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Mounting radiators and pumps

J

JAK

Weaksauce
Joined
Jul 13, 2005
Messages
68
Hi. I am looking into water cooling, and I have a question about how the radiators and pumps are mounted. I was wondering how the radiators and pumps are mounted inside the case. In all of the pics and guides I have seen, it never explains how they were actually mounted. I was also wondering if there are some good cases that are pre-made for watercooling and would not need to be modded in order to mount a radiator and pump and also have a good amount of room to work in.
Also,do radiators designed for pc cooling usually come with a shroud that allow fans to be put on,or is it possible to but a pre-made shroud? Sorry if these are obvious questions, I just couldn't seem to find how the pump and rad were mounted in the case, and I'd prefer to ge a case that does not need to be modded in order to fit in a rad or pump.
 
If you're flush a mountain mods case is one option. Off the top a couple of other premod cases are Thermaltake LCS and Gigabyte Mercury.

But you can water cool a standard case with zero mods and save a lot of $$. Here is an example of a system I did awhile back. The water cooling took about 30 minutes to install and no modding was applied:

P1010061.JPG


Thats an Antec Sonata which was obviously not designed for water cooling, besides being on the small side - teven hat doesn't have to be a barrier. Rad is held in place with Velcro! If you plan things out properly, you can easily water cool the majority of cases out there. But go with one of the DDC pumps, small and can be easily mounted in a variety of locations.
 
Pumps are generally held in by pressure (wedge them between crap) or bolted to the case with large screws. Most pumps come with mount points, so all you need is a screw or two.

Radiators, have holes predrilled in them that match the hole-spacing of your average 120mm fan. Therefore, most people choose to use longer screws (1.25" and NO LONGER!) to go through the case, through the fan, and into the radiator.
 
The only brand that I know of where you can get a retail shroud is Thermochill (coincidentally Thermochill is almost unanimously considered to make the best radiators). Mounting radiators almost always uses the screw holes built in which match fan mounts.

Personally I mount my pump with a zip tie. I used to have it bolted to the case, but that gave too many vibrations. I need a secure mount for travelling so I can't just wedge it in or let it sit on the case floor.
 
Thanks for all of the replies. My last question is why a shroud is required. It seems odd that there is only one retail shroud made if they are required on radiators,or is it not required?
 
JAK said:
Thanks for all of the replies. My last question is why a shroud is required. It seems odd that there is only one retail shroud made if they are required on radiators,or is it not required?
Click to expand...

It prevents an airflow dead-spot created by the motor of the fan... Or at least, it helps alleviate it.

The reason why it's not commonly available, is because the difference it makes is minimal at best :)
 
Im trying to figure out my new pump mount location as well. I think I will end up using some industrial strength velcro so it will be easy to remove, maybe some zip ties.


In fact I think i will ziptie the radiator in place too but not decided yet. It's just easier to remove with zipties than screws.

You do not need to purchase a shroud with the thermochill.
 
hope this helps, NCIX has a video showing one of there reps installing a watercooling system.

http://www.ncix.com/products/index.php?sku=26522&vpn=ESSENTIALS%20240%20H20%20KIT&manufacture=NCIX

Scroll down half the page to see the videos.

They also carry barebone watercooling computers incase you wanted to upgrade (computers with a q6600, motherboard and watercooling already installed) and I think thye have just cases with watercooling if you like.

EDIT: I found the link to there cases with just watercooling stalled as well.

http://www.ncix.com/products/index.php?minorcatid=104&subminorcatid=209

Just remember im canadian so I gave you the link to their canadian site, make sure you switch to the USA site if you want to see USA prices.
 
Ragenrok said:
hope this helps, NCIX has a video showing one of there reps installing a watercooling system.

http://www.ncix.com/products/index.php?sku=26522&vpn=ESSENTIALS%20240%20H20%20KIT&manufacture=NCIX

Scroll down half the page to see the videos.

They also carry barebone watercooling computers incase you wanted to upgrade (computers with a q6600, motherboard and watercooling already installed) and I think thye have just cases with watercooling if you like.

EDIT: I found the link to there cases with just watercooling stalled as well.

http://www.ncix.com/products/index.php?minorcatid=104&subminorcatid=209

Just remember im canadian so I gave you the link to their canadian site, make sure you switch to the USA site if you want to see USA prices.
Click to expand...

Im guessign besides shipping prices should be pretty similar since USD's value has gone to sh*t
 
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