[ImOnALampshade]

Can I use an aquarium pump and a make-shift reservoir in a liquid cooling system, instead of buying them from a site like frozencpu? They're way too expensive there.
And on compression fittings on tubing, can I get reliable ones from home depot?

[spitter3]

Yes, you can use an aquaruim pump, my first loop was an old canester filter turned on its side so it would have water on the impellar, res and pump in one unit.

[Conumdrum]

No on the compression fittings. They need to have the right thread pattern for the block, it's British standard Parellel, 1/4 BSPP. That is the standard on all WC parts now. You can't buy that at ANY US Home Depot style store. 95% of thier stuff, if not all is NPT threads. So just buy some G 1/4 barbs and use automotive hose clamps. Compressions are no better than barbs except looks.

A barb will be like G1/4 thread, 1/2" OD, that's for 1/2" ID hose, or you can get 3/8" OD barbs too.

And, an aquarium pump might have the GPM you need, but WC loops are very restrictive and can bring a cheap aquarium pump to it's knees. You need high 'Head pressure', honestly. Otherwise you could have too low of a flow rate for a block to effectively cool.

You just have to try it. Don't cheap yourself too much, or it will cost more in the long run.

We 'DO' have a watercooling forum with some very good stickies up to to help guide you. Maybe you can ask a mod to move this to the right forum.

[thideras]

Thread moved to the appropriate forum.

[muddocktor]

In the old days of watercooling your computer where it was common to use aquarium pumps, the waterblocks in use then were generally very low restriction. And also not nearly as efficient at removing heat as today's engineered blocks, which tend to be quite a bit more restrictive than say something like an old DangerDen Maze 1 or Maze 2 block. So like Conumdrum stated, it can be done, but your temps might not be the best they can be with a modern waterblock. As for a reservoir, yes you can make your own. My first reservior was made out of a 4 x 4 x 4 weatherproof electrical box, which I drilled and tapped and installed 1/2" NPT brass barbs for connections. For filling, I drilled and tapped the top of the box and put a 1/2" brass pipe nipple on it and used a brass pipe cap to close it. By the time I finished buying the box and the brass pipes and fittings, it wasn't much cheaper than buying a Swiftech MicroRes, but I had fun making it.

And if you look around and don't mind using 3/8" ID tubing, you can find Swiftech MCP355 pumps (Laing DDC3.2 pump) for around $55. I located 1 brand new on eBay for $55 shipped just now. They come with 3/8" barbs on them, so if you go with the stock top and 3/8" tubing for your loop you are golden and have a much better pump than an aquarium pump.