Who needs case fans when you've get desk fans?

If I get some wire mesh or something like that from home depot, mounted it over the side of my computer and opened my side panel, and then put a high powered electric fan right next to the tower and blow air inside it like the dickons... what would be the draw back to that? Case fans move such little air. Some electric fans can move more then 1000 cfm on low settings. Thoughts?

I have been constantly searching for new and creative ways to cool the system I wish to buy effectively. I've even considered putting my computer in a mini freezer and punching holes in the back to feed the wires (I would still- but anything big enough is too big and too expensive).

Has anybody else heard of any exotic ways to cool a computer? Ideas are always appreciated (and usually amusing )

Here we go again, quite a few threads try to explain that this will not work. Has someone actually tried it (and posted any pics)? I would love to see the damage done...

Lol, if this thread will offend people then please ignore it and I won't bring up the subject again. Not worth getting flamed over. CtrlAltDel, I would be interested in reading those threads if you could post them.

EDIT: I did find a cheap box fan (35 dollars) that is supposed to be relatively quite, and move more then 2000 cfm. Very exciting! And cheaper overall then six to eight high powered case fans that couldn't couldn't move half of that.

Well, I doubt anyone was talking about the individual pieces of dust actually punching through a component, the problem is the collection of dust. Dust will collect in all the cracks between the fins of heatsinks and anywhere else it can hang on. The collection builds and becomes an insulator, keeping all that heat nice and close to the components.

Anyway, enough about the obvious concerns with dust. Fans have been getting larger and larger for a reason. Larger fans can push more air at lower (quieter) speeds. So the idea of a larger fan is actually a good one, however you gotta think of air flow too. Pointing the fan at the board just makes the air hit the board, but you don't know what kind of chaos that's going to produce. Pushing more air over it will help move it along, but you won't be getting the kind of movement you would from something as simple as royalcrown's idea. You want a FIFO air flow, the first air in should be the first air out, without proper flow, this will not be the case. That means the warmer air could be trapped in a pocket in the chaos (think whirlpool in a white water river).

I might actually google the heating properties of air since I'm curious to see if there's actually a point where the air's ability to absorb the heat effectively is actually hindered by movement. I mean, if you think about it, heat isn't absorbed instantly, maybe moving the air particles too fast could actually not give it enough time to absorb any heat? That would be freaky!

szwaba67 you're right, installing an out-take fan moves heat better than an in-take fan - finally firefighting has helped me solve somebodys problems over the internet. if you want to get REALLY technical then you could set up a small hose before the out-take fan which creates a lower pressure (if i remember correctly) and can massively increase the heat out-take. bahahaha if you're really worried about it then you could take everything out of your case and fill it with smoke and try running the fans without the parts in it - this will allow you to see how effective your fan placement is

^lol

mothergoose... I'm not sure what you mean. The "hot particles" that you refer to are AIR, thus, the cooler AIR (cooler particles) that are colliding into the "hot particles" are simply "moving" the heat away. You say AIR doesn't absorb heat, well how the heck did those particles get hot!? Once the cooler air is in the space that the hotter air once was, it absorbs the heat from the components and thus becomes hotter than the cooler air being forced to it.

I do like your theory on "the way air works" but it doesn't seem right. The idea of a pocket is that the air around the pocket is colliding into only the outer edges of the pocket, forcing the air in the middle of the pocket to swirl. I agree SOME air is moved through this pocket, but it still creates a hot spot because not ALL of the air is moved. Think of the back of a pickup truck on a highway (please excuse this seemingly redneck comparison). You get an air pocket causing air to swirl in the back, so if there's leaves or something they just swirl around and around. Sometimes they fly out when the pocket is disrupted, otherwise, just swirl around and around. Picture this on a much smaller scale, with just AIR, the warm air particles instead of leaves, and fans inside a case instead of 60Mph speeds on a highway. Why is that not valid?

It's the summer, people are getting desperate.

lmao...you serious??

Anyway, if you're going to leave the side open, there's no need for a huge fan. You just need a small desk fan at the bottom in the front of the case pointing towards the base of the processor heatsink. This provides more than enough cooling for all of your components.

