Cooling Watercooling Tubing?!?!?!?

Okay, I seem to be having some major problems in this department. This is my first watercooled rig, I wanted to do things right the first time, running all 1/2" lines, fittings, and tubing. Well, I went with FrozenCPU.com for most of the stuff, Swiftech pump and block... but I went with PVC tubing and it worked great for about 4 days, then I needed to access the case again, after that it has done nothing but kink up . So, I was kinda worried... went to FrozenCPU.com again and ordered 10ft of Tygon 1/2" tubing, supposidly anti-kink, and got it in today. Opened the box and played with the tubing for a bit, seems its gonna kink too ... not sure, what the hell are you guys using to prevent kinks and stuff, I dont have any really sharp turns or anything, just kinda lost here. I really don't want to have to use elbows and stuff... I would like to keep the fittings to a minimal usage.

Skyler Unruh - Performance-PC.net

 

tygon is supposed to me really flexible(i used just plain old vinyl tubing on mine) and it may look like it will kink but it shouldnt

 

Can you give us a picture of how the system is set up and maybe we can work out your "kinky" *snickers* problem : P

-Wndrbread

 

Ok, just looks like it wants to kink... haven't got a chance to start installing it yet, waiting on my Northbridge block and my new bayres.

 

the Tygon tubing is probably the best tubing (certainly renowned as one of the best types of tubing) around at the present moment. It's very malleable (big word for this time of night) to allow good bend radii however, it shouldn't kink as it's designed to do quite the opposite

Moving to Extreme Kooling

 

Yeah some of the tube looks like its gunna kink but it doesnt. Always looks like its gunna kink to me http://forums.bit-tech.net/showthread.php?s=&threadid=47122

 

I use tygon in my main wc setup, too.. and there is a slightly kinking between cpu and northbridge. To prevent this, I put a jubilee clip on where the kink looked to be occuring, and tightened it. Straightened it out nicely

I think I've seen setups where people have put long, loose springs on the tubing, which has also aided in the prevention of kinking. I fail to remember where I've seen that though.

 

Okay, sweet! Thanks guys... just wasn't sure, but I know never to use the PVC 1/2" that is offered through FrozenCPU.com anymore, **** that setup had 3 area's that kinked... must be really crappy tubing. I went ahead and tested the bends with the tygon, you guys are probably going to be right on this one, least I hope so. One question, because tygon is so soft and flexable is it like going to kink in area's when the pc is off? Like because no water pressure? Just curious, and thanks again to all that replyed to help me out.

 

on http://www.over-clock.co.uk they recommend this tubing which they say they prefer to tygon. Whenever I have researched water...it has always been tygon which has been given the nod...hell I am just gonna order some now.

 

Dangerden Clearflex is pretty good tubing, I'll agree, and it does give less chance of an occurance of kinking. However, it still isn't quite as good as tygon (in my experience) - although it is nice and cheap.

 

Tygon is the daddy. SkylerUnruh, dude, if it doesn't kink when you install it, it won't kink whether under pressure or not. Remember that the pressure differences in a closed loop water cooling circuit are not that great anyway.

The only way you'll know whether a tube will kink is by test fitting it (you can't just eyeball the space and say: "Oh, I think this is going to kink..."). Planning your setup carefully should eliminate most tight bends, however.

 

TYGON RULES !!!!

 

You can try out silicon tubes. It's very flexible (maybe too much) and allows quite sharp bends before it kinks.Neither clearflex nor tygon are kink free. However you can find some tubes (usually used for garden hoses) with reinforcement in them (some sort of breaded wire) that will prevent sharp bends. Those don't kink but are very rigid.

 

I am using silicone tubing at the moment, be advised that it breathes/leaks a bit ... I have lost somewhere between a half and a whole liter over a year and a half ...

 

hmm...perhaps your just not sealed 100%
i used silicon for the same duration and never topped it up once...although there was a very thin layer of goo coating the inside of everything

 

evaporation does happen through the tubing. This is normal and not alarming. This happens with silicon tubing. I think it also happens with every other tubing you might use (exept metal...)

 

I don't know, nothing is wet ... and I read about silicone not being 100% waterproof somewhere

yep, it also happens to someone at overclockers.com: http://www.overclockers.com/tips1089/index02.asp

 

hmm..
mine must've been l33tz0r

 

Agreed, but be sure to buy only the "thick walled" (1/8" wall) version.
The "thin walled" (1/16" wall) version kinks very easy.
Both are labeled "Tygon R-3603".

Several online resellers do not mention which type they sell and the price is mostly the same for both versions.
For example, the Tygon I bought from Danger Den is the thick walled Tygon, but the Tygon I bought from BeCooling is thin walled.

CD