight to the case.

I had the fans spinning almost at max speed and as it was under my desk i could hardly hear it and i had great temps, this was in a Caselabs BH7 case.

That looks really clean! Were there any cons to this setup apart from the pressure of tubing hang off when connected to the case?

 

[khemist]

There was no issue using pass throughs when i switched to straight compression fittings coming out the back, i dont think there was any real drawbacks for me and i loved not messing with fan speeds ever and having constantly good temps.



I had mine setup like this but i had an external fan controller setup using a small power brick but didnt really use it.




This was another not so elegant way i did it.

 

[Dominic-Toretto]

There was no issue using pass throughs when i switched to straight compression fittings coming out the back, i dont think there was any real drawbacks for me and i loved not messing with fan speeds ever and having constantly good temps.

<snip>

I had mine setup like this but i had an external fan controller setup using a small power brick but didnt really use it.

<snip>

This was another not so elegant way i did it.

Thanks, looks good! Question, is there any other way to feed power to fans outside at these distances?

 

[LuckyBenski]

Some others on this forum have done external rad setups in recent years - @pastymuncher and @String might have some insights worth sharing

I'm considering building a radiator box like a plinth to stand a cube case on. I just can't squeeze enough cooling inside the case. The mechanism of connecting the external tubing is my main challenge.

 

[Radox-0]

I have similarly gone external radiator route in main rig as it has no where near enough radiator capacity. Been running for 2 years perfectly fine. Can look pretty good and not even noticeable if you route things well IMO.



I went for a all in one solution with Aquacomputers Aquaworks which is a 720mm rad with built in fan's, Aquacomputer Aquero unit so interfaces with PC and pump. Pump is crap so have got a serial D5 pump (pair of d5 pumps in parralel next to it) In reality while it looks great and most people do not realise its hooked up to the PC, overly expensive and the Mo-Ra route you mentioned makes most sense.

I have powered the external stuff, initially using a molex power supply you can buy for cheap. More recently I just removed that and as the exit point for my tubes is right up against the wall's as is the pumps and stuff so from a normal positon, you cant see any tubing's power cables etc. just used some molex chains to the various bits. can easily hide both the tubing and power cables with the cable organiser stuff you can buy.

Only thing I usually monitor more closely is making sure there is enough flow which the pair of D5 pumps in serial offer, but that is in part thanks to my loop and restrictions in it.

 

[Dirk Diggler]

Have a look here, and feel free to ask if you want any info.

https://forums.overclockers.co.uk/threads/itx-custom-loop.18817860/

Oh, and @khemist might recognise the radiator.

 

[pastymuncher]

I have always had my radiators in a box sitting on a windowsill drawing air from outside through the rads. The reason for my crazy setup which contains over 10m of 12mm copper pipe, 10/16mm Mayhems tubing, 14mm hardline tubing is that my computer room is a pair of built in cupboards knocked into one (6x5 feet) and back when I had a Athlon 64 3700+ and a pair of 7800Gt's in sli it got rather hot in here. I decided to take extreme measures to get the heat out of the room. First off I decided to build a rad box for a pair of 360mm rads (budget Alphacool ones at the time) and that I wanted it mounted on the windowsill outside my room so that it could draw outside air through the rads when the window is open. This gives me ridiculous low water temps in the winter mostly around 9 degrees C but have been as low as 6 degrees C at times. No, I do not get any problems with condensation. You would think that I would but I don't. Magic!! To get the water to the rads I needed to drill a couple of holes through the wall from my pc room to the landing outside. This was originally two holes for the 15mm copper pipe I was using at the time but then I realised I needed another hole for the fan wires. Each copper pipe is 2m long and there are two of them, out and return. At the each end of the pipes were 15mm to G1/4" adaptors so that I could fix barbs originally then compression fittings. I have done away with these altogether with the 12mm copper pipe as 10/16mm soft tubing can be "persuaded" to slip over the ends of the pipe. From the pipe I have soft tubing to the reservior which is also external and soft tubing again from there to the pupme. From the pump there is 14mm hardline tubing which goes from components to component in the case and eventually gets to a bulkhead fitting on the exit of the case. From the outside of the case it's back to soft tubing to the copper return pipe. The radiators are connected to the copper pipe with soft tubing to make things easier for myself. It works very well for me and enables me to get temperatures much lower than I would normally get through watercooling. My GTX1070 which is not overclocked is constantly boosting to 2012mhz with no tweaking and if I can keep the temperature below 22 degrees C (mainly winter) it can hit 2025mhz.

