I have been using a Zalman 7700 for some time now. Even though I have filters on the 3 intake fans my PC collects an unusual amount of dust. I do very regular & frequent dusting.
More & more I'm getting REALLY tired of cleaning the bloody Zalman hsf. It's a real pain to keep clean even though I use a soft brush which never gets all of it, and compressed air. Of course all this does is spread the dust over the main board & the rest of the components.
So before I go surf shopping I wanted to ask you guys what you might suggest as an efficient alternate hsf that would be less of a cleaning problem.
The CPU is an LG 775 P4 640 3.2.
THNX

I used to clean my 7000 by unbolting it and blowing it out with a straw,

If you get one of those "tower" heatsinks (i.e. AC Freezer series, Scythe series, etc.) the airflow isn't directed into the mainboard (actually, a small part of it IS with the AC Freezer 64 Pro at least, but it's deliberate) so dust buildup should be reduced. It seems to stay cleaner since I switched from the stock Athlon X2 cooler.

Because modern day HSF's use tons of tiny fins for high performance cooling, your gonna have a hard time finding an alternative that won't collect dust!

Sure, you could try something like the "Big Typhoon" from thermaltake, and on the surface it may appear to stay cleaner, but underneath that fan, is nothing more than a dust collection box...

A stock or low performance cooler might have less fins that are spaced wider, but that kind of would go against what you are probably looking for when it comes to cooling.


I don't have any realy good suggestions here, you already have filters on your intakes...short of "Caulking" the PC case so nothing can come in other than through the intakes.

Have you considered maybe using a "Room air cleaner" to pre-filter out some of what is going in in the first place?


And if you are a smoker...well, that would tend to explain alot of the dust problems in the first place!
(I smoke a pack a day myself...so monthly cleaning is a must!)

Filters or water cooling.

Here is a question do you have any exhaust fans in your setup ?
It sounds like you a have a negative pressure system inside which attracts alot more dust

Computer Cooling Guide - Xoxide Resource Center

very good linky on pressure inside a computer case

Sorry to be slow in responding.
Hak I can't face reseating every 2 weeks or so! The main reason for my complaint is because of a lazy streak in me, hehe.
Necro I smoke like a forest fire! I was pretty sure your response to using an alternative would be pretty much as you said except for the "Room Air Cleaner"; I could give that a go.My computer/bedroom is the dustiest room in the apt. & the dustiest I've ever had, but then too this is red clay country!
Air cooled rig with 3 intake, 2 front & 1 top all 80mm. I've heard both sides of the argument for the top one to be exhaust or intake. Few seem to agree on which is better & CoolerMaster does have the factory set up as top being intake.
vegas thnx for the link. Guess I could reverse the top fan & see what difference that might make.
So thnx to all of you!

You might also consider getting a fan controller. When you're not using your rig, you can turn down or even shut off unnecessary fans, and that will help cut down on dust build up... just thought I'd throw that out there since no one else has mentioned it.

Quote: Originally Posted by Jobistober You might also consider getting a fan controller. When you're not using your rig, you can turn down or even shut off unnecessary fans, and that will help cut down on dust build up... just thought I'd throw that out there since no one else has mentioned it.

Hadn't thought of that. There is onboard fan control but that's only for the cpu and 1 case fan. I don't know how to, if you can, add the 3 other fans to the exhaust fan plugged into the mobo. I have a front panel AeroCool fan control but i haven't installed it because of the bloody sensor wires stringing all over the place.

Quote: Originally Posted by chapper Hadn't thought of that. There is onboard fan control but that's only for the cpu and 1 case fan. I don't know how to, if you can, add the 3 other fans to the exhaust fan plugged into the mobo. I have a front panel AeroCool fan control but i haven't installed it because of the bloody sensor wires stringing all over the place.

Try a manual fan controller that you can set yourself... I don't think temp controlled fans would really work in your situation. I bought a 6-port fan controller from FrozenCPU and it works great. No molexes, just wire each fan directly to the controller and a 3-way switch controls each fan's speed individually... from high speed (12v), low speed (~7v), and off... it also has red and blue LEDs to indicate speeds.

I just checked FrozenCPU, and it appears they no longer offer the model controller I have, but the Zally 6 channel controller is inexpensive and looks like it would work well.

EDIT-
Just found it, I guess I was looking in the wrong place. It's a DIY 6-port baybus.

Also what about just using an air compressor or canned air to blow out the heatsink ??
Im guilty of taking my rig out to the garage and just blowing the whole thing down with the air compressor.

Quote: Originally Posted by project vegas Also what about just using an air compressor or canned air to blow out the heatsink ?? Im guilty of taking my rig out to the garage and just blowing the whole thing down with the air compressor.

Have thought about using a compresor but I sold mine a while ago. The canned air won't get all the crud off the fins, at least not for me.

