Repair custom loop vs aio?

[Ragenrok]

So a while ago my pump in my custom loop died, was running a swiftech mcr 320, mcp655 and dtek fuzion CPU block (moddifed to new Intel CPUs). Due to prices in Canada it would cost me around $120 to get a decent pump and the new Barb's I would need for this. At that price point an I going to see a noticeable difference between my custom loop and an aio like https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B07175CYWL/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_ed-rCbD8BM7RT

Right now I'm using a cheap $20 air cooler and I can get my 4670k to 4ghz but I want to get back into over clocking it lol

 

[Brian_B]

It takes a really good AIO to compete with even a modest custom loop. PITA factor is worth what it's worth to you though, and that sometimes is worth more than the money.

As far as noticeable difference though .... different story. There would probably be a noticeable difference, but I doubt it would be terribly severe. Certainly not as much as you notice using the cheapy air cooler now.

 

[THRESHIN]

If it were me, I'd repair the custom loop. Yes its a pain, but you're not going to save any money going with an AIO. Anything cheaper than a new pump will not perform as well.

If money is a concern, you could always sell your custom loop parts and use that for an AIO. Or as suggested, just go with air.

I have a similar custom setup and I'll never go back. Been running this for about 12 years now and most of my parts were used - including the same pump as you have.

Out of curiosity, what's wrong with the pump? Is it repairable? I bought mine off eBay and it came with a bad impeller. The bearing cup was tilted causing it to grind with the internal housing. A kind member on these very forums (god bless his soul, and I'm not even religious!) Sold me the impeller from his pump that had died for a cool $20. Been working fine ever since.

 

[Ragenrok]

It takes a really good AIO to compete with even a modest custom loop. PITA factor is worth what it's worth to you though, and that sometimes is worth more than the money.

As far as noticeable difference though .... different story. There would probably be a noticeable difference, but I doubt it would be terribly severe. Certainly not as much as you notice using the cheapy air cooler now.

If it were me, I'd repair the custom loop. Yes its a pain, but you're not going to save any money going with an AIO. Anything cheaper than a new pump will not perform as well.

If money is a concern, you could always sell your custom loop parts and use that for an AIO. Or as suggested, just go with air.

I have a similar custom setup and I'll never go back. Been running this for about 12 years now and most of my parts were used - including the same pump as you have.

Out of curiosity, what's wrong with the pump? Is it repairable? I bought mine off eBay and it came with a bad impeller. The bearing cup was tilted causing it to grind with the internal housing. A kind member on these very forums (god bless his soul, and I'm not even religious!) Sold me the impeller from his pump that had died for a cool $20. Been working fine ever since.

The little pin the holds the impeller in place broke causing the impeller to not stay seated properly pretty sure it caught a random air pocket I missed and snapped.

I ended up repairing my loop, purchased a Phobya DC12-400 pwm pump. Https//www.amazon.ca/dp/B00OL5NIBS/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_Pz9sCb9RBDAPM

And so far it's working good, load temps dropped from 73 to 51 at 4000mhz. I was able to increase my 4670k from 4000mhz to 4500mhz and it's hitting 69 in prime for a stress. It's nice because games like ac oydessy have seen an immediate bumb in fps, I went from 58 avg fps to 69 in the bench marks.

 

[THRESHIN]

The little pin the holds the impeller in place broke causing the impeller to not stay seated properly pretty sure it caught a random air pocket I missed and snapped.

I ended up repairing my loop, purchased a Phobya DC12-400 pwm pump. Https//www.amazon.ca/dp/B00OL5NIBS/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_Pz9sCb9RBDAPM

And so far it's working good, load temps dropped from 73 to 51 at 4000mhz. I was able to increase my 4670k from 4000mhz to 4500mhz and it's hitting 69 in prime for a stress. It's nice because games like ac oydessy have seen an immediate bumb in fps, I went from 58 avg fps to 69 in the bench marks.

How's the new pump for noise? I think you made the right choice to repair your system. You'll get far better performance for the same price or less.

Likely not an air pocket so much as wear and tear on that pin. Air won't cause any damage to a small pump like that to speak of. If it was run full of air and the bearing ran dry for too long, yeah it would but I don't see how it would damage the pin. Air would put less force on the impeller than water.

Hope you kept the old pump. That may be very fixable. Tap out the old pin and tap in a new one. Provided that there's no other significant damage to other parts of course. Only consideration is the size of the pin must be carefully selected as it is pressed in and you'd want a stainless pin which may be difficult to get in the right size. A steel pin would be easy, but it would rust out in your loop.

 

[Ragenrok]

How's the new pump for noise? I think you made the right choice to repair your system. You'll get far better performance for the same price or less.

Likely not an air pocket so much as wear and tear on that pin. Air won't cause any damage to a small pump like that to speak of. If it was run full of air and the bearing ran dry for too long, yeah it would but I don't see how it would damage the pin. Air would put less force on the impeller than water.

Hope you kept the old pump. That may be very fixable. Tap out the old pin and tap in a new one. Provided that there's no other significant damage to other parts of course. Only consideration is the size of the pin must be carefully selected as it is pressed in and you'd want a stainless pin which may be difficult to get in the right size. A steel pin would be easy, but it would rust out in your loop.

Ignore the dust, this was pre-blow out lol. Pump is surprisingly quiet, I have it running full speed, but it's zip tied up with taped on foam pad and now that the air is fully purged it's no louder than a fan. Ya I started trying to find replacement parts but couldn't seem to find a repair kit for what I needed, would love to fix it though.

This time I ran 3/8 tubing instead of 1/2, except for from the res to the pump I kept it 1/2 lol. Also prebuilt the loop outside of the case and my God it was 1000x easier to fill and bleed of air instead of trying to spin my haf 932 around in circles to get all the air pockets.