Help with watercooling setup

Right so basically this is my shopping list for the loop for just the gtx 480 SLI

Watercool1.jpg


and some other bits that I found elsewhere,

XSPC Laing DDC-Pump 12V Ultra(18w) inc Acrylic Top
2 X EK-FC480 GTX
ThermoChill PA120.3 Radiator

Is that everything I will need?

someone said about putting an easy drain, what would I need for that?
 
ntemples1 said:
Right so basically this is my shopping list for the loop for just the gtx 480 SLI

Watercool1.jpg


and some other bits that I found elsewhere,

XSPC Laing DDC-Pump 12V Ultra(18w) inc Acrylic Top
2 X EK-FC480 GTX
ThermoChill PA120.3 Radiator

Is that everything I will need?

someone said about putting an easy drain, what would I need for that?
Click to expand...

you'll need some worm/jubilee clips, and what mobo are you using?

also iirc the only fans from Scythe which work well with rads are GT1850's, so you should probably change the fans to something else, seeing as you're ordering from elsewhere as well, some 1650rpm or 2200rpm Yate loons should work well.
 
HW91 said:
you'll need some worm/jubilee clips, and what mobo are you using?

also iirc the only fans from Scythe which work well with rads are GT1850's, so you should probably change the fans to something else, seeing as you're ordering from elsewhere as well, some 1650rpm or 2200rpm Yate loons should work well.
Click to expand...

thanks, I am using a EX38-UD5, do I have to Jubilee clip every joint?
 
ooo men i have i7 920 4.2 gtx 480 oc 800

thermochill pa120.4 with 4 enermax apolish at 1300 rpm

temps on gpu on full stress 53 and cpu 61

just take pa120.4 and it will be more than enough i dont know whats these fermis are made of they realy like water and stay very cool
 
Right I ordered my stuff last night:

2 x EK-FC480 GTX - Acetal
Thermochill PA120.3 360 Radiator with 15mm Fan Spacing
XSPC 1/2" ID - 3/4" OD (13-19mm) High Flex Tubing : Clear
XSPC Laing DDC 200ml Reservoir Pump Top : Plexi
XSPC Laing DDC-Pump 12V Ultra(18w)

8 x 1/4" Thread Compression Fitting for 1/2" ID - 3/4" OD Tubing : Black Nickel
2 x 1/4" Thread 90° Rotary Compression Fitting for 1/2" ID - 3/4" OD (13-19mm)
3 x Yate Loon 120 x 120 x 25mm Case Fan 1650 RPM :
4 x Nylon Hose Clamp for 3/4" (19mm) Outer Diameter Tubing
2 x Feser Aqua Cooling Fluid (bi-distilled) for Water Cooling Systems 1 Litre : Ultra Pure Water

Hope I've ordered correctly, I forgot however the SLI dedicated connector gonna order that today and some MX2 TIM.

How exciting!!!
 
Is that "ultra pure" water as it says on the tin, i.e. nothing but water? No anti-algae additive? Plus you seem to be missing the 3/8bsp to G1/4 adaptors for the thermochill rad.
 
Bubo said:
Is that "ultra pure" water as it says on the tin, i.e. nothing but water? No anti-algae additive? Plus you seem to be missing the 3/8bsp to G1/4 adaptors for the thermochill rad.
Click to expand...

Yeah I wasn't sure what coolant to get but can't I add something after colour ? Also the thermochill rad had an option when I bought it to come with 1/2" barb connectors so I selected that, is that right?

Please If I need something else let me know so I can order it, cheers.
 
ntemples1 said:
Yeah I wasn't sure what coolant to get but can't I add something after colour ? Also the thermochill rad had an option when I bought it to come with 1/2" barb connectors so I selected that, is that right?

Please If I need something else let me know so I can order it, cheers.
Click to expand...

1/2" barbs are fine then in that case, if you don't mind not having every fitting being compressions.

I wouldn't bother with any colour dye if I were you, then only thing to be sure of is if the coolant has a biocide in it to stop algae growth, as no matter how pure it says the water is you will always get some organic compounds in the loop somehow when you put it together. So check the spec and if it doesn't say it includes anti-algae properties then get some PT-Nuke or silver kill coils.

Too late now like, but you would have been fine with bog standard de-ionized water from Halfords, with the PT-Nuke.

edit: did some totting up, you seem have bought too many fittings for just a gpu only loop, by my calcs you only needed 4, plus the two barbs for the rad, and the sli connector. Still better to have too many than too few.
 
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Bubo said:
1/2" barbs are fine then in that case, if you don't mind not having every fitting being compressions.

I wouldn't bother with any colour dye if I were you, then only thing to be sure of is if the coolant has a biocide in it to stop algae growth, as no matter how pure it says the water is you will always get some organic compounds in the loop somehow when you put it together. So check the spec and if it doesn't say it includes anti-algae properties then get some PT-Nuke or silver kill coils.

Too late now like, but you would have been fine with bog standard de-ionized water from Halfords, with the PT-Nuke.

edit: did some totting up, you seem have bought too many fittings for just a gpu only loop, by my calcs you only needed 4, plus the two barbs for the rad, and the sli connector. Still better to have too many than too few.
Click to expand...


Thanks for the advice, greatly appreciated! Yes I though I may have to many I just wasn't sure how many angled ones I might need, also later I was going to put a T junction in with a drain coming off it, so i will probably use them up at some time.

I will order the PT nuke, and next time I'll get the water from halfords, i literally live about 5 mins walking distance from one.... bugger!!

