# Installing a reasonably priced water cooling system



## Mulderator (Feb 20, 1999)

Okay, my dillemma was that after building a new system with a P-4 Dual Core Processor, it was impossible to keep the thing cool on full load--it would go up to the 60s and throttle back, so I decided to install a water cooling system. Now, it never goes above 50 or 51 and is always about 6 degrees C higher than the Mobo temperature, which is highly dependent on the ambient temperature and the fan speed. The nice thing is that I have the two 120 mm fans throttled back and no CPU fan of course so it is noticeably quiter at the same time as being cooler. I had to have those fans cranked high to air cool it.

The first pic is the way Swift Tech recommended installing the H20-120. It required you purchase an optional kit for $25 or you had to install the radiator inside the case, which is not optimal for obvious reasons (there is more heat inside the case). I also did not like the tubes sticking out, so I decided to drill holes in the back of my case, install rubber grummets and connect the radiator directly to the back of the unit. I have posted pics of the finished product. The last one is another add-on--wheels to make it easier to pull the thing around because it gets heavier with a water cooling system.


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## Mulderator (Feb 20, 1999)

These are the wheels I installed (kit bought at NewEgg). BTW--I picked up the Swiftech system for $109 on sale and after $20 Swiftech Rebate. The day after I bought it, it went back up to $159 or so at Xoxide--its $189 at NewEgg. Glad I bought it when I did!


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## Mulderator (Feb 20, 1999)

Below are pics of what it looks like with the side panel on and from the rear. Needless to say I am VERY SATISFIED with this project. It was a bit more complicated because of the modifications made and its would be daunting for a beginner who never built a system before, but two months ago I had never built a system either. Kudos to Ciberblade and to Gotrootdude who convinced me to built the system myself (the computer, not the water cooling--once I built the system, I got really confident because I would have never attemped a water cooling system if I had purchased a computer.


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## Mulderator (Feb 20, 1999)

Oh--the basic kit come with everything you need to cool the CPU. I purchased the GPU cooler as well for an extra $34 (last year's model on sale)--normally $55. You can see it in Post No. 2--its attached right below the video card--it does eliminate one of my PCI slots unfortunately, but there is no way around it. That GPU got really hot though--into the 70s and 80s and now it never gets more than 5 or 6 degrees above the CPU into the mid to high 50s. You can also purchase a chipset cooler--you just run the tubing from cooler to cooler--one tube in and one tube out. I have mine coming from the pump into the radiator then to the CPU, then to the GPU, then into the reservoir. I chose not to install the chipset cooler as that's not as important as CPU and GPU.

I would HIGHLY RECOMMEND this system to anyone who is thinking of entry level water cooling. There is very little maintenance once installed--just check the water level once every six months--you can do that by sliding the reservoir out of the 5 and 1/4 inch bay its installed in. Interstingly, you can still use that bay for fan controllers or anything that doesn't go deep into the bay obviously.

You can find the system here:

http://www.swiftnets.com/

Just click on Liquid Cooling Products, then the H20-120 system.

Here is a review of the system:

http://www.cluboc.net/reviews/super_cooling/swiftech/H20-120_rev3a/page6.htm



> Although the oversized 120mm radiator and fan can give many people a bit of trouble during installation, it really is the best choice for optimum cooling. Especially if your like me and want to cool more components than just your CPU. Installation wise, Swiftech's water cooling kits take time and patience, but it's just like anything else, you take your time and do it right the first time and the end results will be something you can be very proud of. As far as innovation, Swiftech is at the cutting edge with their new reservoir and pump built into a single drive bay. With the pump right next to the reservoir, priming the system was incredibly easy. When it comes to quality, Swiftech stands out from all the rest. The people over at Swiftech are very proud of their products and their quality control is second to none. Never have I received a defective product from them, not even a scratch. Their record alone is reason enough to purchase their products. Now for the price... This entire kit, not including the GPU water block that I added in, retails for about $224.50. Not a bad price considering the kit comes with everything you could possibly need and is one of the best water cooling kits on the market today. Club Overclocker Recomended!


All the reviews on it I saw were very good to excellent in this price range. You can go to the $400 to $500 range for systems that are into extreme overclocking and performance systems. But its hard to beat this at this price.


