What's a water cooler for a PC, is it worth it?

10 Questions On PC Water Cooling...?

• I am thinking of doing a water cooling setup but there are still some things I do not understand. 1. What is a "Laing" pump from what I've seen there are normal pumps and Laing pumps, whats the difference? 2. Is larger tubing better than smaller tubing for cooling purposes, I have a huge PC case so size isn't a problem. 3. Is it advised the place the reservoir, pump and radiator above the components which are being cooled due to bubbles 4. What is wrong with bubbles in the system and where might they accumulate? 5. What coolant should i use, do non water coolants leave residues, smell or any other issues and is non-conductive or distilled HIGHLY recommended? 6. How long does it take for coolant to evaporate, basically it it advised to get a large reservoir because it evaporates so much or is a small one fine? 7. What types of barbs are there and which ones are best (prevent leaks)? 8. Are proper water cooling setups better than ones which are already made and self-contained such as the H series from corsair for cooling? 9. Is a high quality CPU block recommended or are they all about the same when it comes to cooling? 10. What is the point of draining the system? Thanks for taking your time to answer my questions I do realise that different people have different views on the questions I have asked but anyone who has successfully built a water cooling system can contribute. PLEASE DO NOT CONTRIBUTE IF YOU DO NOT ANSWER THE MAJORITY OF THE QUESTIONS AS ANYONE WHO HAS SUCCESSFULLY BUILT A WATER COOLING SYSTEM WOULD EASILY KNOW THE ANSWER TO ALL THESE QUESTIONS AND NO ANSWERS WHICH JUST HAVE LINKS THANKS IN ADVANCE :)

• Answer:

  Water cooling is not something I've done to a huge extent in the past but here goes: 1. Laing is a brand name, they manufacture pumps. 2. Larger tubing will result in a faster flow of water resulting in better conduction, however the liquid still needs enough time to cool down before cycling again. 3. Bubbles could be a cause of concern when mounted at the bottom although if you take care this can be avoided. The advantages of having it at the bottom is at the top hot air rises and so the ambient temp. of the water would be higher and if it leaks it would spill onto components. The reason it's normally mounted at the top I believe more so is related to the gap caused by the PSU and motherboard layout. 4. Bubbles can cause trouble in the same way as an air lock in your house's plumbing or a car's engine. It basically causes pumps to function incorrectly and disrupt the flow of water, in some cases it can cause pumps to break 5. Whatever conducts heat the best, perhaps oil cooling, as for residue purified water would be one of the only that leave nothing 6. Depends on the type of coolant. However, if the tank is sealed none should evapourate. 7. I don't know, I haven't used them. 8. A custom made one I'm sure could work a lot better although it depends on how everything is set up and how much money you have to spend 9. Get one that has the most conductivity possible, a greater surface area of metal in contact with the coolant will result in better distribution of heat. 10. To change the liquid of course. Hope this helps a little