How is this going to work out?

NastyFighter

New member
Hi there! I've been thinking a long time about this and wanting to do it as a fun project too, watercooling my system. I like my system to be silent and having it run cool. Especially now, when Ive planned on having it running at night when Im sleeping. I want it to be folding at night and be almost dead silent. And I planned on OCing it.

Ive kinda picked my parts and was wondering if this was going to work out well. This will be my first watercooling rig so some advice might come in handy. Ive been looking at some cases (a lot actually) and I think Im going for a NZXT Switch 810 black. I think it gives me the most bang for the buck and it has what I want.

I planned on putting a 3*120 rad at the top and a 2*120 rad at the bottom. CPU and GPU waterblock and a D5 pump with an XSPC 5.25" dual bay res. I dont want to go push-pull since adding another 5 Noctua fans since thats just too expencive.

This is my shopping list so far:

XSPC RayStorm CPU Water Block
XSPC Razor GTX680 Water Block
Alphacool D5 No Top pump
XSPC D5 Dual Bay Reservoir/Pump Combo Black
Alphacool NexXxoS UT60 Full Copper (2*120 and 3*120)
5 Noctua NF F12
10 Bitspower comp. fittings 1/2ID 3/4OD (Might change some out for angled ones)
2 meters Blue tube
3 liters EK-Ekoolant UV BLUE premix
I need some molex to fan connectors too.

Did I miss anything?

I'm leaving 1 HDD case in the NZXT because I have an SSD and HDD and I dont want to stick the SSD with velcro on the back and use the HDD in the hot swap.

This is how I thought would be the best way to fit the parts and have the water go:

picture.php


The airflow is going from bottom to top. Now the cool thing about the Rads and the GPU block is that they can have barbs on the side as well. So you can route the tubes a bit better. I need your thoughts about the layout. I dont want tubes all over the place but it is very hard to have that because the input and output of the rads is on the same side. I know TLL told in the NZXT Switch Case review about 1 rad in the top being enough for CPU and GPU but I might want to upgrade later on to a second GPU and for looks the extra rad is great too. (lol) And want it to be futureproof.

Also Idd like to know how long the parts will hold over the years. Of course you need some new tubes now and then as they stiffen up and drain and clean the loop once a year. Also the blocks wont be compatible with newer hardware. But how long do the pump, res, and rads hold? Because this is going to be expencive and I dont want to keep buying rads and stuff. Pump might die though but thats a moving part so thats to be expected. So I kind of want some parts to be a 1 time buy.

I want this really to be a great looking and performing system. I think this is about it for now, please comment, tell me what you think. The more thoughts the better and tips are more than welcome!
 
Would be nice to have the 360 rads i/o at the other side. It will be tight but you can tube it up to the res outside the case then install it. Then tube the rest of the loop.

Massivly overkill on the rads for cpu and gpu. my pc is hotter than urs and I only have the 1 360 rad.

Is that the D5 kit yer?

Also it is best to have the flow go up though the blocks as it makes it bleed its self.
 
Problem is that theres a plate in te top 5.25 bay thats sitting in the way. So you cant fit barbs there really. So that doesnt really work :S Although after some thinking, using straight angled barbs and then tubing it up before fitting it might work.

Yea it might be a bit of an overkill on the rads. Was expecting that though haha! But thats why i asked. To be sure I dont order too much. So you think I should ditch the 240 and go from GPU to res? Will the single rad at the top hold a second 680?

And yes its the D5 pump/res combination.
 
If you can afford it then stick with it but for 680 and ivy a 360 is fine. With the extra 240 you will be able to get the fans down even lower.

My pc has GT1850s @700RPM and its fine.

Have a look at 7/16 tube.. 1/2 is fat and ugly. Use clear primochill if you are using dye.

Mayhem dye instead of that EK stuff. (local business ftw :))
 
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Yea I wanted to use 7/16" ID tube but I couldnt find any. After looking a bit better I can get some. This site I'm ordering from hasnt sorted their tubes very well... So I'll then be using 1/2" barbed fittings.

As far as coolant goes, I think I'll go with clear Primochill and some blue tubes. Dont need to dye the coolant and I dont want to stain my tubes or other parts. Is there a big difference in the Non-Conductive and the Performance coolant from Primochill? Other than the one being more noob friendly.

