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Intake fan in a 5.25 bay (warning - graphics)

post #1 of 327
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I love this pic:
 

 



So simple, so elegant. Published here. A 120mm fan in three slots of a 5.25 bay.

I wanted something like it, but I only had two 5.25 slots. OTOH, one of my four slots was being taken up by an IO unit that was not full depth. What if I mounted my fan behind it?

So I did. Used some foam to pack it in. Here it is from the back:

Beta_Evo_modding_2011-05-06_006.png

Here's what it looks like behind the IO unit:

Beta_Evo_modding_2011-05-06_001.png

Closeup of the friction mount:

Beta_Evo_modding_2011-05-06_002.png

What is it behind?

Beta_Evo_modding_2011-05-06_003.png

Finished unit:

Beta_Evo_modding_2011-05-06_004.png

After that I moved it upstairs. Nice and quiet.



Edit: I swapped out the 120mm Shark for a 140mm. Link is here.

I decided I was dissatisfied with my 120mm intake fan in the 5.25 bay. I thought, I can do better than this:
 

307586a3_5_25_14cm_project_009.png

 

So I looked for a 140mm fan that would run quietly and still push a lot of air. This one allegedly pushes 50cfm at 800rpm:

 

32e13bd0_5_25_14cm_project_013.png

 

But at 140mm it's 10mm taller than the 130mm space occupied by three 5.25 slots. So I would need access to the top of the 5.25 cage. Hence, up came the top:

 

d6743785_5_25_14cm_project_010.png

Here you can see the 120mm fan under the cross bar. You can also see the CCFL transformer, and where it is normally Velcro'd to the top of the case. And then there is the TR-140 top intake fan. Normally the open spot to its left is covered, and the fan itself has a 140mm filter.

Next, a shot from a different perspective:

 

ca81d1b4_5_25_14cm_project_011.png

 

You can see the electronics behind the IO panel that takes up the front of one of my four 5.25 slots.

Padded 120mm Shark vs unpadded 140mm Shark:

 

90bf5466_5_25_14cm_project_014.png

 

Note that even with the padding on the 120mm fan, the 140mm fan is taller.

Here's a fit test of the unpadded 140mm fan in the 5.25 bay:

 

1211989

The blinding spots are pieces of masking tape set at the edges of the fan and the inner edges of the 5.25 bay. As one would expect, there is more than 5mm between the fan and each side of the 5.25 cage walls.

First draft of padding the 140mm fan:

 

af321d5d_5_25_14cm_project_017.png

 

Both kinds of strip foam are from a hardware store. The stuff on the side is actually double sticky. It is also dense foam, and resists compression. This did not fit in the 5.25 bay.

Padded 120mm fan on top of the 1st draft of padding of the 140mm fan:

 

6276a6be_5_25_14cm_project_018.png

 

Although they look close in width, the foam on the 120mm fan has much more give than the stuff on the 140mm fan.

Second draft padding on the 140mm fan, this time on top of the 120mm fan:

 

ad095841_5_25_14cm_project_019.png

 

Yup. Second draft padding allows the 140mm fan to fit in the 5.25 bay:

 

cbacae40_5_25_14cm_project_020.png

 

Note how the top of the 140mm fan is taller than the crossbar. The 120mm fan fit under the crossbar, and needed padding to fill the gap.

140mm Aerocool Shark in place in the 5.25 bay:

 

af4d23ec_5_25_14cm_project_022.png

 

Smoke test - no smoke (which is good):

 

00e55d22_5_25_14cm_project_023.png

 

Now all I have to do it put the screws back and my case will be together again.

And it's back upstairs: I'm typing on it now.

 

BTW -- I put a 140mm fan in the 5.25-inch bay of a Zalman Z11 here.


Edited by ehume - 4/10/13 at 8:07pm
post #2 of 327
Nice job! (I see some room for a few zip ties, but thats just me being me)

I mounted a 120mm in my front bay as well, but it doesn't look this good. And because its set back in the case you can't even see it. I may need to put of few led fans in my case for my next fan upgrade biggrin.gif
post #3 of 327
im currently doing the same thing! im cutting the foam that came with my videocards and make a nice snuggly spot for a fan.
Yep, Aeris died
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Yep, Aeris died
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post #4 of 327
Nice ehume!

I did the same about a week ago when I realized that I didn't use my optical drive for over half a year.
Zip'tied a 14-AP there and got it as close as possible to the front panel. It doesn't suck as much air in as the 140mm below it but still my load temps dropped a nice 2-4 c.

Gonna try get some of that foam! Thanks for the tip.
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post #5 of 327
One tip, softer foam absorbs fan vibrations better, and will not have the strength needed to distort the fan frame. If the foam pushes in the side of the frame enough, it'll make lots of noise, or even block the fan from turning. Less of a problem with the stiffer (and more brittle) clear plastics usually tho.
    
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post #6 of 327
im thinking about doing something like this with my phantom case, i think i have some foam laying around that i might be able to use
   
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post #7 of 327
I just did a full rebuild / air cooling revamp of my PC. And i did the SAME thing smile.gif
I can post a pic later on, but its very simmilar.
post #8 of 327
That's really well done man. I have a 120mm suspended by twist ties in the back of my top cage lol. Foam seems like a much better option. Off to amazon I go.
    
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post #9 of 327
That's a nice job there, I added a fan to the available bay space as well only ghetto style, lol! I used twist ties without the foam and use some extra window screen to slow down the dust intake. It seems to work rather well so far.
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post #10 of 327
Here's mine

1.jpg
2.jpg
3.jpg
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