Water-cooling newbie question

what you do is you connect everything together. using clamps and or zip ties. you will have to jump start your psu and give power to the pump and nothing else. you have to do a leak test for at least 24 hours

instructions how to jump start a psu

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It depends on what you're cooling. If it's CPU-only, it shouldnt be a problem, but if youre cooling the video card, mofset/northbridge, then you might want to have it installed before you leak test. You simply install all the blocks you need to install and plug in your wires. You'd only spring a leak if you incorrectly put the hose on the barbs, if the barbs are broken or if your tubing has an obvious cut in it. The components are factory-built and tested so that they don't leak, and more often than not, they dont leak. When you connect your tubing to the barbs you need to make sure the tubing is securely held on the barbs so add some worm clamps and zipties. To prevent kinks in your tubing, grab some coils, they help keep the structure of the tubing rigid as it bends.

Choose between a reservoir or a t-line. Reservoirs are easier but i personally prefer a t-line. top up your res/tee and turn on your pump. btw make sure your pump is on the lowest part of your loop so it sucks in water from the top and pushes it out the side. The pump will push the liquid through and will clear the air trapped in your blocks. the more blocks you use, the more air will be present. Once you see your tee empty, stop the pump and top it off again. similarly, for your res, keep it full as much as possible. the idea is to clear out all the air bubbles and let it flow to the top. tip your case and shake it around to help get rid of the bubbles.

^^^^ that whole process is called bleeding the system, to get rid of air bubbles. To leak test, simply place paper towels under the points where the tubing connects either to a barb or an input. watch the paper towel for drips and you'll know you have a leak, and possibly how to fix it. The best way to spot leaks is to first use a UV-Reactive fluid and a UV Cold Cathode. If there are any leaks in the corner of your computer or places where you would not normally see, the cold cathode will light it up.

Im personally ordering some non-conductive fluid from NCIX for my first bleed to help for leak testing because if anything spills on my components, it wont short it. For expensive components like yours, id suggest something like that too. the non-conductive fluid wont stay non-conductive forever, because when it flows it collects ions which alter its charge, which makes it conductive. but this happens over time, so the fluid will stay non-conductive for long enough until you finish leak-testing and bleeding your pc. If it becomes conductive later on, it wouldnt matter because your pc should already be leak-proof by then. after some time you can just buy yourself some biocide and use it with water instead of the non-conductive fluid.

good luck with your wc loop