New to water cooling, need help?

Start with a RASA kit...one of the best bangs for the buck for a person just starting out water cooling.

Like this one:

http://www.sidewindercomputers.com/xsra750rswak1.html

It's expandable. Just replace the tubing as the tubing that comes with it isn't the best quality.

Basically, there are five components to a water cooling loop

CPU/GPU/Mobo/Ram Block
Radiator
Pump
Reservoir/T-line
Tubing

The block works essentially the same as an air cooler, except that instead of having air cooling down the heatsink, the waterblock uses cooled down water. It's equivalent to imagining a fan blowing during a hot summers day verses going inside of the pool for a swim.

The radiator is the main medium for heat exchange in the system. After the water has left the block, it should travel to the radiator to cool the water that has been previously heated up. When people talk about a "360" they mean how many 120mm fans can be used to mount the radiator. In this case, the overall length of the radiator is 360mm, which can mount three 120mm fans.

The pump is what moves the water through the components. The more stuff that you have in your loop, the more powerful your pump will have to be. Normally in a one block configuration, it won't really matter what type of pump you use. However, when doing loops with multiple blocks and radiators, there will be a lot more restriction, so that you will have to have something to move the water along more quickly

The reservoir helps to keep the water in the loop and also serves as a way for you to easily fill your loop. However, instead of using a reservoir, you could also use a T-line, which is basically just a piece of tubing that runs through the intersection of your radiator and pump. This tube will store the extra water, and is generally much cheaper than buying a reservoir. However, it will take much longer for you to bleed the water throughout the system

And of course, don't forget about the tubing of your system =D.

This is a basic overview of what each component does, and if you have any more specific questions, just post them down below

As Mongoloid said, you should probably start with a kit. The Rasa RS240 kit is a great choice.

It comes with everything you need. Tubing, fittings, CPU block, reservoir, pump, radiator & fans are all included.

Tubing size matters very little--just pick one. I use ID3/8" OD1/2". Just make sure you buy fittings that are the same size as the tubing you choose.

The pump doesn't have to be directly connected to the res--they sell some Bay reservoirs that will allow this--but the only important thing to keep in mind is that your pump needs to be directly after the res in the loop. Always make sure that the Res feeds the pump.

There's not a big difference between the Phobya Res and the EK Res, it's going to be mostly aesthetics. The EK res has internal tubes that help "route" the water flow, making it easier to bleed and isolate air bubbles. The Phobya res has an "anti-cyclone" adapter installed.

Musicfan maintains a very helpful beginners guide to LC here.

This guide has been updated many times and he keeps it up to date with the latest info. Additionally, there is the parts guide on the same forum and the All-in-one kit guide.

All were very helpful to me years ago when I first got into LC... and more recently, the parts guide was helpful with my last build.