Best PETG Tubing For Water Cooling
Creating a Custom Water Cooled PC is an exciting (and expensive) hobby for many hardware enthusiasts. An adequate custom loop can cool both your processor and graphics card efficiently. It brings down the thermals and gives you a lot of overclocking headroom. However, most of you already know this stuff, and we assume that’s why you’re here.
So let’s cut to the chase. You need help deciding on the tubing for your custom loop. Soft tubing is easier to work with, but doesn’t look as attractive. Hard-line tubing looks much better and has a lower chance of leaking. However, keep in mind that hard tubing is harder to work with, and takes some critical thinking to do properly. We recommend PETG for the most part, as Acrylic is harder to bend and can shatter.
Fortunately, picking which tubing to use isn’t difficult. Just make sure the size of the tubing matches the fittings, and you’re good to go. However, with so many manufacturers out there, there can be subtle differences here and there. So let’s get down to the nitty-gritty. Here are some of the best PETG tubings for Water Cooling.
1. Thermaltake Pacific V-Tubler PETG Tubing
Best Overall
Pros
- 100% PETG tubing
- Thick wall design
- Non-toxic substances
- Works with most fittings
- Competitive price
Cons
- None worth mentioning
Length: 500mm | Inner Diameter: 12mm | Outer Diameter: 16mm
Check PriceThermaltake is one of the bigger brands when it comes to water cooling components. They make radiators, fans, pumps, reservoirs, CPU blocks, and much more. Thermaltake’s Pacific brand has been quite successful. A lot of enthusiasts swear by Thermaltake and only use their components. The Pacific V-Tubler PETG Hard Tubing is one of those components.
This entire package contains 4 PETG tubings which are 500mm in length. That should be enough to build a custom loop inside a mid-tower case. However, you can always buy more tubings if need be. These tubings use only PETG, and Thermaltake makes sure that cheap materials are avoided.
The tubings have an outer diameter of 16mm and an inner diameter of 12mm. As you can probably guess, they are thicker than your average PETG tubing, so they can fill up space inside your case. In terms of durability, the wall design is quite thick, so the possibility of a leak is quite low. Of course, you should always double-check your fittings, just to be on the safe side.
They even use non-toxic materials, so that no bacteria can reside in these tubings. Of course, you’ll have to use a proper biocide or coolant to make sure of this. Furthermore, these tubes are easy to cut and work perfectly with Thermaltake’s bending kit. The tubing is also quite versatile, as they work with a wide variety of compression fittings.
Overall, we don’t have any bones to pick with these tubes. They are well-made, durable, and crystal-clear. It’s a safe bet for anyone looking for high-quality hard-line tubing.
2. XSPC PETG Hardline Tubing
Tried And True Tubing
Pros
- High transparency
- Trusted and reliable brand
- Great overall quality
- 8 tubes make it a great value
Cons
- Outer surface may require sanding
Length: 500mm | Inner Diameter: 10mm | Outer Diameter: 14mm
XSPC is one of the more premium water cooling brands when it comes to performance. It’s not wrong to say that they are one of the few original companies that have been a part of the community since its inception. They make GPU blocks, CPU blocks, tubing, radiators, and even coolants. They’re one of the few companies completely focused on water cooling only products.
So, it shouldn’t be a major surprise to see them on this list. Since they only make a handful of products, quality control is quite excellent. Their complete laser focus means they always provide a splendid experience. Their PETG tubing is no different in this regard.
The tubing has high transparency and is easy to see through. This is perfect if you were planning on using distilled water or a clear coolant for your water-cooled system. What’s even better is that these come without any marks or lines that are visible. This is a major problem with cheaper tubings, so it’s good to see XSPC address it. Quality control is a major issue with random parts like this, but XSPC takes good care of that.
These have an outer diameter of 14mm and an inner diameter of 10mm. The wall thickness comes in at about 2mm. This pack includes 8 tubes, each coming in at a length of 50cm. This makes it an incredibly good value overall. On top of that, they are easy to manage and even easier to bend. These eight pipes should be enough for most full-tower cases as well, depending on the layout.
There is one small annoyance, the outer surface does require sanding to properly create a tight seal. However, this is common with most tubings, but something novices should be aware of. You can barely call that a dealbreaker, and with so many benefits to these pipes, they earn an easy recommendation from us.
