Case fan guards

saitrix · Post by **saitrix** » Mon Jan 25, 2010 10:41 pm

Hi,

I have noticed my exhuast 120mm fan is producing quite a bit of noise in my system. I have seen people who have cut out the fan guard for it on their system. Is this the reason for it? Would that be the best way for me to reduce the noise but keep the flow?

Also what is the rubber strip which people put round it?

Shobai · Post by **Shobai** » Tue Jan 26, 2010 1:35 am

this is all info that you can easily find by doing a search, and i'd encourage you to have a go at finding the info for yourself, as there's a whole lot that's written elsewhere that i won't go into. basically, fan grills are cut to reduce airflow impedance - this has a swag of benefits, have a look into it. suffice it to say that whatever the rated airflow for your fan, it will not be getting anywhere near that with the fanguard in your case.

the rubber is called many things in different places, have a search and work out what it might be called near you. a common name is c or u channel.

danimal · Post by **danimal** » Tue Jan 26, 2010 9:15 am

what i do is turn off the computer, and power the fan with a seperate power supply, which allows you to hear exactly what kind of noise is being generated by fan grills, vibration, etc.

Fallen Kell · Post by **Fallen Kell** » Tue Feb 02, 2010 7:34 pm

Well, in many cases, the air flow is affected pretty badly from how restrictive the holes/slits may be for the fan mount. Using a hole saw or snips and cutting it out completely and replacing with a fan guard like this:

It can really make a difference in air flow and noise level (assuming that the restrictive mount is what is causing some of the noise, or that the air flow had to be increased in order to keep the system cool and with the less restrictive finger guard, you can cut the speed of the fan down, and thus, cut the noise level as well).

As for the rubber strip, you might be talking about a fan gasket like this:

or are you talking about U/C channel molding for the fresh cut hole like this:

mkk · Post by **mkk** » Tue Feb 02, 2010 9:11 pm

As an option you can even cut down a replacement fan grill something like this if you have some tin snips at hand. It will still protect well enough in general.

If you don't have pets and don't transport the case about much, consider going without any grill at all. That's how I roll.

saitrix · Post by **saitrix** » Thu Feb 04, 2010 10:41 pm

Well I removed the whole guard and haven't replaced it with anything. I'm going to keep it like this and just put the u channel rubber strip on to finish it nicely. Really has helped with the amount of noise produced.

Camacha · Post by **Camacha** » Fri Jul 09, 2010 10:02 am

I am wondering, what is the reason these fanguards are fitted to cases at all? They can even be found in cases that are built for silence, in places where fingers are not an issue (like SPCR's own P180), so why are they fitted/stamped?

Maybe they play an important role in shielding the gear inside from electromagnetic radiation?

faugusztin · Post by **faugusztin** » Fri Jul 09, 2010 11:18 am

Well, good question. I personally prefer how Lian Li does this - they put exactly those removable guards like ones on the pictures in this thread - you can have the guard if you want it, and you can remove it if you don't like it

.

Luke M · Post by **Luke M** » Fri Jul 09, 2010 3:32 pm

Camacha wrote:I am wondering, what is the reason these fanguards are fitted to cases at all? They can even be found in cases that are built for silence, in places where fingers are not an issue (like SPCR's own P180), so why are they fitted/stamped?

One good thing about a fan guard is that it prevents stray cables from entering (and stopping) the fan.

Camacha · Post by **Camacha** » Fri Jul 09, 2010 5:11 pm

Well, usually my cables are inside my case and the fanguards on the outside, so that doesn't help much

neilbell · Post by **neilbell** » Sat Jul 10, 2010 12:39 am

I agree about the annoyance of rubbish fan grills on cases but remember hat some of them will be structural, so have a think before cutting large chunks out of your case. If it DOES look particularly structural, either leave well alone or maybe just remove a bit of it (like every other row).

As has been mentioned many times in the past, the open hexagonal grills are probably the best after empty space or the simple wire rings. Still, case manufacturers don't want to have to deal with awkward details like making great cases...

Jipa · Post by **Jipa** » Sat Jul 10, 2010 4:13 am

AFAIK the fan guards are there to keep the RF-noise from leaving the case. This is also the reason all-acrylic cases aren't sold any more. (well not here anyway)

BlackWhizz · Post by **BlackWhizz** » Sat Jul 10, 2010 10:30 am

Camacha wrote:I am wondering, what is the reason these fanguards are fitted to cases at all? They can even be found in cases that are built for silence, in places where fingers are not an issue (like SPCR's own P180), so why are they fitted/stamped?

Maybe they play an important role in shielding the gear inside from electromagnetic radiation?

CE rules. They have strict rules for things with moving objects in it (like cases with fans). when there arent any grills at all the manufacturer is responsibile for injuries. When there is a guard the manufacturer is not responsible.

Thats also why the case manufacturers dont deal with 'awkward details like making great cases'. Because they are responsible then.

I dont know a thing about those RF noise.

Camacha · Post by **Camacha** » Sat Jul 10, 2010 4:27 pm

BlackWhizz wrote: CE rules. They have strict rules for things with moving objects in it (like cases with fans). when there arent any grills at all the manufacturer is responsibile for injuries. When there is a guard the manufacturer is not responsible.

But that doesn't account for cases where there are also fanguards in places where you can't get your fingers in normal operation. The forementioned P180 has two front inlets with dustfilters, so you have to disasemble half the case before you can even get to the fans.

Also, I've never hear of anyone getting seriously injured by a normal fan. I'd stick my tongue in one if I'd have to, although I wouldn't like it

Only some high-powered varieties have some real potential of hurting you, but those aren't common.

I can imagine these things are considered a bigger problem in the US where it could costs a manufacturer a lot of money, but I don't think that is the sole reason.