Fan Orientation

Psylariser · 14-January-04, 11:26 PM

Ok I have 4 case fans up front, 2 in back, and 1 in the side....how should I orient them???

Currently the front ones are intake, the back ones are exhaust, and I'm not even sure which way the one on the side is pointing.

j-dogg · 14-January-04, 11:34 PM

The set up is fine the way it is. Mine is a little different, I have 2 on the side, the upper one sucks air in over the CPU cooler so it gets cool air, sort of a ducting effect, and the lower one blows hot air out from the hard drives so they don't heat the inside of the system up.

Erad · 14-January-04, 11:36 PM

Maybe you can take a front case fan and make it into a blowhole on top, and the side one should be an intake, blowing over your cards. As far as I know, the rest should be fine.

Edit:

Is there something a person can use to mount a fan horizontally inside a drive bay?

M.D.K. · 14-January-04, 11:39 PM

I'd go with side being exaust, back exaust, front intake. The back of the case is generally warmer than the front, and that way you'll ahve the cooler air moving towards the warmer componenets.

Red02 · 14-January-04, 11:59 PM

What MDK said would probably be the best. In what ever you decide remember warm air rises, and you'll be set.

me_john85 · 15-January-04, 12:18 AM

i find that having the side as intake is better, positive air, but im not sure in your case since you have 4 intake fans already, best way to know is to set it up as exaust take temps then set it up again as intake and take temps

AntiM · 15-January-04, 12:29 AM

Best way is...different for nearly every case. Flip 'em back and forth and take system readings minus the ambient temp. Make a note of it and see what works better.

In my case everything, front, side and rear are intake. The psu and blow holes are exhaust. I know this is the best config for my case because I tried them all. You can make an educated guess and say that positive pressure and turbulent air generally cool better than negative and smooth flow. But it's no substitute for actually testing it out.

spiralz · 15-January-04, 01:14 AM

like few before me, also think it would be the best as front intake and back exaust.... if you can make a top fan, you can make it as an exaust too and the side one as intake..... if you don't want to cut a top fan hole, get a niffty power supply with a buttom fan that would be a great exaust for the worm air on the top... as you can see the amd reference for air cooling here.

hawklen · 15-January-04, 10:01 AM

For me, the best is having my top fan as an exhaust, side fan intake, back two fans intake (feeds the CPU hsf) and my front 4 exhaust. I get the best case temps this way.

14-January-04, 11:26 PM		#1 (permalink)
Psylariser Apex Tech Fanatic	Fan Orientation Ok I have 4 case fans up front, 2 in back, and 1 in the side....how should I orient them??? Currently the front ones are intake, the back ones are exhaust, and I'm not even sure which way the one on the side is pointing.

14-January-04, 11:36 PM		#3 (permalink)
Erad Radic-Hoe Gallery Mod	Maybe you can take a front case fan and make it into a blowhole on top, and the side one should be an intake, blowing over your cards. As far as I know, the rest should be fine. Edit: Is there something a person can use to mount a fan horizontally inside a drive bay? Last edited by Erad; 14-January-04 at 11:49 PM..

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14-January-04, 11:34 PM		#2 (permalink)
j-dogg Mystical Schwinn Guru	The set up is fine the way it is. Mine is a little different, I have 2 on the side, the upper one sucks air in over the CPU cooler so it gets cool air, sort of a ducting effect, and the lower one blows hot air out from the hard drives so they don't heat the inside of the system up.

14-January-04, 11:39 PM		#4 (permalink)
M.D.K. Apex Tech Maniac Supreme	I'd go with side being exaust, back exaust, front intake. The back of the case is generally warmer than the front, and that way you'll ahve the cooler air moving towards the warmer componenets.

14-January-04, 11:59 PM		#5 (permalink)
Red02 Freck-hoe-d	What MDK said would probably be the best. In what ever you decide remember warm air rises, and you'll be set.

15-January-04, 12:18 AM		#6 (permalink)
me_john85 Camp Pen-Hoe-tan's Hoe	i find that having the side as intake is better, positive air, but im not sure in your case since you have 4 intake fans already, best way to know is to set it up as exaust take temps then set it up again as intake and take temps

15-January-04, 12:29 AM		#7 (permalink)
AntiM Aqua Pimp	Best way is...different for nearly every case. Flip 'em back and forth and take system readings minus the ambient temp. Make a note of it and see what works better. In my case everything, front, side and rear are intake. The psu and blow holes are exhaust. I know this is the best config for my case because I tried them all. You can make an educated guess and say that positive pressure and turbulent air generally cool better than negative and smooth flow. But it's no substitute for actually testing it out.

15-January-04, 01:14 AM		#8 (permalink)
spiralz Apex Techie I	like few before me, also think it would be the best as front intake and back exaust.... if you can make a top fan, you can make it as an exaust too and the side one as intake..... if you don't want to cut a top fan hole, get a niffty power supply with a buttom fan that would be a great exaust for the worm air on the top... as you can see the amd reference for air cooling here.

15-January-04, 10:01 AM		#9 (permalink)
hawklen PCApex's Mouthy Stepchild	For me, the best is having my top fan as an exhaust, side fan intake, back two fans intake (feeds the CPU hsf) and my front 4 exhaust. I get the best case temps this way.