Reservoir Question

NightReaver

2[H]4U
Joined
Apr 20, 2017
Messages
3,773
Hey there, not new to watercooling but new to cylindrical reservoirs. I've been using bay reservoirs the entire time, but my new case (and many others) omit that possibility. So I'm going with a standard cylinder type reservoir, but I have a few questions:

1) Does the short tube coming down from the top really matter?
2) Does the plastic plate that some have matter, and does it have to be on the bottom?
3)Does having dual D5 pumps affect what type of reservoir I should be looking for?
4) Is there a "best" design I should be looking at, or what sort of features should I look for?

Thanks for any information anybody is able to provide.
 
  1. tube helps with aeration, if the overall level is higher than the bottom of the tube, then the return liquid isn't splashing.
  2. Bottom plate acts as both a pickup filter and anti-cyclone/vortex from the pump suction if mounted directly to a pump
  3. how are the pumps plumbed? generally speaking you pick a top to go with a D5, so it probably doesn't matter unless you are looking at direct mounting
  4. mostly it comes down to what works best for you in terms of number of ports, sizing, mounting options and cosmetics.
i got so tired of the plastic ones cracking all the time, i finally made my own out of copper and brass and put the ports where i wanted them.
 
  1. tube helps with aeration, if the overall level is higher than the bottom of the tube, then the return liquid isn't splashing.
  2. Bottom plate acts as both a pickup filter and anti-cyclone/vortex from the pump suction if mounted directly to a pump
  3. how are the pumps plumbed? generally speaking you pick a top to go with a D5, so it probably doesn't matter unless you are looking at direct mounting
  4. mostly it comes down to what works best for you in terms of number of ports, sizing, mounting options and cosmetics.
i got so tired of the plastic ones cracking all the time, i finally made my own out of copper and brass and put the ports where i wanted them.
My d5s are in a dual top and plumbed away from the reservoir, so it's good to know the plastic plate thing won't matter. So really it comes down to having the ports I want and overall material quality. Thank you!
 
I have used two Watercool 150 TUBE D5 reservoirs and really like the simplicity and quality of their reservoirs. One has a pwm controlled D5 and the other is a D5 NEXT. Both worked perfectly with no issues.
 
The plastic plate does matter. Needs to be on the bottom to prevent a vortex. A vortex will be noisy and put air into your system, which is bad. You may get lucky and not get a vortex but if you do you will want to drain the loop and put that plastic bit in.

Any of the pump/res combos are good designs as far as ease of use. Pump screws in with o-ring, in/out ports usually labeled or pictures are provided. I agree watercool makes a good combo, with glass reservoirs at a reasonable price. Singularities offerings are overpriced with a bad mounting design, IMO. Bitspower products are just way too costly. I do not trust byski. Optimus looks great, but wow, expensive. I like EK FLT reservoirs but I would go with Watercool for a tube res.
 
The plastic plate does matter. Needs to be on the bottom to prevent a vortex. A vortex will be noisy and put air into your system, which is bad. You may get lucky and not get a vortex but if you do you will want to drain the loop and put that plastic bit in.

Any of the pump/res combos are good designs as far as ease of use. Pump screws in with o-ring, in/out ports usually labeled or pictures are provided. I agree watercool makes a good combo, with glass reservoirs at a reasonable price. Singularities offerings are overpriced with a bad mounting design, IMO. Bitspower products are just way too costly. I do not trust byski. Optimus looks great, but wow, expensive. I like EK FLT reservoirs but I would go with Watercool for a tube res.
Yeah pump/res stuff is cool and all, but the issue is I already have 2 perfectly functional D5s, so I grabbed one of these:
https://www.titanrig.com/alphacool-...D=26522&indexName=titan_live_default_products

Came out looking not too shabby:
20230221_230842.jpg

*Going to swap the res out, that's just one I happened to have*
 
I like that dual pump you have displayed vertically. Can i get a link, I would use that in a build, looks cool.
EDIT: I am dumb you provided the link, bought it.
 
I like that dual pump you have displayed vertically. Can i get a link, I would use that in a build, looks cool.
Link is above pic.
"Alphacool Eisdecke Dual D5 Pump Top, Plexi"

Wasn't my first choice, just cheapest/easiest to get. Glad I got it, though. Looks a lot more interesting than the EK revo.
 
Clamps instead of compression. That's something I haven't seen in a long time.
Yup. Changed tubing diameter. Was using 1/2"x3/4". but it was just too much of a pain to work with. Went to 1/2"x5/8" and didn't feel like paying the obscene price for new compressions. Barbs and clamps it is. Actually went together easier than compressions tbh.
 
Yup. Changed tubing diameter. Was using 1/2"x3/4". but it was just too much of a pain to work with. Went to 1/2"x5/8" and didn't feel like paying the obscene price for new compressions. Barbs and clamps it is. Actually went together easier than compressions tbh.
I use 3/8"x1/2". Need to be careful of the tube kinking, but it bends easily as has roughly the same outer diameter as my fittings.
 
I use 3/8"x1/2". Need to be careful of the tube kinking, but it bends easily as has roughly the same outer diameter as my fittings.
Yeah that was another choice and would have been easier to find barbs for. 3/8" is all over the place. 1/2"....not so much unless you want some expensive EK ones. Found some ...12mm...brass ones on amazon, so I had to get 7/16" tubing instead, lol.

Have some 14mm's coming from aliexpress which I should be able to slip 1/2" over and get my ideal ID back.

NGL, actually tried to make some barbed fittings on my resin printer. Came out great, but the threads were off just a tad too much to mate with the metal rad threads. Could have probably adjusted the scale by a percent or so, but eh, not worth the hassle.
 
Clamps instead of compression. That's something I haven't seen in a long time.
I like clamps too. I'll be using those along with the same 1/2" tubing, reservoir and 360mm rad as OP in the build I'm working on. Except I'll turn the reservoir 180 degrees so the multiple ports are on the bottom. I think that helps with eliminating bubbles and it allows a temperature sensor to always be touching the liquid.
 
I like clamps too. I'll be using those along with the same 1/2" tubing, reservoir and 360mm rad as OP in the build I'm working on. Except I'll turn the reservoir 180 degrees so the multiple ports are on the bottom. I think that helps with eliminating bubbles and it allows a temperature sensor to always be touching the liquid.
Ideally I'll be getting a res with multiple ports on both ends. Only put it upside down so I can have a better fill connection.
 
Yup. Changed tubing diameter. Was using 1/2"x3/4". but it was just too much of a pain to work with. Went to 1/2"x5/8" and didn't feel like paying the obscene price for new compressions. Barbs and clamps it is. Actually went together easier than compressions tbh.
I only use compressions for angled fittings otherwise barbs all the way, so much easier to put together and I don't shred my hands trying to tighten the compression ring lol.
 
barbs and zip ties for me, so much simpler. i dont like the bulky look of most clamps.

as for the op q's, what nimisys said, but ive never had one crack, even my current cheapo freeze mod one.
 
Back
Top