If you use a compressor then use an air dryer with it. They condense a lot of moisture, and be real careful not to blow anything right off the board. I use a regular vaccuum set on low and an adaptor I fabricated from duct tape and aquarium tubing. It's awesome.

Hia there, it been a log time since posting here...(cheers $SOLID$ Necro..) I have been using a TT Big Typhoon for quite some time now.. and I must say It gathers almos no dust on the case at all. ( the case its a TT Tsunami.) over all this is the cleanest case I have ever had even thoug I moved to a rather dusty loft.... the only thing tah gathers dust now Is my zalman GPU cooler.....

So to me the Typhoon is a good idea...

Cheers.

Miguel

Sorry in advance for reviving an old thread, and again if this has been posted before. My main case has an air filter for the intake, but the side fan does not! Makes no sense. Dryer sheets work great for this. They look Ghetto as heck, but just cut them to size, tape them on, and your room now smells like, well, a dryer...

And they are pretty effective filters while not being too restrictive.

E

Quote: Originally Posted by Fred_G Sorry in advance for reviving an old thread, and again if this has been posted before. My main case has an air filter for the intake, but the side fan does not! Makes no sense. Dryer sheets work great for this. They look Ghetto as heck, but just cut them to size, tape them on, and your room now smells like, well, a dryer... And they are pretty effective filters while not being too restrictive. E

Actually I've read about people using those dryer sheets. I'm eventually going to use them on an old rig but the Praetorian case of my main rig has intake filters like those black loofa like screens for air conditioners.

Quote: Originally Posted by chapper Actually I've read about people using those dryer sheets. I'm eventually going to use them on an old rig but the Praetorian case of my main rig has intake filters like those black loofa like screens for air conditioners.

Another idea: I use the Noctua NH-U9 cooler. Expensive, but excellent and quiet at all get out. Put a silent 80mm fan on there, and presto: clean, cool, and quiet. PimpRi-- er, PCApex reviewed it here: PCApex.com - Noctua NH-U9 - NH-U12 CPU Cooler

However, that doesn't solve your dust problems. Suggestions:
1. Always clean w/ vacuum not compression -- compression can do bad things, like blow parts off the board, and (as stated above) generally has a lot of humidity build-up.
2. Whoever mentioned the negative air pressure problem is probably accurate
3. Stop smoking.
4. Check the HVAC for your apartment / house: the filter probably needs changing, and think about filters for your vents (intake and output) around the house / apartment.
5. There is no number 5.
6. If you water cool, you can essentially seal off your entire case so dust doesn't build up. I haven't made that leap myself, but there are plenty of folks here who can tell you how.

Hopin' those help.

-Godling

Quote: Originally Posted by godling Another idea: I use the Noctua NH-U9 cooler. Expensive, but excellent and quiet at all get out. Put a silent 80mm fan on there, and presto: clean, cool, and quiet. PimpRi-- er, PCApex reviewed it here: PCApex.com - Noctua NH-U9 - NH-U12 CPU Cooler However, that doesn't solve your dust problems. Suggestions: 1. Always clean w/ vacuum not compression -- compression can do bad things, like blow parts off the board, and (as stated above) generally has a lot of humidity build-up. 2. Whoever mentioned the negative air pressure problem is probably accurate 3. Stop smoking. 4. Check the HVAC for your apartment / house: the filter probably needs changing, and think about filters for your vents (intake and output) around the house / apartment. 5. There is no number 5. 6. If you water cool, you can essentially seal off your entire case so dust doesn't build up. I haven't made that leap myself, but there are plenty of folks here who can tell you how. -Godling

Yeah well...God I've got a few problems with your suggestions
First off that Noctua probably has as many fins as the Zalman!
You don't have to smell or inhale my second-hand smoke so just lay back & enjoy your clean air
Keep the AC filter clean regularly. Do have the windows open a lot (that nasty cig snoke you know) & don't think you can practically filter those.
Definitely am not going to mess with water cooling, don't game, don't need it.
Hey though! Thanks for the caring post -_+

The quit smoking thing has nothing to do with personal peference when it comes to computers...

The smoke does clog up your air flow. I had a friend who smoked while at his PC, the insides were all brown. So it is advisable to not smoke in the same room as your pc.

Second Hand Smoke Damages Computers [02/13/02]

I know, biased website, though what they say is accurate.

I smoke but I know to clean out my pc every now and then. Plus most smoke rises
and my pc is low. I've never seen a brown buildup on my rig. How much does he
smoke? Does it look like a house fire when he opens the door? HeHeHe

Quote: Originally Posted by TiZakit Second Hand Smoke Damages Computers [02/13/02]

This would be why hard drives are sealed...

Dust inside of your computer has more risk of destroying your hard drive than cigarette smoke. I smoke 2 packs of butts a day, the biggest problem I have with computer parts is my old 21" Trinitron gets a "brownish" film on it after a while, comes right off with a little TurtleWax "Bug and Tar".