Improving airflow in computer case

[Alexandre]

Hi guys.

 

I was wondering if you could help me decide what to do about the airflow in my computer case.

 

Ok so I have my computer (specs in my signature) which I bought about 6 months ago and being a bit ignorant at the time (still ignorant now but hopefully not as much as before ), I bought an el-cheapo case (~$50 AUD) which I thought looked half decent - not really thinking about the airflow.

Now I realize that that was a bit of a mistake...

Anyway this is what the case looks like:

Sorry for the rotation, imageshack randomly rotates it this way no matter what I try

 

As you can see the case has pretty limited ventilation. Here's a picture inside the case and one of the vent panel (has a cpu vent and grill). Also included some arrows to show airflow:

 

Problem 1:Dusty

It has only one chassis intake fan at the back and no outtake fan (excluding the power supply fan system). This means that it gets pretty dusty inside...

This is a pic of the HD5850 underside - a bit too dusty for my liking.

 

And here's a pic of part of the stock cpu fan which came with the i7 930 -You can see the dust build-up inside the heat sink.

 

Problem 2:Not much air cooling the HD

My hard-drive sits at the front of the case and has really no air getting to it. It gets pretty hot at times so thats a bit of a concern. There is a spot for a fan to sit near the HD but its not populated and is blocked by the front of the case:

 

Problem 3:Its just plain old hot when graphics card and cpu goes under load

Pretty much says it all - it gets to 80 degrees Celsius in there at times and the Aussie heat doesn't help

 

So how would you guys suggest I could improve the airflow in my case to reduce or get rid of the above 3 problems?

 

I was thinking of maybe moving the hd down a few slots, buying a 120 mm fan for the front of the case (near the hd where I can mount it - see pic above) and maybe removing the two floppy drive "slot blockers" at the front to let some air in through the front. What you guys think of this idea?

I was also thinking of mounting one or two 120 mm fans to the side air outtake vent blowing air out so that there could be a bit more of a pressure balance within the case.I say maybe two because apparently I hear that its better to have a slightly lower pressure within the case to reduce dust.

 

Also, I think it's time to get rid of that stock cpu fan (its got too much dust in it anyway ) and buy a decent cpu cooler in the $60 and below AUD range. Which ones would you guys suggest considering I'm not going to be doing much OC'ing but would still like to keep the cpu cooler than it is (right now ~ 50 degrees Celsius no load))

 

Or should I quit fretting with all this 'fan' business and just get a better case????

 

~Btw if there are too many questions here for a single thread Ill be happy to split this thread up into smaller topics (ie ask about the cpu cooler in a more relevant section). Let me know ~

 

Thanks in advance.

Edited December 16, 2010 by Alexandre

[wevsspot]

Alexandre -

 

The fan opening at the front of the case (in front of your drive rack) probably draws air up from under the bezel if you have a fan installed. The other option would be to remove the optical drive panels in the bezel and replace them with a couple of filtered bay covers for the fan to draw air directly into the case.

 

Change the fan at the back of the case to exhaust instead of intake.

 

If you're handy with tools, you could easily use a hole saw to cut an intake hole for a 120mm or 140mm fan in the side panel.

 

So in the end you would have;

 

1 front fan - intake

1 side panel fan - intake

1 rear fan - exhaust

 

If you wanted to get really creative you could attack the top panel of the case with the hole saw again and put another exhaust fan at the top of the case.

 

Here's a mod I did on an acrylic side panel window to add a 140mm fan;

 

http://forums.overclockersclub.com/index.php?showtopic=175283&st=0&p=1809546&hl=lianli%20lancool&fromsearch=1entry1809546

[bigball1]

 

If you're handy with tools, you could easily use a hole saw to cut an intake hole for a 120mm or 140mm fan in the side panel.

 

 

 

A Dremel is a good friend to have.

Edited December 16, 2010 by Bigball1

[Locutus]

 

Definitely tidy up the cables too. It'll help with the airflow.

[TimeMachine]

Even with a good airflow case/ ventilation set up, your stock i7 cooler is still the culprit ; invest in a nice cooler and you will see a major difference.

