Please help a watercooling noob.

Goose · 8 Jan 2019 at 15:34

I'd always dismissed watercooling due to cost but after buy a Lian Li PC-011 case and struggling to find a decent air cooler that fits i'm now seriously considering building a custom loop (just CPU for now).

The first thing to mention is that pump noise a chief concern of mine as my PC sits only 2-3 feet away. I've bought and returned 4 AIO's over the years due the noise of the pumps so i'm hoping a custom loop pump will be quieter.

The other thing is i'm looking to make this as cost effective as possible without cheaping out on crappy parts.

After doing some reading on these forums i've settled on the following components (i am of course open the suggestions).

XPX CPU waterblock - £50
NexXxoS ST30 full copper 360mm radiator - £70
EISBECHER D5 250MM ACETAL RESERVOIR INCL. 1X ALPHACOOL EISPUMPE VPP755 - £110
Mayhems soft tubing - £2.50
Mayhems X1 CLEAR PREMIXED WATERCOOLING FLUID 1L - £7

Besides advice on the above parts i'd really like help in choosing the correct fittings as i dont really know where to start or what i'll actually need. I've seen a lot of people mention Barrow Fittings as a good cost vs quality option.

Are there any other things i'll need (drain ports, gaskets, mounting brackets etc etc)?

Any help would be most appreciated.

LuckyBenski · 8 Jan 2019 at 18:04

I have more or less those components in a CPU+GPU loop with an added 120mm ST30. Eisbecher D5/VPP755, 360mm ST45, XPX block. The pump is silent or near enough on its lower/medium settings. It's plenty powerful at those settings and I'm obsessed with silence so I'm happy.

I assume that if pump noise is bothering you, you're into seriously quiet builds. Fans are a major factor - I have full power Corsair SP120s which are too noisy for me over ~800rpm. So i run them at 5V and with PWM control from 30-70% or so. My advice there is to buy better and slower fans than mine!

I believe my pump bracket came with the pump, it's mounted on the 360mm directly. Definitely get a drain valve - mine is mounted to the rear of the pump top, so reasonably hidden but always available. Also get a dinner and a filling bottle, and sketch your loop in order to plan filling and draining. You'll thank yourself later!

Regarding fittings, brands vary a little in size. It's more relevant to hard-line but it's still worth searching online to see if someone has tried your fitting/tubing combo. Barrow seem popular though.

TangoEchoAlpha · 8 Jan 2019 at 18:11

@Goose - I have the same case and am in the process of working out what I want to do with my PC in terms of watercooling. One thing to keep in mind is that the PC-O11D has a maximum radiator width restriction of 50mm, including fans, if you are going to position the radiator at the side/front. Only an issue if you intend to fit your radiator in that position and then add extra radiators later....

Goose · 8 Jan 2019 at 18:27

LuckyBenski said:
I have more or less those components in a CPU+GPU loop with an added 120mm ST30. Eisbecher D5/VPP755, 360mm ST45, XPX block. The pump is silent or near enough on its lower/medium settings. It's plenty powerful at those settings and I'm obsessed with silence so I'm happy.

I assume that if pump noise is bothering you, you're into seriously quiet builds. Fans are a major factor - I have full power Corsair SP120s which are too noisy for me over ~800rpm. So i run them at 5V and with PWM control from 30-70% or so. My advice there is to buy better and slower fans than mine!

I believe my pump bracket came with the pump, it's mounted on the 360mm directly. Definitely get a drain valve - mine is mounted to the rear of the pump top, so reasonably hidden but always available. Also get a dinner and a filling bottle, and sketch your loop in order to plan filling and draining. You'll thank yourself later!

Regarding fittings, brands vary a little in size. It's more relevant to hard-line but it's still worth searching online to see if someone has tried your fitting/tubing combo. Barrow seem popular though.

I'll admit to being a bit mental when it comes to noise. However, it's only noise when idle that it really bothers me, i dont mind some noise when gaming or whatever. I currently have three Corsair ML120's as case fans that I would re-purpose as radiator fans whould i go for watercooling.

TangoEchoAlpha said:
@Goose - I have the same case and am in the process of working out what I want to do with my PC in terms of watercooling. One thing to keep in mind is that the PC-O11D has a maximum radiator width restriction of 50mm, including fans, if you are going to position the radiator at the side/front. Only an issue if you intend to fit your radiator in that position and then add extra radiators later....

Thanks for that. In my head i was envisaging the radiator in the top of the case and then if i add another radiator for the GPU that would go on the bottom. The pump/res would be mounted all the way towards the front of the case (assuming thats even possible).

