cpu fan question

[kazz0817]

i have a upper side fan on my case which i have blowing directly towards my cpu also a cpu fan blowing down onto the cpu

However i just bought a zalman cooler which is huge (the flower type ones) and not sure if i ca change the airflow of the fan on it (unsure how to remove fan) should i turn my upper left case fan facing out of the case and have cpu fan blowing the same way so that the cpu fan is blowing directly into my upper left exhaust fan? or should i have cpu fan blowing to cpu and upper left case fan exhausting (opposite to cpu)

[RJS2]

You should have your cpu fan blowing down on the heatsink/cpu and if your case fan your talking about is on top then i would have that blowing outwards since hot air rises would make your case cooler on the inside , since heat gets stuck at the top and has no where to go.

[kazz0817]

no the fan i mean is on the side door upper (facing cpu fan)

[Panama Red]

Air flow is an interesting subject and results vary from one case to another. Any fan mounted in the rear OR above the mid line of the case should exhaust air from the case (blow out). Any fan mounted in the front or below the mid line should intake air to the case (blow in). However, you never want more intake volume than exhaust since that will cause a pressure build up inside the case and prevent the proper evacuation of the heated air inside. My suggestion would be a trial and error experiment. Start with the side fan disconnected. Make sure you have plenty of rear exhaust and unobstructed intake. You can enhance the intake with an additonal fan but it may not be necessary. Check your case temps and cpu temps and keep track of the effects the changes make. Once you have a stable case temp, try running the side fan as an additional exhaust and see what effect that has on the temps. Then reverse that side fan and make it blow in. See if the temps go up or down. I don't believe anyone is going to give you the definitive answer on which way is best. You'll be better off experimenting.

[Cricket]

However i just bought a zalman cooler which is huge (the flower type ones) and not sure if i ca change the airflow of the fan on it (unsure how to remove fan) should i turn my upper left case fan facing out of the case and have cpu fan blowing the same way so that the cpu fan is blowing directly into my upper left exhaust fan? or should i have cpu fan blowing to cpu and upper left case fan exhausting (opposite to cpu)The Zalman heatsink was engineered so that the fan blows towards the CPU...you don't want to change the direction the fan is blowing or you could end up with higher CPU temps.

As far as the side fan goes, do as Panama Red suggested to find out which orientation works best for your particular computer.

:) Cricket

[kazz0817]

huge help thanks guys

[kazz0817]

quick question, my front intake is an 80mm and it doesnt feel like it is doing much, it seems to blow fine but it doesnt seem to suck much in, is this normal? maybe its sucking more in than i can tell but i have to wet my finger and place it near the fan to feel anything being pulled in, yet on the other side it feels a little stronger the airflow, is it possible to get more powerfull 80mm fans? im using the stock 80mm thermaltake that came with my xaser V case, should i keep it or look for something more powerfull (if possible) also where will i find powerfull 80mm fans online (UK) or a good fan store, recommendations would be great

[Yuanji]

i think it's always easier to notice exhaust then intake no matter what simply because the force of the air isnt going into your hand. more powerful fans are availible but usually you want to keep the exhaust power either equal or slightly more then your intake. if you don't mind noise, vantec tornados are amazing power. you could also look towards the panaflo line for quieter performance although i'm not sure how well their 80mm series performs.

[glc]

Disconnect the front fan and see what that does. I've stopped using front fans - the exhaust fans will draw air through the case.

[Panama Red]

Disconnect the front fan and see what that does. I've stopped using front fans - the exhaust fans will draw air through the case.

I agree with glc. Disconnecting and removing the front fan often "opens up" the intake area and allows a better flow of air from the front to the back with just the rear fan "pulling" the air thru. Hence my mention of "unobstructed" air intake in my ealier post.