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## gotrootdude (Feb 19, 2003)

Looks very nicely done.. I found a review for that kit at Viper's Lair, they quoted the Intel stock heatsink at 62dBA! Wow.. I couldn't stand to be in the same room with that kinda noise..

The loudest part of your system should be the 24dBA pump since you have your fans scaled down with some kinda controller or voltage mod.

This is also the first time I've seen thumb screws holding the hard drives.. I didn't know they would fit. Is that a twist tie holding the cables over the memory?

To anyone interested, the best price I could find on this system was $155 here: http://www.crazypc.com/Merchant2/merchant.mv?Screen=PROD&Product_Code=9376K

Wonder if I can mod one of these things into a shuttle case.  About how much weight did it add?


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## Squashman (Apr 4, 2003)

so does this cut down on the noise level.


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## accat13 (Jun 8, 2005)

I'm a noob when it comes to liquid cooling I'm assuming that the object just above and aft of the tank is the pump(in the 5th pic)..Is it possible to adjust the length of the lines and put the tank in the bottom of the case.My only concern about liquid cooling is a leak or sweat and the damage that could occur.Its always seemed to me a better idea to put the tank at the bottom of the case,so if it has a minor leak it won't drip on other components.Like I said I know very little about this just curious if the system can be adjusted for location.My wife is always complaining about fan noise (whats wrong with a 54db delta fan screaming lol),seriously though I do keep the fan turned down unless the cpu is under heavy load to prevent throttling.


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## gotrootdude (Feb 19, 2003)

Actually, what you're assuming is the "tank", is the radiator.. The tank is in his top drive bay.. It's pretty thick plastic, so I don't think there's a chance it'll ever leak, course if it did, it would run over the tops of his drives instead of down his motherboard.. You definately want the "tank" higher than the cpu, you want gravity to assure that there's always liquid in the waterblock on the cpu. You could mount the pump on the outside of the case, as long as it's kept higher than the block.
 As far as noise, he dropped to 24dBA from 62dBA, could be even lower depending on how well his case isolates the noise from the pump..


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## accat13 (Jun 8, 2005)

Thank you for the response gotrootdude

Actually descriptions are never clear I meant was the area circled in pink part of the pump.I'll assume yes


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## Mulderator (Feb 20, 1999)

accat13 said:


> I'm a noob when it comes to liquid cooling I'm assuming that the object just above and aft of the tank is the pump(in the 5th pic)..Is it possible to adjust the length of the lines and put the tank in the bottom of the case.My only concern about liquid cooling is a leak or sweat and the damage that could occur.Its always seemed to me a better idea to put the tank at the bottom of the case,so if it has a minor leak it won't drip on other components.Like I said I know very little about this just curious if the system can be adjusted for location.My wife is always complaining about fan noise (whats wrong with a 54db delta fan screaming lol),seriously though I do keep the fan turned down unless the cpu is under heavy load to prevent throttling.


That is the pump to the right of the reservoir in the 5th pic (counting the illustration by Swiftech). It is really a neat innovation--they designed a very small pump that is still really powerful.

You run the pump for three hours (I ran it overnight) before you put any components in--by that time you know there is no leaks. Its not like plumbing in the a house--the only place you could have a leak is a the connections (which are clamped very tightly) or at the top of the reservoir,which is sealed with an O-ring. But that's the reason I have it on top--if that O-ring went bad for some reason, since that's the highest level, you woudln't bet anything but splash coming out of there. If you were concerned, you could put the reservoir and pump at the bottom of the case, but that would probably not be the best place because then all the water would run out if there was a leak. But honestly the chances of this linking are extremely remote (knock on wood!  ). In my review of watercooled systems, that's not a problem anyone has reported in any system.

The big advantage a Gotrude said is the decrease in noise. I actually cannot hear the pump over the two 120 mm fans which are running at about 2000 rpms (really slow). This machine is whisper quiet now and much cooler. I could quiet it even more if I wanted--my mobo has a setting for "silent" which would crank them down to like 1300 or something like that, but the "optimal" setting is pleny quiet enough for me. At quiet, you barely know there is a computer running.