ElBurge · 8 Jan 2019 at 23:04

After you add on the price of fittings and decent fans, it might be worth just picking up one of the complete EK kits. The pump inst audible at all at 50%. I ran a loop for 2 years before adding on a drain valve ...you can get by with a giant syringe to drain res etc but it is a faff. Life become much easier when i added a tap!

Goose · 21 Jan 2019 at 17:04

I've sort of decided that i'm going to go with Barrow fittings and was wondering if someone could help me make sure i buy the right things?

What i've got in my basket is "BARROW Fitting use for Inside Diameter 10mm + Outside Diameter 16mm Soft Pipes 3/8''ID + 5/8"OD Soft Tube G1/4'' Hose Fittings" which i would be using with "Mayhems ULTRA CLEAR WATERCOOLING TUBING (3/8 - 5/8) 16/10MM".

Will those fittings and tubing definitely be compatible with each other?

Also, would someone mind speccing me the parts for a drain port as i'm not 100% sure what i need.

Thanks

TangoEchoAlpha · 21 Jan 2019 at 18:37

Goose said:
Also, would someone mind speccing me the parts for a drain port as i'm not 100% sure what i need.

Thanks

Have a watch of this J2C video where he shows how he does it

(skip to about 3 minutes)

and also

Goose · 21 Jan 2019 at 19:56

@TangoEchoAlpha - Thanks mate.

I've just noticed that XSPC fittings aren't that much more than Barrow fittings bought from the auction place so i might just go with them.

TangoEchoAlpha · 21 Jan 2019 at 20:03

@Goose - before you buy a XSPC ball valve, do a search on here. Some people saying they aren't up to much. I'm going to get one of these two:

My basket at Overclockers UK:

1 x Bitspower Carbon Black Mini Valve With Black Handle= £33.95
1 x EK Water Blocks EK-AF Ball Valve (10mm) G14 - Black= £14.99

Total: £48.94 (includes shipping: £0.00)

Just not sure that the BitsPower one is worth double the price though. BitsPower do a matt black version, cheaper than the one in my cart above, but OCUK are out of stock at the moment:

https://www.overclockers.co.uk/bits...-valve-with-inner-g14-extender-wc-637-bp.html

Griff7520 · 21 Jan 2019 at 22:24

I have the xspc one and its been great, no problems at all

TangoEchoAlpha · 22 Jan 2019 at 00:08

Griff7520 said:
I have the xspc one and its been great, no problems at all

I was looking to buy one, just a couple of threads on here about individual ones being poor finish.

Griff7520 · 22 Jan 2019 at 01:17

I was not aware of that...I liked the price!....but its been ok anyway so maybe there were a few dodgey ones about

Goose · 22 Jan 2019 at 09:58

In the end i ordered a multipack of Barrow fittings from a certain Chinese place, 8 fittings for £20 as i had a small first purchase discount. They'll probably take a month to arrive but i'm not in any great rush.

I also ordered a Barrow valve for £13 on ebay.

I now need to decide on a pump/res combo, 360mm rad and CPU block. Any suggestions?

TangoEchoAlpha · 22 Jan 2019 at 10:21

@Goose - what's the budget mate?

Goose · 22 Jan 2019 at 10:33

@TangoEchoAlpha

I'd like to keep as close to £250 as possible for pump/res, rad, block.

MikeTimbers · 22 Jan 2019 at 11:12

I won't buy XSPC fittings again. Very disappointed by the quality. The Barrow ones I've had have been excellent. I've also had some direct from China and though they were OK and haven't leaked so far, I suspect the quality and am nervous that the metals use will not last. I will of course find out sooner or later.

Goose · 22 Jan 2019 at 11:49

I'm pretty sure Barrow fittings all come out of the same factory regardless of who you buy them from. They seem to be regarded highly on the overclock.net forums and apparently they're essentially Bitspower without the bling.

Goose · 22 Jan 2019 at 12:29

To keep things simple i think i'm just go with an EK Pump/Res combo. I'd rather get an XSPC Photon res but they dont do one with a D5 PWM pump.

LuckyBenski · 22 Jan 2019 at 12:40

Goose said:
To keep things simple i think i'm just go with an EK Pump/Res combo. I'd rather get an XSPC Photon res but they dont do one with a D5 PWM pump.

If you're really keen on it you could buy a separate D5, though it may cost a little more.

Goose · 22 Jan 2019 at 12:58

LuckyBenski said:
If you're really keen on it you could buy a separate D5, though it may cost a little more.

If i buy it separately do i not then need to buy a pump top etc. adding to the cost?