[sticknstone]

To lower case temperature the warm air in the case needs to be exhausted; Therefore, turning the rear fan so that it exhausts air would be a benefit. Creating a flow of outside air through the case is ideal; Because warm air rises and cool air drops, exhaust fans are better suited to the top of the case, and intake fans are better on the bottom of the case. The flow here would be from bottom front all the way across to the top back. Another flow could go from the middle and bottom front to top rear. System pressures are created by cfm used; When greater cfm is exhausted than intaked the pressure is negative and air will enter the case from the loose joints, and the opposite will cause a positive case pressure resulting in air exiting the case from the loose joints, and lastly equal flow in and out of the case will see no air enter or exit the case from the loose joints.

 

Dust will enter a case from the air that enters the case. Therefore, use filters and avoid negative case pressure. Cases, filters, and fans need to be periodically cleaned. Dust is ubiquitous.

[dihartnell]

That case has limited airflow and the little you have is obstructed by the cables and there are no dust filters by the look of it. I think the rear fan should be exhaust and you need some intake fans at the front, tidy the cables.

 

Personally I don't think its worth the effort I would get a new case like a CM 690II advanced or a Lancool K62. Both have good airflow, build quality, cable management and dust filters. Make sure you give the CPU cooler a god clean out whichever way you go.

[joel.monteiro]

That was my old case,i improved gpu temps,by keeping an 80mm fan just resting on the back of the card,on the back plate,reduses gpu temps but 3-4 degrees..and add a fan(80mm) between the vent and the grill degrees cpu temps,get some high rpm fan for the back exhaust and even front intake.

[UT66]

I see lots of common issues here. first is best to start with a good case, one with proper dust filters. ( intake) No dust filters.

second? aftermarket coolers for both the cpu anf gpu. This things are all "must " if you care about the longevity of your pc.

if you dont want to change that case, you could start by:

 

1) blocking that side hole with some duck tape pronto, ( thats a huge dust magnet there if you daont want to see that swap panels)

 

2) buying 1 Hyper 212 Plus for the cpu + a 120 rear fan.

 

3) Drilling a hole @ removing that nasty 120 grill from the back ( improves temps and noise from the fan you can do it with pliers)

 

4) do not buy a front cooler, in your case is going to make things even worst ( more dust) focus on your cpu and gpu first. bigger and slower fands means less noise and dust inside your case ( with proper filters)

[UT66]

Jesus, that rear fan needs to blow the hot air OUT OF THE CASE, fix that pronto amigo i suggest you to go to the silentpcforums , take a look at the gallery you might learn a few things there ( cable, dust management, airflow )

 

 

edit, is see now that the front of the case is quite restrictive and it has no filters... (get one cheap coolemaster or TT case with dust filters?) also forget about that hole near the vga, tape it so no dust gets inside your case, cpu @gpu fans. focus on getting the hot air OUT of the case. lower your temps with better heatsinks, bigger and slower fans, and correct airflow ( no grills, better cable management)

Edited December 16, 2010 by UT66

[Alexandre]

Thanks a tonne for your thoughts guys

 

Jesus, that rear fan needs to blow the hot air OUT OF THE CASE, fix that pronto amigo

I thought so myself when I got the case (the case came with the fans orientated as they are now) so I had it swapped around but that made the computer really hot inside because there was no intake fan :S so I put it back to to how it was as a temporary solution.

 

Ill mull over these suggestions and get back to you when I make my decision about which way I am going to go - new case or fix this case - because both options are reasonably easier to do. I don't want to spend more than $150 for this so that will slightly bottleneck my options if I go new case + cpu cooler - but it's still do-able

Atm I'm leaning more towards buying a new case thats more manageable like the CM 690II advanced as you suggested dihartnell

[Alexandre]

Got around to getting the Li-Lan Lancool k62 case and Thermaltake Contac 29 cpu cooler today! Loving it and thanks for your help again guys.

Gave my old case to my brother. Good luck to him haha

 

Heres a few pics of my new case: