Hi all,
 
I have tried to read different forums to learn and gather info. So far, based on what I have read, there's no "perfect" water cooling. The results vary on different system, so it really depends on personal preference after laying down all the info. I just finished building my new desktop last week and planning to water cool it as my holiday project. First of all, I'm a total newbie when it comes to water cooling and this will be my first water cooling experience. I would like to ask your opinions, suggestions and help regarding water cooling.
 
I'm planning to keep everything with-in my case (no external rad) which will limit my built. My case can only support a 2x120mm rad located at the top and a 1x120mm rad at the back. As to what I've read, a water cooling system can have a high flow rate or a high head pressure. My first question would be...What would you guys suggest, given my rad limitation, would be best? Based on my understanding, please correct me if I'm wrong, here's the difference between the two:
 
High Flow Rate: Since water flows fast within the cooling system, the farthest block can get fresher water compared to a high head pressure system. The down side is that since water flows fast through the blocks, it don't have much time to actually absorb more heat from the blocks. It also flows fast through the rad which means it also don't have much time to cool itself.
High Head Pressure: Since water flows slower than the high flow rate system, it can absorb as much heat as it can, and when it pass through the rad, the rad can cool it better. The down side would be that the farthest block would get higher water temp compared to a high flow rate system.
 
I believe that the blocks that I would be using depends on what type/style of cooling system build I would go for. For high flow rate, I'm planning to get the WC Heatkiller 3.0 LC. For high head pressure, I'm planning to get the Koolance CPU-350. I'm also planning to water cool (in addition to the CPU) my 2xGPU, MOSFET, NB/SB and ram. What order would be best in my situation? I normally see people suggest res -> pump -> rad -> cpu -> ... -> .... so that the cpu would get the freshest water out of the rad. I guess my next set of questions would be..  
Would a 2 loop be better or 1 loop is good enough?
What would be a good order if I'll be doing 2 loop? If 1 loop?
What rad and fan would be best for high flow rate? high head pressure? (for the fan, I'm trying to balance CFM over dBA)
 
As for the coolant, I've read that distilled water is still the best, just need to add some additives. Where can I buy good cheap distilled water? what are the additives that I need and where can I buy them? Is it ok if I'll be adding color additive to it?
 
All info, opinion, suggestions and corrections are welcome and will be gladly appreciated.
 
Thanks,
J
 
[edited]
I forgot to mention my specs.
Intel i7 950
2 x gtx 470 SC
EVGA x58 SLI3
6GB Corsair XMS3
Antec Quattro 850w
Xion Predator 970
 
I'm planning to overclock my system after water cooling it.

Thanks YerBuddy for the input. I'm not really sure if triple rad is enough for what I would like to do. Well, the only reason why I want to keep it all internal is just for aesthetics. If I would be putting an external triple rad at the back (in addition to the internal double rad at the top) What would be the part that I would need? and how about the fan wiring? Sorry for all the questions..I'm totally new at water cooling.
 
Thanks

No problem at all jayjose.  We've all been there at one point.
 
There are several mounts for the case.  I'm assuming your case has an exauhst fan at the rear.  I'm currently using this one:
 
http://www.performance-pcs.com/catalog/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=25631
 
It's pretty pricey and there are others that you can get for cheaper.  However, this one is sturdy.  It also makes it vere easy to detach if you need.  Here's what mine looks like with a quad rad mounted:
 

Yep.  Triple rad up top, quad on the back, both on one loop.  I'm using 1/2" ID x 3/4" OD. 

http://skinneelabs.com/radiators.html

@DaveB: thanks for pointing that out. I actually didn't thought of that. I was under the impression of that there is a standard size for the rads. I have some idea for case mod but I lack the tools, knowledge and skills to do a mod So I'll go for an external rad in addition to the internal one. Thank you all for the help.
 
Another questions, I've seen some set-up who has double external rad, they sandwiched the fans between 2 rads, is it a good idea?
 
@YerBuddy: in your set-up, are the fans and pump at max? or you are using a fan controller to set their rpm? I'm guessing that the pump act the same way as the fan, that you can control it using a fan controller or something. I'm thinking, if I'll be water cooling my GPU, maybe I can use the GPU fan pin for the pump and use EVGA Precision to control it. Is it possible?

I was just thinking, if I'm just surfing or watching movies, the system won't need that much cooling compared to full load. So, reducing the water flow and fan speed would be a nice idea and if I somehow can attach it to my GPU card fan pin (since it won't be in use it it's WC) I can just set it up in Afterburner or precision and forget about it.
 
Anyone can suggest a good fan controller? is the a fan controller where you can control a group of fans? like one group woul be the fans for my internal rad, one group for my external rad and another group for some intake or whatever fan is there left?

FC2's can handle large loads per channel and they look pretty slick too. 45w per channel should be enough to handle 2 good fans on each switch... I currently have mine loaded up with 2 AP15s on the first 3 and 1 each on the last 3 and nothing has caught fire yet.. knock on wood.
 
http://www.performance-pc...&products_id=24896

That is similar to the setup I have.  I ran that setup more to test the theory and to see how well it would work, and was surprised at how well it did work.  Mine is actually going into the top rad first, and air is being blown down, normally not the best idea, however in my case, it is sitting right under a window AC unit, so I saw very good results becuase of that.  But the fluid goes from top rad, with COLD air blowing on it, into the lower rad then out to the devices it is cooling.
 
If you are going external I wouldn't necessarily say you need to go with stackables.  Since you are wanting a rad that will perform well with lower pressure ie quieter fans, I would say a Thermochill would be a good idea, I know people who run them with R4's.   When fans are between 2 rads you need one with some solid pressure or your temps will suffer, and I am running Ultra Kaze's, and they are noisey at full speed.  At 1700 RPM they arent bad on volume, but still alot more audible that others like R4's or others of that genre that are meant for high CFM and low noise.