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## Mulderator (Feb 20, 1999)

accat13 said:


> Thank you for the response gotrootdude
> 
> Actually descriptions are never clear I meant was the area circled in pink part of the pump.I'll assume yes


No--that's alternate connections for USB and firewire and sound. I circled the pump in the picture below--you can't see it--its the size of a pack of cigarettes.


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## Mulderator (Feb 20, 1999)

Here is what the pump and reservoir look like--the first pic is upside down and the second is as it would be installed in the 5 and 1/4 bay--the circle on the bottom right is where you fill the reservoir--that is sealed with a rubber O-ring, although it is plastic and screws in so even is the O-ring weren't there it is unlikely any fluid would leak out of there. This is from the review I linked to above from Overclocker's Club.


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## Mulderator (Feb 20, 1999)

gotrootdude said:


> About how much weight did it add?


The heaviest part is the almost a litre of water it uses. The coolers are pretty heavy, but no heavier than a heat sink for sure or even lighter so that cancels out. The plastic tubing and radiator are pretty light. I would guess it added maybe 3 to 5 pounds.


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## Mulderator (Feb 20, 1999)

gotrootdude said:


> Looks very nicely done.. I found a review for that kit at Viper's Lair, they quoted the Intel stock heatsink at 62dBA! Wow.. I couldn't stand to be in the same room with that kinda noise..


I changed that out immediately for an XP-120, but it didn't do much better than the stock heat sink, although quieter because I used a 120 mm fan. But I had to crank it to maximum to get results better than the stock. It was fine at idle--45 to 50, but when you put the system on load it just couldn't handle the heat--those dual core are like ovens when you get them cranking. The amazing thing is this only varies about 6 degrees on full load and is anywhere from 10 to 13 degrees cooler at full load (and I don't know how much hotter it would have got with the heat sink because it throttles itself back when it gets close to the max rating). But as I said, with the heat sink you had to keep the fans running like airplane propellers to keep the thing cool.

Air cooling really isn't effective enough with the high end processors. You can keep the temps within range, but you really need great case ventilation and fans that are pushing a lot of air, and that translates to noise.

I couldn't find a bad review on this system. All anyone said was that if you really wanted maximum cooling, you had to go to a higher end system, but who the hell wants to spend $400 or $500 bucks!


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## Guyzer (Jul 3, 2004)

Why didn't you just go to SallyAnn and scarf up a used one of these for 10 or 20 clams. Besides keeping it cool you would cut down on the noise without risking a water leak.


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## hotskates (Jan 11, 2002)

Mulder said:


> Kudos to Ciberblade and to Gotrootdude who convinced me to built the system myself (the computer, not the water cooling--once I built the system, I got really confident because I would have never attemped a water cooling system if I had purchased a computer.


Mulder, did you put those wheels on your computer? I've never seen that before. Great idea! Now, where can I get some


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## Mulderator (Feb 20, 1999)

hotskates said:


> Mulder, did you put those wheels on your computer? I've never seen that before. Great idea! Now, where can I get some


Yes, I put the wheels on. This is what I ordered:

http://www.newegg.com/product/product.asp?item=N82E16841101030

But you have to be handy with a drill. If you need help installing them hotty, we can work something out! 

You could probably also just get some wheel at Home Depot or any hardware store cheaper, but those wheels were silver and matched my case perfectly. And $19 wasn't going to kill me!


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## accat13 (Jun 8, 2005)

Thanks Mulder for clearing that up,the extra pics help out looks like alot of fun.Might be something I will look at very soon xmas is coming.


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## Mulderator (Feb 20, 1999)

Wimpy369 said:


> Why didn't you just go to SallyAnn and scarf up a used one of these for 10 or 20 clams. Besides keeping it cool you would cut down on the noise without risking a water leak.


I know you're joking but that's not far behind. Some of these people with high end computers are running dual video cards and over-clocking the crap out of the processors--optimally you'd have a cooler of water than was kept very cold (i.e., big enough and powerful enough to cool the water down 10 or 15 degrees until it gets circulated back into the system).

This guy came up with idea of using a fish tank! 

http://www.overclockers.com/tips948/


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## Mulderator (Feb 20, 1999)

How long will it be before the fish tank's on the inside of the computer so you can watch fish swim around in your computer as you work?


