general watercooling advice

[RADCOM]

I haven't installed a water cooling unit since my innovatek kit two years ago I now find myself with two projects. I have a few questions. I plan on using a coolant ( like water but non conductive) do I really need to flush the system and should I do it with distilled water first? On the AquaXtreme 50Z-DC12 which is the inlet? ( mine came without documentation) Whats the best way to bleed a system ( i.e. a ball valve or something ) The pump should not be run without water so how do I "prime it" I have a T connection and intend to have a filler pot at the top of the case. Should I use a manifold for the dual cpu cooling? Thanks in advance for any help and tips
Two kits are:
1)Dual nexxos XP Bold blocks ( Xeon 604), alphacool pump,coolplex resevoir,Alphacool triple radiator, 10mm OD tubing. resevoir and radiator are on top of the case!

2)Swiftech storm ( AMD64 ),swiftech micro resevoir,thermochill PA120,Aquaxtreme 50Z,1/2" OD tubing

[ricecrispi]

*yes use distilled water or the minerals in tap water will corrode your parts.

*aquaextreme outlet should be pointing up like most pumps. Inlet parallel to the base at the front. I thinks you can got online and find a pdf.

*prime by filling loop with water and making sure the pump has water in it and the loop has little air in it. Try moving things around to get water in and air out of the pump, the rad, and the res or fillport. Have the res higher than the pump and fill slowly so no air gets trapped.

*bleed by watching bubbles reach the tee and when levels are low fill, turn off pump up to the top to the tee.

*manifold?

*do a search next time for some faqs.

[redleader]

I plan on using a coolant ( like water but non conductive) do I really need to flush the system and should I do it with distilled water first

Just a heads up, most of these special coolants are pretty worthless.

[RADCOM]

Thanks very much for the input. I have searched many boards extensively and got too much info so I needed to clarify. A manifold allegedly distributes coolant evenly amongst varying sources ( they come in pairs ) One drop of water can fry a board I'd rather have 1 degree higher temperature and piece of mind

[jaydee]

Originally Posted by RADCOM

Thanks very much for the input. I have searched many boards extensively and got too much info so I needed to clarify. A manifold allegedly distributes coolant evenly amongst varying sources ( they come in pairs ) One drop of water can fry a board I'd rather have 1 degree higher temperature and piece of mind

Not sure I follow your logic with the manifold. A manifold is a distribution system. All it does is add more connections to increase leak possibilities. With the little amount of parts you have I see no reason not to put them in series. One part after another. That will create better performance and make it less likely to leak.

I also fail to understand your logic using a T to bleed the system when you have a reservoir in the loop.... The whole point of a res is to fill and bleed the system. :shrug: Just make sure there is some water going to the inlet of the pump. If the loop is setup right it should be self primed when you fill the system with water.

[RADCOM]

Cheers Jaydee, I guess I did too much reading and not enough understanding. The T pipe with the filler pot on the top of the case will negate opening the case to fill system; useful, especially on the dual Xeon system as the resevoir will be under the radiator on top of the case. I didn't know about manifolds until recently, they seem like a good idea at the time I have since added a shurflo filter.
Another quick query, how many things can I add to either system ? Will my pumps handle a graphics card cooler on the duallie or two on the the Storm system? Thanks again for sharing your knowledge
sys1-dual Xeon 3.06Ghz on Asus NCCH-DL, ATI X800 pro
sys2-AMD 64 3500 on Asus AN8 SLI premium, 2 x Asus 7800GTX

[jaydee]

Originally Posted by RADCOM

Cheers Jaydee, I guess I did too much reading and not enough understanding. The T pipe with the filler pot on the top of the case will negate opening the case to fill system; useful, especially on the dual Xeon system as the resevoir will be under the radiator on top of the case. I didn't know about manifolds until recently, they seem like a good idea at the time I have since added a shurflo filter.
Another quick query, how many things can I add to either system ? Will my pumps handle a graphics card cooler on the duallie or two on the the Storm system? Thanks again for sharing your knowledge
sys1-dual Xeon 3.06Ghz on Asus NCCH-DL, ATI X800 pro
sys2-AMD 64 3500 on Asus AN8 SLI premium, 2 x Asus 7800GTX

I am still not understanding why you have a res then? If you are not filling the system or bleeding the air with it then all it does is ad an extra restriction, trap air and take up room.

I don't see any problem with additional blocks. High flow rate is a little over exaggerated. Even if you only have 1 liter a minute you should still be ok. Only thing I would be to worried about is the radiator and getting cool air through it.


EDIT: Change that to 1 gallon per minute. Have liter on the brain..