Setting up a drain/fill port

[andrew63447]

I recently discovered I neglected to set up a fill/drain port in my loop due to my excitement to get my system up and running. so heres the layout of how things are...

Case: CoolerMaster HAF-X
Reservoir: XSPC dual bay mounted in the middle 2 5.25 bays
Pump: Swiftech MCP-655
Radiator: XSPC EX360 mounted at the top of the case beneath the 200mm fans with the fittings in the rear of the case

So after doing some research I was left with a few options on where and how to integrate a fill/drain port.

1. Use a combination of fittings to route a line out of the rubber grommits in the rear of the case and put the cse on its back or face to make that point the highest or lowest in the loop. This would be a very tight fit and im not even sure it would work.

2. Add quick disconnects somewhere in the loop and place the case on its side to fill/drain.

3. Replace the dual bay reservoir with a new one mounted internally to allow easier access to all the WC parts and not have to work around those darned 5.25 bays.


I'm asking for your opinions on what makes the most sense, will look the best, and perform its function better than the darn screw cap and syphoning ill be doing now

 

[Lutfij]

place a pic of the setup we can judge alot more

fill ports should be located above the case. and the drain port should be located at the lowest point of a loop.

 

[Peds013]

I have quick disconnects on the radiator in the base of the case, and just enough slack in the tubing to get it out the side for draining.

And regards to filling, I just use the top of the reservoir by pulling the double bay res out the front of the chassis.

 

[Lutfij]

surely there's a better way to doing all this...

 

[andrew63447]

I'll post a pic once I get home, I can't access pictures from computers on base... too many network restrictions. Is it just impractical to use the same port because it involves turning my case upside down or sideways?

 

[toolmaker_03]

have you considered somthing like this added to the line someware to fill/flush the system?

 

[andrew63447]

heres links to image uploads first or the space i have between the rad fittings and the rear case wall and second is of the whole system w/o side panel

http://tinypic.com/r/2igkcvt/6


http://tinypic.com/r/o78uic/6



@ toolmaker yes I have considered something like that but would prefer to stay away from the plastic connections as they remind me too much of work theres tons of them in a lab around and inside our analyzers

 

[Lutfij]

1| thas a really nice kit, see you went with the Raystorm Extreme D5 kit!
2| thas one nasty looking innard man, no offence, thas what I was about to say when I read of you having slack tubing. In most events the slack tubing will eventually bend and kink at the bottom due to the weight of water(over time) and restrict your loop.
3| best scenario is having the rad hang off the back with some standoff extensions or a rad box and have the fittings in line with the top of case. This means the air will shoot straight upwards naturally.
4| the other scenario is having rads opening/fittings face the front of case instead of the back (what you have now) and then you can tilt the case backwards to get air out.
5| I'm not a fan of tilting large cases. Ideal is having a rad with a plenum chamber or a port fitting at the extreme end of the rad will help with air pockets.
6| have a rotary fitting on the top port of that bay res so you can swivel it out and fill it up, and later with some trouble use it as a drain port.

some ideas to look up on

without the extremely long tubing run

7| QDC's are also one route but they should be at the lower most point of a loop, then turn pump on and voila all liquid out.

8| or have a drain valve routed to the bottom

more here

 

[andrew63447]

Usually the tubing is all kept up top above the gpu and when i drain for the first time in a few weeks to add the gpu block ill be replacing tubing to a mix of colors because blue is just so plain...

But about the inside looking nasty i kind of expected that since i havnt built a system since 1997
Got any tips to make it look cleaner

 

[Lutfij]

you shouldn't stress the card by draping it with tubing and the weight of water...just thought you should know
tips:
1| manage cables first, when you won't see them, you can focus your sights on the tubing.
2| shorten the tubing lengths. in fact it looks to me you used all of your tubing you got with your kit. Shouldn't need more than 4~5 feet. leaving the rest 5 feet for your next loop tear down.
3| some of the points in the previous post will help you. Like orient the rad's ports to face the ram side of your mobo. Right now its facing the I/O end of your mobo. Tubing lengths will be reduced that way.
4| fillport in top of bay res will stop you from taking res out. In fact this is what made you decide to leave so much tubing inside, for fear that it'll spring a leak if tugged on.
5| change rams to one with your case/mobo theme hehe I know its not watercooling related but its about aesthetics.

 

[rubix_1011]

(edited, took your photo and added some examples)

In this pic, why not use the lower port for your GPU exit? It would save you from having that awkward, kinked tubing bend that runs out to your radiators. Also, you might look into a couple 90's for your rad if you are going to back mount like that. You won't impact flow much (negligible) and would allow you to run your tubing vertically on both runs for a better fit. This tubing route is presented in red. Just my opinion.

You could also rotate the rad completely to move the I/O ports on the rad to face the back of the case on the bottom and run tubing directly into the back as shown in the yellow portion of the example.

 

[Lutfij]

^ master and commander has arrived with a perspective I missed

*@ Andrew - take all of his points into consideration (without any flake of slat)! I mean it!

 

[andrew63447]

that I did know and the tension point was resting at the rear of the optical drive but I see the risk should it ever slip and put all the weight elsewhere, I guess hanging low is the lesser of two evils at this point replacing tubing is far less expensive than a 670 or mobo

 

[andrew63447]

This is the proposed current plan after a bit more cable management

sorry my edits arent as clean as rubix

 

[Lutfij]

are you sure that tube will bend at those angles illustrated in the diagram? you'll need to figure out how to route the tube like that to achieve that bend exactly ontop of the cpu block.

ziptie perhaps, without crushing the tubing dia ofc.

for some inspiration
http://forum.overclock3d.net/showthread.php?t=39789

 

[Pschu]

Here's my fill/drain in my HAF 932



Uploaded with ImageShack.us



Uploaded with ImageShack.us

 

[Lutfij]

thats tight! but very neat! i like it! but the cables can do with a cup of coffee and a lil work, how come it ain't in the gallery threads? and you have a build log of that

 

[Pschu]

thats tight! but very neat! i like it! but the cables can do with a cup of coffee and a lil work, how come it ain't in the gallery threads? and you have a build log of that

Hey, thanks a lot for the compliments. I guess I just haven't gotten around to getting it in the gallery. And yes! I planned on a bit more cable work. Kind of why I didn't bother with the galleries. I just threw it back together not long ago and have been working everyday but I plan on getting to it soon. Here's a link to my thread with more pics. Hardly a build thread tho. Enjoy. http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/277798-29-water-cooling

 

[andrew63447]

The layout was more to show the separation of each tube to make routing more clear