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## Mulderator (Feb 20, 1999)

gotrootdude said:


> To anyone interested, the best price I could find on this system was $155 here: http://www.crazypc.com/Merchant2/merchant.mv?Screen=PROD&Product_Code=9376K


Actually, that price does NOT include a CPU waterblock--that kit comes with and without one. Here it is at NewEgg with a Waterblock for 184.99 which is actually $9 to 11 dollars cheaper depending on which waterblock you order:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16835108068

The NewEgg one is for LGA775 of Socket A. So if you didn't have that socket, you'd want to get the kit without the CPU waterblock and order that separately.

Here are the Processors and Socket waterblocks:

Swiftech MCW6000-A Water block for AMD® Duron®, Athlon®, MP & XP, socket 462, Intel® Pentium® 3, socket 370

Swiftech MCW6000-P Water block for Intel® Pentium® 4, socket 478 processors

Swiftech MCW6000-64 Water block for AMD 64 K8 Socket 754, 939, 940 processors

Swiftech MCW6000-775 Water block for Intel Pentium 4 socket LGA 775 processors

Swiftech MCW6000K-PX Water block for Intel Xeon socket 603/604

Makes me realize what a good deal I got--I got it for 109 after SwiftTech Rebate and that *included the LGA775 waterblock!* I got it at Xoxide and I don't even see it there anymore. They were selling it for $154.99 with the LGA775 socket and then put it on sale for for $129.99 then there was a $20.00 rebate from Swiftech on top of that.

Although I'm out the money I spent on the XP-120 heatsink. I'm going to have to sell that on E-bay. I also bought that at Xoxide for $48 when it was $68 at NewEgg, but Xoxide does not have the return policy NewEgg has. But I guess on balance I made out because total I paid $157 for the entire system and now have a spare heatsink!


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## Mulderator (Feb 20, 1999)

Squashman said:


> so does this cut down on the noise level.


Missed this.

Yes--it cuts down on the noise level significantly. First, you get rid of the fan for the CPU and the pump is not near as noisy as a CPU fan. Second, you can run your case fans at lower speeds because air flow is not near as critical with a watercooled CPU as it is for an air cooled one. The heat from my CPU is dissipated outside the case. That's not to say that case temp isn't relevant, obviously the cooler you can keep the case, the cooler everything in it is going to be. Although often people's CPU overheating is the result of the case temp being too hot. I always tell people to take the sides of the case and blow a big fan on it and if the CPU runs significantly cooler, than case air flow is the problem.

I have my two 120 mm case fans running at about 2000 RPMs, which is about 800 or so slower than full throttle. I could turn them down to 1300 or so and still have no problems, but honestly as 2000 RPMs it is very quiet. probably not more than about 30 decibels or so. At that, I cannot hear the pump.


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## Space Cowboy (Apr 19, 2005)

Just one question ... Why??  

Water + Electronics = Disaster :down:


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## Stoner (Oct 26, 2002)

Kudos on the project, Mulder :up:

I have a problem with high pitched noises...tinnitus.
I've been favoring some older comps like my passive cooled P3 Gateway because of that.

Looks like your system is the 'ticket' for quietness. 
If I do wind up building a system, I'll seriously consider incorporating water cooling.....thanks for the write up


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## Mulderator (Feb 20, 1999)

Space Cowboy said:


> Just one question ... Why??
> 
> Water + Electronics = Disaster :down:


Because water is a much more effective cooling system than air and my CPU was running too hot--coupled with the fact I had to have fans running so fast my computer sounded like a jet engine.

By the way--what do you think is cooling your automobile with the thousands of dollars of electronics in it?


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## Mulderator (Feb 20, 1999)

Stoner said:


> Kudos on the project, Mulder :up:
> 
> I have a problem with high pitched noises...tinnitus.
> I've been favoring some older comps like my passive cooled P3 Gateway because of that.
> ...


Yes--it is definitely the ticket if you want a quiet PC. Make sure your system has 120 mm fans as they don't make the whine that smaller fans do and push more air. In fact, you could try that in your current system before water cooling.


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## Space Cowboy (Apr 19, 2005)

So you do it for less noise? I can barely hear mine and I sit right next to it?