I like it

in winter just open the window better than a fan

why you care about dust it wont damage your pc
just buy a can of compressed air and done
my pc is covered with dust and it work fine

Actually, I may have found a better solution. I found a case that comes onboard with the power supply I want and a 250mm side intake fan. That's almost the size of a small desk fan. I went shopping to see if I could find a 250mm case fan with good airflow and there aren't really any that push a lot of air for that size (most I saw was 105 cfm... good but not what I want). Is is possible to up the rpms on a fan like this with a fan controller to be able to move more then this much air ( a lot more)? Can you adapt other types of fans to fit in a case? What are the specifications for a fan such as this if I wanted to go to a hardware store and try to find something similar? (I know it is 12v and the size but not sure what else it important).

btw thats a 500cfm fan

Do you personally use any of these fans Laminator? I really appreciate the links- very helpful. I will be using one of these more then likely.

Question: Do they have independent outlet jacks or can they be modded to fit a powersupply (or both- an independent jack might be nice)? Do you know how much cubic feet these move? The link didn't post. Thanks again

EDIT: Nevermind the airflow question, I can't read .

Your probably right... I don't need a fan that big. But I want one. Besides, I looked at the fans you posted (the 250mm one anyway), and it only moves 105 cfm. The one laminator posted moves 500 cfm.

Rubix- the fans are AC not DC so if you pull them with a PSU I would be truly amazed. Also if used for exaust it would allow for negative pressure within the case, and the laws of physics do apply you're right, outside air will fill the void left by negative pressure.

mothergoose- the ones that i use from time to time are pretty old now but are very similar to http://www.grainger.com/Grainger/items/3LE74 except in a 115 v unit rather than 230v. These fans are AC and you're PSU is DC meaning that you'll have to use a wall outlet. What i do with the 2 i have, i don't even mount them. I have a cooler master rc-690 case which is pretty much all mesh. I just place the two high speed fans on top of the case and use them for exhaust and believe me they put a hellacious amount of air.
Let me know what you decide on and how it turns out i may decide to try something like this (more permanent) myself

Ahhh...I guess I didn't look closer.

Still, you can never achieve lower than ambient temps with air (or water) and you are still dependent upon the ability of your heatsinks to effectively transport heat away from the processors and into the heatsink where it can be conducted to the passing air.

Why not make it good?

http://www.mdhydro.com/squirrel-cage-fans.html

Cut holes, mount to side of case, plug in wall. I am guessing CFM isn't always an apples to apples comparison. Next step is a diesel powered wind turbine...

o i totally agree with you, u won't get below ambiant on air or water, but half the fun of modding is being over zealous and extravogant.

wow lol if thats your system will u please pics i've gotta see it

Wow, that's amazing. Are the temps under load?

How much did the water block cost you? Does it get your mobo and gpu as well?

I think I took that just after I ran 3dmark06...under load I haven't seen it hit above 50C on any core. GPU never gets above 48C. NB is also cooled by a waterblock; I might not have been allowed me to hit those speeds without cooling the NB with water.

I think the CPU block was ~$55
NB block ~$25(?)
GPU block ~$40 ($45?)

I have used these same blocks for the last 3 builds...just needed different brackets for the GPU; CPU blocks usually come with 3-4 diff brackets, but LGA has been the same...

i'm gonna have to check this out when i get home, stupid work computer won't let me see pics

Saw a guy at a LAN that had done something similar with a refridgerator condenser. He had the coils running through a tank (what appeared to be a 5gal fish tank) full of coolant which he had pumped using a fish pond pump and 1" tubing and some copper junction blocks he found and milled a little. He got below ambient temps (obviously), and was sitting around 2-5C under load that way. It was pretty ugly looking, though.

I guess a 5 gallon bucket full of dry ice and water with some fittings running in and out might also suffice, but like this guy, make transporting your rig difficult. He had a 5 gallon bucket full of coolant and had to reprime his entire system every time he moved it. Not cool. Mine is set up with the case strap in place...grab and go.

I started out pretty basic, my first mod was carving Matrix glyphs into the side of an old case and adding green cathodes behind plexi. Looked OK, I had shards of steel in my hands for a week. Thank you tetnus shots.

Watercooling leads you down new roads for customizing.