Questions about 4x4x4 Resevoir...........

[Michael_Myers]

Ok, I stopped by Lowe's yesterday just to "look around honey"........I came home with everything I needed to watercool a system except Two things.

A waterblock (just finished ordering the DD Maze2)
and a Radiator.

I bought two 3/8ths plastic barbs to stick up through the resevoir so that the water could flow in and out.
And therin lies the question.....how should I configure the intake/output positions?

Also, could I get away with NOT using a radiator for a little while? I just can't imagine that a few coils of copper with a fan blowing over them is going to make much more than a 5c temp difference. (please don't jump on me if I am wrong, just educate me) But seriously, has anyone EVER done a no radiator setup that has documented temp readings?
Unless it's somehow electricaly cooled, I can't imagine that big of a difference in temps.

See my second post on "Radiator Questions"
Please respond as I will be doing the project very soon. As always, I thank you guys VERY much.

 

[rugby]

While I haven't gone without a radiator I would imagine the water not getting cooled at all without one. Just wait to get your radiator and then experiment with it.

 

[SteenkyBastage]

the purpose of the radiator is to take all that head that comes from the waterblock and dissipate it into the air. if you dont have the radiator, there is no place other than the outside of the waterblock that will give much heat release.
only thing i have read about that seemed to work to replace a radiator was bending long ammounts of copper tubing around and fastening it to the grill of a large home fan. (run the water thru this, obviously) this does, however, give the exact same result altho i am not sure it would technically be called a "radiator".
in essence, the water conducts heat better than air (it pulls more heat out of the copper water block) . but if you do not give the water any way to get rid of the heat (usually done by running air over the radiator), it will continue to raise the water temperature, thus raising the waterblock and cpu temp.
so, in answer to your question, i'd say yes, you need a radiator...or figure out a way to take the heat out of the water running thru the system (keep adding ice every few seconds, heh).
hope this helps

 

[SteenkyBastage]

also just another note, when i measure the temp of the air going into my radiator, it is usually around 10 to 15 deg. F cooler than the air coming out of the radiator. and that is with a 120mm 115 CFM fan with a rheostat turned all the way down. so, the radiator is actually dissipating a large ammount of heat from the water.
now i have not ever tried running without a radiator, but i cannot see any other feasable way to get rid of all that heat w/o using one. if you do get it working w/o a radiator and the temps are acceptable, keep us posted!
i would, however, STRONGLY recommend if you try it without a radiator you CAREFULLY monitor your temps so as not to fry anything.

 

[AMDGuy]

I also used a 4x4x4 electrical box for my reservoir. I'd take the plastic barbs back and get brass. With brass barbs I was able to drill the holes in the TOP of the reservoir a little smaller than the brass threads, and the brass would cut it's own threads in the lid to the reservoir making it water tight.

A radiator makes a huge difference with watercooling. I have a radiator and 120mm fan, and a couple of times I've turned the fan off to see what happens, and the temp rises a lot. The fan + radiator is definitely required.