3. EKWB EK-HD PETG Tubing
The Enthusiast Pick
Pros
- Near perfect transparency
- Lengthy and durable
- Easy to work with
Cons
- A bit expensive compared to others
- Hard to find bending kits
Length: 1000mm | Inner Diameter: 10mm | Outer Diameter: 12mm
EKWB is widely considered as the favorite enthusiast brand. There isn’t any real rhyme or reason to this, apart from quality. Well, to be honest, quality control can be quite hit and miss in a niche hobby like this. So, it’s good to see that there are brands out that enjoy making water cooling components, with great quality. Hence, we love using their products.
That’s all there is to it. In the world of water cooling, fancy gimmicks and marketing terms don’t matter. Both the companies and the consumers know this. That’s why you’ll always see that pure quality always succeeds. However, sometimes that can come at a cost. Whether you are willing to pay up for a premium experience is entirely up to you.
That scenario remains the same for EKWB’s EK-HD PETG Tubing. First, let’s get the good stuff out of the way. These are pure PETG tubes made of high-quality material. They are one of the best feeling hard-tubings out there. They are easy to cut, easy to work with, and even easier to bend.
The tubes have an inner diameter of 10mm and a 12mm outer diameter. A clear color scheme means that you can easily show off your components or the color of the coolant. In terms of quality, it doesn’t get better than this. However, there’s a catch. Bending kits can be a bit harder to find for tubes with a 12mm outer diameter.
Other than that, these tubes are also relatively expensive compared to competitors. Still, it’s not by a huge margin, and by investing in these, you can be set for the long run. Of course, that decision completely depends on you.
4. Barrow PETG Tubing (Normal Temperature)
Narrow 12mm Tubing
Pros
- Average 70°C bending temp
- Narrow and sleek
- Unrestricted flow
Cons
- Harder to bend
- Slightly expensive
Length: 500mm | Inner Diameter: 8mm | Outer Diameter: 12mm
Next up, we have a brand that may be familiar to some folks. However, for the most part, the majority of people have not heard of Barrow. That is unless you are deeply-rooted inside the watercooling community. Barrow products come straight from China, and they are one of the bigger Chinese based water cooling companies.
The Barrow PETG tubing has been incredibly popular in Asia. This is because bigger companies like Thermaltake or EKWB aren’t available in most of those countries. Barrow realizes this and cashes in on those large markets. It also helps that their products are just as good, if not entirely similar. The clear PETG tubing makes sure that your coolant is visible.
They have a normal bending temperature of about 70°C. The inner diameter clocks in at 8mm, while the outer diameter or OD sits at 12mm. These tubings are about 50cm or 500mm in length. Remember, these are 12mm tubes, so you’ll need 12mm fittings. While the inner diameter is small, the flow of liquid is thankfully unrestricted. Some people might prefer this narrow look after all.
There’s is a small downside, however. Since these tubes are a bit narrower than the others, they are a bit harder to bend. They aren’t exactly difficult to work with, but you’ll have to take your time and have some patience with them.
5. Monsoon Hardline PETG Tubing
Budget Pick
Pros
- Low chance of leaks
- Lengthy tubes
- Several color options
Cons
- Inconsistent quality
- Requires proper sanding
Length: 1000mm (about 36-inch) | Inner Diameter: 10mm | Outer Diameter: 12mm
Last but not least, we have Monsoon’s updated version of their hardline tubing. Monsoon is another one of those brands that are completely focused on creating products for water cooling. While their overall quality is amazing, there are a few issues here and there.
These premium virgin PETG tubes are made out of high-quality material. They are plasticizer-free, which means they won’t leak in any situation. They come in at a length of 36-inches, which is about 1000m (914.4 exactly). Monsoon tubings come in a variety of colors, but we recommend picking up the clear ones for most people.
Clear tubings are more versatile, and you can pick any sort of coolant color you want. This way your rig will look aesthetically pleasing. Monsoon promises to deliver on both looks and reliability. These tubes are easy to route, and you can bend them to appear to your liking.
All those unsightly and expensive adapters are a thing of the past. It’s exciting to see that mainstream water cooling has gotten much easier over the years. Creating a clean and economical loop doesn’t require a lot of in-depth knowledge or money. However, there are a few things that bother us about these tubings.
They are easy to work with, sure. However, the outer diameter can be a bit inconsistent. You’ll have to sand it properly so that it can sit securely in the fittings. Apart from that, some users reported that they were delivered tubings with marks on them. Inconsistency seems to be an issue here. Just know where you are ordering from.
