How do rotary fittings work? How can they rotate and still not leak? Well, as always, we like to demonstrate things in high detail. Therefore, here is a cross section of a 45° rotary adapter.

As we said, there are rotary adapters and the ones that cannot rotate, called fixed adapters. In the following photo, on the left side, we can see two static extenders, while the two on the right are rotary extenders.

Everyone can inspect the outer elements of the adapter fitting: it has a female G1/4“ inlet at the top, an O-ring and a male G1/4“ thread at the bottom. But here you can see what is happening on the inside, and it is actually quite simple. Two O-rings allow the rotation while preventing leakages. The third component is a steel ring that prevents the top part being separated from the base.

Static extenders can be really short, just 6mm, and up to 50mm in length. Both fixed and rotary extenders come in versions that have male/female and male/male G1/4” ends.

Extenders and angled fittings can come in handy in any give situation. Their main role is to simplify the building process of a water cooling loop. For example:

Two components can often happen to be too close to one another, and both soft and hard tubings have a limit of the radius at which they can be bent. In these cases, the use of angled adapters is necessary.

One of the greatest features that EKWB can be proud of is the option to tighten and release the adapters with a size 9 Allen key.

All of our static extenders have this feature that allows you to safely tighten and unscrew the adapters without damaging them from the outside. Spaces and fittings sometimes end up being screwed in too tight, and the only way to release them is with some pliers, which is a sure way to damage them. But with using an Allen key on the inside of the adapter, you are preventing any aesthetical damage.

The feature and compatibility with the Allen key is extended to both our HDC fittings and barbed fittings as well. But unlike some other companies (on the left) that use size 8 Allen key, EKWB (fitting on the right) uses bigger holes that are compatible with a larger, number 9 Allen key, so that high flow rates remain unharmed.

Moving on to the next subject, to talk about ball valves and splitters. These two types of special connectors are usually used together. Since every intervention in a water cooling loop requires the system to be drained, what other thing can be more ideal for that, than a ball valve?