Installation:
Anyone that has ever installed watercooling knows
that one of the hardest things to overcome is where to put everything.
The H2O-Apex kit is designed to remove that headache and to
be more compatible with a wider range of cases. From the water
pumps small footprint to the externally mounted radiator there
is a place for everything. For most cases no cutting is required,
and all you will need is a 7/8" hole saw to drill out the
holes for the tubing to run through.
Side note here, if you are using one of the Antec/Chieftec
type cases that have the built in raised grill for the rear
fans, and the clip on fan retention brackets you may have to
get a bit more creative with the installation. I simply cut
the grills off of the case I am using with a Dremel and drilled
a few holes to mount the Rad box to.
Once you have the Rad box mounted you'll want
to "test fit" the radiator to determine the best position
and adjust the Rad box as needed. The next step is marking where
to drill the holes out for the tubing, Swiftech recommends using
a small piece of tubing stuck on the barbs of the radiator and
a sharpie marker to mark the location for the holes. Once you
have your holes drilled just mount the radiator and test it
to make sure it all lines up.
Once the radiator is installed everything else
is pretty straightforward, Swiftech includes mounting hardware
for all of the major socket types, and the reservoir fits into
an available 5.25" bay. The pump is small enough that you
can place it pretty much anywhere in the bottom of the case.
All that's left to do now is measure out the hose and cut it
to fit. Remember its always best to cut it to long than to cut
it to short, give yourself an inch or two on each piece.
After everything was installed and I had filled
it as much as I could without power, I hooked the pump up to
an external power supply and turned it on to get the liquid
flowing and top it off. It's always a good idea to do a test
run with no power to your hardware so I let it run on the external
PSU overnight and checked for leaks the next day.
The next day I was leak free so I closed the case
up, took it off the workbench and hauled it back upstairs to
start the testing.