Case temp = 25 c

In a car your not cooling electronics with water .. not that I know of anywho


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## Guyzer (Jul 3, 2004)

Mulder said:


> I know you're joking but that's not far behind. Some of these people with high end computers are running dual video cards and over-clocking the crap out of the processors--optimally you'd have a cooler of water than was kept very cold (i.e., big enough and powerful enough to cool the water down 10 or 15 degrees until it gets circulated back into the system).
> 
> This guy came up with idea of using a fish tank!
> 
> http://www.overclockers.com/tips948/


Yes I was joking. Nice job btw. :up: You better hope you don't spring a leak. Remember, rubber deteriorates after time, especially when it has heat near it.


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## hotskates (Jan 11, 2002)

Mulder said:


> Yes, I put the wheels on.
> *But you have to be handy with a drill*. If you need help installing them hotty, we can work something out!


WEll I do have my own black and decker cordless drill, and I know how to use it........ you didn't know that about me did ya? Wheels are a great idea, but I just realized that if my computer had wheels, it would roll right off the platform on my desk and onto the floor.......crashhhhhhh  Great idea though if it were on the floor.


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## Mulderator (Feb 20, 1999)

hotskates said:


> I know how to use it........ you didn't know that about me did ya?


I definitely know that about ya! 



hotskates said:


> Wheels are a great idea, but I just realized that if my computer had wheels, it would roll right off the platform on my desk and onto the floor.......crashhhhhhh  Great idea though if it were on the floor.


Actually, those wheels I linked you to have a brake you can put on so they don't move--gives you the best of both worlds.


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## hotskates (Jan 11, 2002)

Mulder said:


> Actually, those wheels I linked you to have a brake you can put on so they don't move--gives you the best of both worlds.


 Sweeeeet


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## Guyzer (Jul 3, 2004)

Wimpy369 said:


> Yes I was joking. Nice job btw. :up: You better hope you don't spring a leak. Remember, rubber deteriorates after time, especially when it has heat near it.


You know Mulder I got to thinking. I owe you an apology for making that comment about rubber deteriorating over time with heat. I'm sure you're an expert in that area. Sorry for the error. Please accept my apology.


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## Mulderator (Feb 20, 1999)

Wimpy369 said:


> You know Mulder I got to thinking. I owe you an apology for making that comment about rubber deteriorating over time with heat. I'm sure you're an expert in that area. Sorry for the error. Please accept my apology.


When I saw that I thought you were lobbing me up a softball to hit out of the park, but I see you lobbed it up, and took a whack at it yourself! Hmmmm? Wimpy wacking it himself? Hmmmmmm? That doesn't surprise me! 

Although Moby is the one I usually think of when someone talks about one wacking himself!


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## Guyzer (Jul 3, 2004)

Actually it was an innocent post. Then I got to thinking and couldn't stop laughing. I was waiting for you or one of the gals' to post something. Maybe that will get them fired up enough to post something. I can't wait and am still splitting my side.

About the whacking comment. We you see Mulder it ain't going to happen. Why? Well let me tell.................skip it.


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## hotskates (Jan 11, 2002)

Wimpy369 said:


> Actually it was an innocent post.


  sure it was Wimpy


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## Guyzer (Jul 3, 2004)

hotskates said:


> sure it was Wimpy


It was.... it was! Trust me.


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## hotskates (Jan 11, 2002)

Wimpy369 said:


> It was.... it was! Trust me.


The only thing I trust is my instincts......and I'm always right


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## Mulderator (Feb 20, 1999)

Wimpy369 said:


> Remember, rubber deteriorates after time, especially when it has heat near it.


Actually, the tubing is vinyl, not rubber.

But in any event, I expect Mulder's pump and tubes to last for many years to come!


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## hotskates (Jan 11, 2002)

Mulder said:


> Actually, the tubing is vinyl, not rubber.
> 
> But in any event, I expect Mulder's pump and tubes to last for many years to come!


 If you want to be sure Mulder here is a product you could try


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## Space Cowboy (Apr 19, 2005)

The wheels idea is kinda cool. I mounted wheels to my old recliner. Best Computer Chair EVER. 

But the worst place to keep your computer is on the floor. I used to have to take care of hundreds of computers and the ones that were on the floor were the hardest to keep clean. I would have to take them outside and use compressed air to clean them out. Whata mess.


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