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SVC.COM Cooling guides: Basic Case Cooling |
There are many ways to go about
cooling your PC. From OEM air cooling to the growing demand for
water cooling,
no matter what you have in your system, keeping your computer cool is top
priority. If your computer is running hot, its life span may be drastically
lowered, you may run into stability issues, and you run greater risk of damaging key components in your computer.
Computer components these days are getting more expensive and we want to help you get
the most from your hard earned money.
Lets focus on air cooling inside your
case. We will cover how
to get the max amount of cooling to balance your noise level and cooling to have the best of both
worlds. When looking at a computer that's all set up with the top of the line
heat sinks, high flow fans, and lighting to rival the Las Vegas strip, it all
screams "COOL!" But is it running as cool as it looks? Lets find out.
The key to setting up a computer to run cool is the case. You want your
case to intake as much fresh airflow as possible. The airflow in
your case is what keeps your components cool and The last thing you want
is a case that keeps hot air in. Proper fan placement will be the
main factor in keeping the air inside your case fresh and
cool.
LEARNING TO FLOW
Proper airflow can make or break your computers cooling efficiency, and knowing what makes for good
airflow and what doesn't is key. You want the air to enter and leave your case
as fast as it can keeping a fresh supply of cool air in your case at all times.
While doing this you want that air to flow over key components like your CPU,
hard drives, video cards and anything else needing to be kept cool.
The most common case layout uses a front
fan intake and a rear
fan
exhaust.
The ideal situation for this layout having a higher flow exhaust
fan then intake fan. The higher flowing exhaust fan moves more air then the
intake, creating less air pressure within the case then outside the
case. Because of this difference in pressure, the air inside the system
doesn't stagnate and there is a constant flow of fresh cool air. There are
a lot of ways to regulate your fans to get the desired effect. Products like fan controllers work great and allow the most
flexibility, allowing you to use higher rate fans and turning them down when
noise is an issue. If noise is an issue at all times, running low rate fans up
front and low to mid rate fans in the rear will do the job.
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Here you can see a very basic depiction of good flow in a two 120mm fan case
with PSU. By running a slightly higher flow exhaust set up, the fans
are insured to move the hot air out while cool air constantly fills
the case to replace the hot air that is being removed. |
Adding a side fan and top fan is another way to add some more airflow to
your case, but keep in mind you want to keep the exhaust fans at a
higher flow rate then your intake, to insure that the hot air leaves
your case and is replenished by nice cool air. Try not to go
overboard with adding additional fans though, to many fans can cause
air turbulence inside your case disrupting the airflow
inside; possibly even hindering efficiency.
So now that you know what
makes for good airflow, There are a few other things you should look into when
trying to increase even more airflow in your case;
cable management and higher flow fans
are just a few steps you can take to increasing airflow. Keeping your computer
cool will increase its lifespan, stability, and prevent heat induced
damages to your system.
If you have any comments
concerning this guide, or have any guides you would like to share with us,
please e-mail webmaster@svc.com
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General Cooling Guide 