When I build the loop shall i put it all together outside the case and then do a leak test?
 
Just remind me, is this your first go at any water cooling?

For me doing a leak test outside the case is fairly redundant, though I would have thought assembling your sli connector is going to be easier with the mobo out of the case so you've got more room to maneuver.

If you are new to water cooling then the main things you need to be aware of are making sure the pump never runs dry while you are filling, and also making sure you bleed all the air out of the system. If you need tips on this just say so.

edit: And if you are thinking of putting a T in for draining, do it now. Otherwise when you come to wanting to put one in, the first you're going to say to yourself is, "Now, how do I drain this in order to fit my drain?" Your tube layout largely dictates whether a drain is really necessary. If it is just as easier to slacken off a compression fitting over a bowl or sink then that is preferable tbh.
 
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Bubo said:
Just remind me, is this your first go at any water cooling?

For me doing a leak test outside the case is fairly redundant, though I would have thought assembling your sli connector is going to be easier with the mobo out of the case so you've got more room to maneuver.

If you are new to water cooling then the main things you need to be aware of are making sure the pump never runs dry while you are filling, and also making sure you bleed all the air out of the system. If you need tips on this just say so.

edit: And if you are thinking of putting a T in for draining, do it now. Otherwise when you come to wanting to put one in, the first you're going to say to yourself is, "Now, how do I drain this in order to fit my drain?" Your tube layout largely dictates whether a drain is really necessary. If it is just as easier to slacken off a compression fitting over a bowl or sink then that is preferable tbh.
Click to expand...

Yes this is my first go an WC, so i completely new to everything, I have largely taught myself and gathered advice from people on here and other forums, I am an experienced system builder though and used to building things from scratch.

I might just leave the drain for now i was looking to create a similar loop/draining point to this guy, obviously without the cpu block though...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JDvWq7Q70Dc

Yes any tips you have about filling and bleeding air would be very handy thanks!
 
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only thing you really need is a funnel and a reservoir,

funnel to fill it, reservoir to bleed the air out

and definitely put a T-line in for draining, I have the problem myself, now if I want to add a gfx card block it's going to be quite hard to do
 
HW91 said:
only thing you really need is a funnel and a reservoir,

funnel to fill it, reservoir to bleed the air out

and definitely put a T-line in for draining, I have the problem myself, now if I want to add a gfx card block it's going to be quite hard to do
Click to expand...

I thought this was a reservoir?

XSPC Laing DDC 200ml Reservoir Pump Top

or do i need a separate reservoir?

Yes I am going to put the T in i think whilst I do it
 
With the rad in the top of the case with barbs pointing downwards and at the rear of the case you will want to stand the case on its front while you fill and bleed. This is to allow the air in the rad a natural path to leave the rad, i.e. air will rise to the outlet and not get stuck in the rad. If the barbs are towards the front then lay it on its back. You could also lay the case on its side though the rad outlet then has to be the one nearest the open side of the case.

In order to do this however you need to be able to manipulate your pump so that you can fill it while the pump is correctly orientated, i.e. fill port uppermost at all times. To do this you may have choose a suitable place in the case to eventually put the pump such that you can lift it out slightly in order to manipulate it while filling. You may need to build in some slack in the tubes to make this easier.

With the restop sytle reservoir you have you will probably find the pump is so powerful it sucks in a large amount of air and recirculates it. To avoid this squeeze the tube somewhere to reduce the overall flowrate, or try and put something over the pump inlet whilst filling, a bent pci bracket has been used before.

I trust you know about the psu blip procedure when filling such the the pump never runs dry.
 
Bubo said:
With the rad in the top of the case with barbs pointing downwards and at the rear of the case you will want to stand the case on its front while you fill and bleed. This is to allow the air in the rad a natural path to leave the rad, i.e. air will rise to the outlet and not get stuck in the rad. If the barbs are towards the front then lay it on its back. You could also lay the case on its side though the rad outlet then has to be the one nearest the open side of the case.

In order to do this however you need to be able to manipulate your pump so that you can fill it while the pump is correctly orientated, i.e. fill port uppermost at all times. To do this you may have choose a suitable place in the case to eventually put the pump such that you can lift it out slightly in order to manipulate it while filling. You may need to build in some slack in the tubes to make this easier.

With the restop sytle reservoir you have you will probably find the pump is so powerful it sucks in a large amount of air and recirculates it. To avoid this squeeze the tube somewhere to reduce the overall flowrate, or try and put something over the pump inlet whilst filling, a bent pci bracket has been used before.

I trust you know about the psu blip procedure when filling such the the pump never runs dry.
Click to expand...

Thanks that is fantastic advice! I will make sure I build a slight slack in the pipes so i can keep the pup vertical whilst the case is on it's back.

with the psu blipping thing do you mean turning it on and off?
 
When you fill your loop do not attach the atx lead to the mobo, or power anything else up at all, only the pump via a molex. You use a paperclip or wire or something to bridge the green and any black wire on the main 24 pin cable from the power supply, this effective "arms" the psu. You then use the main switch on the back of the psu two blip power on and off. The blipping is necessary as when you put some water in the res and blip the power on, the water is immediately forced out of the pump and into the rest of the loop. If you don't turn the power off before all the water has left the res then you will be running the pump dry. This is a bad thing. So in order to stop this fill the res, blip on/off, fill a bit more and so on. Never let the res run dry. Eventually there will be enough water in the loop that you can leave it running to full bleed, with occasionaly topping up.
 
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