And I think I'll go with only the top rad for the moment. Youve convinced me haha, From the money saved Ill get some nice Bitspower Fittings. Which arent that expencive either.

Its best to order the rad, fans, pump, res and blocks first to put them into the case. Then figure out what fittings to get and then order the rest of the hardware, right?
 
Barbs aren't that expensive anyways. What you may wanna do is grab some rotary angled fitting because this makes the tubing process much easier and the end result will look much cleaner. Other than that looks nice :-)
 
Don't use primochill tubing it's a disgrace LOL

Well, it might survive just dye or x1, but it is not compatible with mayhems pastel, for example.

Also, non-conductive = fairy tale. Real non-conductive will set you back a LOT and has lots of challenges with regards to pressure etc. The coolant will be non-conductive when it leaves the bottle, but run it through your loop and it will become conductive.

edit: oh, i see you mean blue tubing and primochill coolant. Well.. imo clear tubing looks better 90% of the time with a coloured or even clear coolant. Having coloured coolant is also great for a beginner if you have a tiny leak (easy to spot on tissue).
 
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Yea I thought so already about the conductiveness of coolant but you never know for sure.

This is my new list so far. I didnt like the look of the XSPC CPU block. So I changed the CPU and GPU block to EK blocks with clear tops. Then Im going to dye the coolant blue and use clear Tygon tubing. Most people seem to recommend Tygon tubing on the internet.

Ive ordered the case already and Im soon going to order the rest. I will order fittings/barbs later on after Ive figured out how to route the tubes.

Edit: Parts have been ordered. Cant wait! :D
 
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Don't use primochill tubing it's a disgrace LOL

Well, it might survive just dye or x1, but it is not compatible with mayhems pastel, for example.

Also, non-conductive = fairy tale. Real non-conductive will set you back a LOT and has lots of challenges with regards to pressure etc. The coolant will be non-conductive when it leaves the bottle, but run it through your loop and it will become conductive.

edit: oh, i see you mean blue tubing and primochill coolant. Well.. imo clear tubing looks better 90% of the time with a coloured or even clear coolant. Having coloured coolant is also great for a beginner if you have a tiny leak (easy to spot on tissue).

This.
Primochill is crap right now,plastizer leech being the main problem.
Go for a coloured or clear tube and DI water,coolants are a waste of money.
 
This.
Primochill is crap right now,plastizer leech being the main problem.
Go for a coloured or clear tube and DI water,coolants are a waste of money.

But with DI water you need additives right? What would be a good additive and what should I look for? And Ive gone with some other tubing than Primo, Tygon to be precise.
 
Rust only affects ferrous metals.

You only need an anticorrosive for mixed metal loops,specifically Alu and Cu,in those cases i would recommend a Glycol based coolant rather than an additive.
Nickle and Copper is fine to mix

Dye and Cu based Biocide cannot be mixed,otherwise you get this...

dscf8770s.jpg
 
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:/ thats not really pleasant. They react together, so basically Ive bought coolant and dye for nothing :P

Anyhow do I actually need to flush the system for the first time? To get rid of any gunk from the manufacturing?
 
:/ thats not really pleasant. They react together, so basically Ive bought coolant and dye for nothing :P

Anyhow do I actually need to flush the system for the first time? To get rid of any gunk from the manufacturing?


Only the rads really need a flush,you can do this by running one of the outlets under a hot tap,half filling then shaking,drain it then rinse and repeat.
If you tip the water out on to a paper towel,you can see all the crap...

Use the hottest water you can stand and remember that the rad will be as hot as the water when you have filled it.

Flush finally with DI or Distilled.
 
Ok thanks! I can only get distilled water at the local supermarket. Should be good enough. I dont have any questions left right now, so thank you for the help :D
 
If you put the cpu block then a rad then down to the GPU I will point and laugh at you.....

Ive made far too many videos saying.....


MAKE IT TIDY LOOP ORDER MAKES NO DIFFERENCE OTHER THAN PUMP THEN RES
 
Lol no! I wont haha! I know other than res -> pump the order does not matter. Andrew pointed out that it was better to use some 90's and put turn the rad around so the barbs are above the 5.25" bays. I just did this initially because I've seen your review about the case and it might not fit. But with 25mm clearance it should just fit.

Havnt ordered any barbs yet so can figure out what I need and what looks best and then purchase them.
 
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