Cooling Loop question

[spudmatic]

im going to be building a new computer fuly watercooled. in this setup will be a 3.120 rad and a 2.120 rad. now please excuse me as i try to explain, without giving headaches and making people want to kill me, what im trying to do.

im trying to make 1 loop with 2 rads, 2 res, 2 pumps.
i see it as res into pump1 into 3.120. out 3.120 and Y split into 2 lines. one goes to cpu and one goes to chipset waterblock. those 2 lines join back up and go into res2. out res2 into pump2 to 2.120 rad, and out to Y to run parallel to cool a couple video cards then join back into 1 line back to res1.

ya ya ya. i know. why? dunno. i guess because i can and i got nothing else better to do with my time than make things more complicated than what they really should be.

and i guess im lookin to do something for really my first full build with all the sleeving and modding that can test me for what i can do. im pretty technical. work with low voltage electronics and im pretty saavy with tools.

i guess my question is: any forseeable problems with that kind of loop. pumps fighting each other? pressure issues?(altho until i actually put it together, i wont know if a watercooling loop is somewhat sealed and has pressure)

i know it will probably be pretty busy looking on the inside but... ill hide stuff.
oh.. and ya... im mounting everything inside. no rads outside case. like i said, its gonna be interesting.

any help, suggestions would be appreciated.
please dont flame me. nothing is set in stone until i poke a drill bit into the case.

thanks in advance.

[SugarJ]

I wouldn't do the y between the CPU and mobo blocks. Unless they have exactly the same restriction you'll end up with most of the flow going through one block or the other, and it will probably be the mobo block (they usually aren't super restrictive). Y's work with GPU blocks because they are usually identical blocks and the flow splits evenly.

[spudmatic]

awesome. input for the noob. thx

[KaptCrunch]

why 2x pump, rez's

other what case this all going in ?

yes the Y on cpu bad idea as SurgarJ stated


best run 2 loops but have 3.120 on gpu's

[spudmatic]

case is a cooler master cosmos pure. 2 pumps and 2 rez's and 2 rads. just to make sure that there is decent pressure all through the loop. sli and chipset and cpu with the possibility of hdd cooling. ive been told that i can be quite anal with my stuff so... guess i just dont necessarly want to have cool water run through a block, get warm and run warmer than the water that just came from the rad thru another block.
guess i want to try and split the loop so cooled water from the rad runs thru the water blocks and goes back to the rad without running thru another block.

[dustin1706]

Don't use any Y's. Either run 2 loops or just 1 continuous loop. Like sugar says, the issue with a Y is that if one branch is more restricted than the other the unrestricted loop will get way more flow. Also, if one gets partially blocked due to a kinked hose or build up of sludge, then it will not get flow. If you want to run a single loop and have cool water to GPUs and CPU, then run it ::RES-PUMPs-CPU-RAD-GPU-RAD::

If you want to run 2 pumps you will save your self some hassle and some space by using a dual pumptop. They make them for 350/355s or for 655s and you can get them for single or dual loops. Also, why 2 reservoirs...? The fewer fittings and restrictions you use the better. Oh, and HDD watercooling is pretty much completely useless, but if you want to go for it just for the extreme factor then I approve

I run 2 separate loops with 1000rpm (quiet) fans with a 3x120 for CPU and a 2x120 for GPU. The only reason I did this is so that I can really see how my OC's affect the temps. I was running 2x 5870s, but am now just running 1x 580.

Example of a dual pumptop: EK-D5 Dual TOP G1/4 - Black Acetal - Pumps Accessories - Pumps & Accessories

[spudmatic]

really. im only after 1 loop. for some reason, and i dont know why, 2 seperate loops doesnt interest me. am i going to have issues with 1 pump cooling pretty much everything? hence 2 pumps. 2 rez's just so there wont be an issue with running 1 pump dry. and as well cause i kinda want to keep some things visible, like the rez's, for added eyecandy while still trying to keep everything inside the case looking pretty. adding hdd coolers is something for the future. i sold my old comp to a buddy so really im playing on an old compaq laptop with a busted screen so... all just stuff i kinda want to find out before i put all this together.

hopefully a build log soon after christmas. just waiting on parts to slowly fill my dining room table.

again. thanks for the input and the help.

[dustin1706]

I'm not sure about the 350/355 pumps because I hated the noise they make and for my last 3 PCs have been using D5/655 pumps. I can tell you that 1 655 will be fine for your whole loop. Running 2 reservoirs will not help anything in any way. but again, if it's just for the extreme factor... Rock on

[takt]

I'd look into the Swiftech Apogee HD CPU block. It has 4 ports (1 in, 3 out) so you can split your cooling up the way you want. You'll have to investigate which size fittings and tubing you'll be able to fit in there, but it should work. It performs around the level of a XSPC Raystorm or slightly better than EK HF Supreme/Koolance 370. I bought one the other day but it hasn't arrived yet.

Here's a review on that block: Swiftech Apogee HD Review and Comparison to other Top Blocks