Custom loop water cooling

[Kalmado]

Yesterday I had some issues with Far Cry 3 Blood Dragon crashing and a bsod. When I ran HwMonitor my gpus were around 94c. After shutting down the game and creating a custom fan profile in Afterburner I noticed my cpu was at around 55c at idle (and this is after I turned off my OC!). This is my second H60 as the first one did a similar thing. I'll more than likely RMA.

While the placement of my desk and the case may be part of the issue, this got me thinking about doing a custom loop. I've looked on pcpartpicker and googled how to do it and it seems very intricate. I was wondering if any BG'ers have done it and could share the process and how they went about things. Also, how to get the best price/deals on parts as it seems very expensive to do!

[Judah R]

Hi, I wouldn't mind helping. I built my first watercooled pc back in January, I started gathering parts as far back in Oct 14, I also spent a long time studying how to build a custom loop.

First thing is.... the temps on your current PC with 94c on GPUs and high idle temps on the cpu with a H60 seem VERY high... like.. something is wrong high.... I had a h80 once it worked really well for a cheap little cooler, and 94c on a gpu must mean you have your card JAMMED up in a case with little air flow.... sooo I would be interested in seeing what your current PC looks like.....

#1 As for watercooling I can take you thru it the same way I learn... mostly watching some people on Youtube, which I will post, and also certain watercooling forums....

#2 you said " I've looked on pcpartpicker and googled how to do it and it seems very intricate" ..... yes.. it can seem very complicated at first with such a variety of parts... but the basics are simple for a loop..... Reservoir > Pump > Block > Radiator = "loop" :D Order doesn't matter except you do wanna have reservoir directly feeding the pump, since the pumps will damage if they are run dry....

#3 you said " Also, how to get the best price/deals on parts as it seems very expensive to do! " ..... expensive... YES.... you can easily spend over $1000 with a simple loop without adding any real benefit to your pc's performance other then quieter operation....and best deals / prices? there are 4 or 5 decent company you can order parts from... and sometimes they run 5-10% promo deals.... I did order once direct from EKWB one time and got a cheaper price with 2 day shipping from Slovenia then I could get from a US company... lol

ok.... hmm.. where to start.... I have 2 people I like on youtube...

Linus : https://www.youtube.com/user/LinusTechTips

I learned how to built a pc years ago watch is videos... and he has some very good "how-to" watercooling videos..... but....JayzTwoCents is my go to guy...

JayzTwoCents : https://www.youtube.com/user/Jayztwocents

Jay has some of the best basic watercooling guide videos i've seen : I recommend

$800 loop video


$200 loop video


my current setup.... mine is a bit ridiculous but I enjoy tweaking it more then playing game on it..



I would recommend watching these 2 videos first, and I can begin answering your questions

[Kalmado]

Wow I appreciate the reply! Regarding my current temps...my cpu temps I've already addressed. My gpu temps, well, it's said that's par for the course for R9 290x's even on aftermarket coolers? I have an Asus 290x OC and a "regular" Asus 290x. I was considering looking into Gelid Icy Vision coolers to get more life out of my gpus. However, I do have them both on Amazon at the moment due to the absurd price they're going for (at least on Amazon and I'm not holding my breath). For my cpu, I'm leaning towards going back to an air cooler like a 212 plus for the time being.

What I'm thinking, and maybe I'm reaching, but I'm considering doing a brand new Skylake build or at least an I7 build. Then I'll start purchasing custom parts. I'm always budget oriented and I want to make sure I get the most bang for my buck while maintaining quality.

[Kalmado]

So I've watched the videos and did more googling and I just don't think I can justify the cost of doing a custom loop. I got to thinking, and maybe I'm reaching here, but is my Corsair 300R a big cause for the gpus getting super hot? Also, are my fans maybe just not good enoug (Corsair AF120)?

[Arkanna]

Custom loop watercooling is also a much larger pain in the ass than closed-loop. Between cleaning it and getting it refilled without any air in the loop, it was just more than I wanted to deal with on a regular basis. (For what it's worth)

[Kalmado]

Custom loop watercooling is also a much larger pain in the ass than closed-loop. Between cleaning it and getting it refilled without any air in the loop, it was just more than I wanted to deal with on a regular basis. (For what it's worth)

That was another reason I'm not interested in moving forward with such a build. There are aio gpu kits, but from what I was reading they do nothing for vram which would be a problem for my 290xs. I'm really thinking the Gelid Icy Visions are probably the best option for my build besides starting fresh and going with a single card solution or something like the 295x2.

edit: And now I take back looking at a 295x2. The below video shows crossfire 290s performing the same if not better on multiple games. I think I'll look into the Gelid's, a new case, and case fans!