Fanless PSU Modification

Will_Corrigan · Post by **Will_Corrigan** » Sun Sep 15, 2002 6:37 pm

I'm working with an AT-ish PSU rated at 160W. It powers a Pentium Pro 200 system (the PP200 is passively cooled

) which operates under very minimal loads. How would I go about determining whether or not it would be safe to run the PSU (minus the cover) without a fan?

Thanks,

William

quokked · Post by **quokked** » Sun Sep 15, 2002 6:48 pm

http://www.silentpcreview.com/modules.p ... =15&page=1 here is the link to the article where he tests the theory of fanless operation but seriously a L1A panaflow will probably be healthy to have in your PSU but my advice is test!

Will_Corrigan · Post by **Will_Corrigan** » Sun Sep 15, 2002 6:55 pm

Actually, I did peruse that article; unfortunately, it seems to deal primarily with modern PSUs powering modern (and power hungry!) systems.

I was hoping that perhaps someone had some experience running older, less powerful PSUs in a fanless environment.

Post by **MikeC** » Sun Sep 15, 2002 7:48 pm

What is the fan in this 160W PSU? I presume it is 80mm; what is the current (amp) or watt rating? That tells you a lot about default fan speed/airflow. What other components are in the system? You do have to look at it from a whole system POV.

In general, very few PSUs that have fans can be run without one. If they could, they wouldn't have one. Of course, doing things to maximize convection airflow by modifying the case and/or PSU could change this if the load is very low, which it obviously is for the PP200. As quokked says, a 5V (or lower) Panaflo is nearly silent and will pretty much guarantee safe operation. No fan is usually a higher risk.