 

[Bluntwrapped]

A under desk office pedestal cabinet with holes cut for rads and fan grills attached would be pretty awesome. Bit like a aquarium cabinet. Have all the WC gear neatly hidden away inside the cabinet with two EPDM hoses running out the back on bulkhead fittings then to quick disconnects hidden behind the motherboard tray.

Could use a glass door AV cabinet if you want to show off what’s inside or something plain and simple if going for the minimal look.

 

[Dirk Diggler]

@Bluntwrapped that's what I linked to in post #8 only the main radiator is in the garage.

 

[Bluntwrapped]

@Bluntwrapped that's what I linked to in post #8 only the main radiator is in the garage.

Nice one. I’d be tempted to try this too. Having another space to dump as much of the heat as possible would be great - especially this time of year!

Was thinking an office type cabinet with a glass door and a over the top hardline tubing setup could look really awesome. I’ll maybe need to give it a try when I have my own place and a bit more space.

 

[Dominic-Toretto]

Thanks for the input everyone, some really nice examples in here, and great looking setups! I am currently still thinking about this, and may well end up keeping my current case, but also have an external radiator.

 

[WJA96]

Its what the Zalman Reserator was made for. The pump, reservoir and radiator all live outside the case.

They should be cheap as chips on eBay by now.

 

[Dominic-Toretto]

So an update to this:

I have sold my Core P5, and am now looking to downsize to an MATX case with external watercooling as discussed in this thread.
Currently have my eye on a Corsair 280X Matx case, seems like a great balance of size, usability and aesthetics. Particularly a fan of the dual chamber PSU design.
https://www.modding.fr/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/Crystal-280X-127.jpg

Then looking at a PCI watercooling pass through bracket and koolance quick disconnects connected to the pci bracket. (Should make disconnecting, draining, and working on the pc way easier)

Then a heatkiller mora 3 420 pro, sat beneath the desk, not sure how I could mount a reservoir / pump to this
http://shop.watercool.de/WebRoot/Sa...D22/0A0C/05EA/29C5/MO-RA3_420_Edelstahl_3.jpg

** Do not hotlink images **


Not sure about fans at this point, still throwing ideas around at this point

Its what the Zalman Reserator was made for. The pump, reservoir and radiator all live outside the case.

They should be cheap as chips on eBay by now.

snip

Are these Reserators still competitive against modern radiators and pumps?

 

[LuckyBenski]

Are these Reserators still competitive against modern radiators and pumps?

I thought those were all aluminium though i could be wrong.

 

[WJA96]

I thought those were all aluminium though i could be wrong.

They are fully anodised but it is wise to run a corrosion inhibitor. I used VAG antifreeze.

 

[WJA96]

Are these Reserators still competitive against modern radiators and pumps?

Yes and no. They weren't suitable for high performance overclocked PCs when they were first launched, which is why there are two in my picture of a highly overclocked PC running Crossfire graphics cards. Any time you run fully passive you need massive radiators.

 

[Dominic-Toretto]

So in a dramatic twist of events, I ended up buying a Thermaltake level 20 XT!
I was looking at MATX boards etc, when I came across this case. It is huge! It can fit 3 x 420mm radiators, plus a 280mm with no thickness restrictions, looks great and fits my current hardware. It was hard to say no.
So I am now looking to aquire some hardware labs 420 radiators to fill this case out

 

[Space Monkey]

So in a dramatic twist of events, I ended up buying a Thermaltake level 20 XT!
I was looking at MATX boards etc, when I came across this case. It is huge! It can fit 3 x 420mm radiators, plus a 280mm with no thickness restrictions, looks great and fits my current hardware. It was hard to say no.
So I am now looking to aquire some hardware labs 420 radiators to fill this case out

I've got the same case, it's a definitely a beast, but a great case.

Only be aware that multiport rads have issues with this case, I bought 2 Black Ice SR2 Xtreme+ 480mm rads but can't use them unless I cut into the rad brackets in the roof