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A fan filter to avoid.

Z

Zepper

Elite Member
Some time ago I ordered one of these: http://www.bestbyteinc.com/Fan...age_1/FAN-PFG-12B.html
to try and I finally got around to it today. No one else needs to repeat my experiment. I tried it on one of my Sanyo 1011s at 12 and 7 Volts and you get a nice whistle (from the slots between the radial spokes) and pulsing noise from the gaps in air supply caused by the big radial spokes of the thing. The filter has significantly finer pores than the ones I like (both jab-tech and svc carry these: http://jab-tech.com/120mm-Plastic-fan-filter-pr-2470.html - I think they are Qualtek) - the noisy one will keep your case cleaner but at the cost of additional restriction on top of the extra noise.

.bh.
 
I think the best filters are the ones that come with cases. They are a pain to clean though if they're in the drive bay covers like the CM590 though...haven't cleaned mine for a couple of months because of that...
 
I've had experience with a variety of filters. I'm inclined "to filter" because I don't like the dirt, but I'm also an air-cooling-with-ducting junkie who believes in pressurizing the case and directing airflow intensively at hot components to be immediately exhausted from the case.

What was otherwise a nice product -- a fine wire-screen mesh in a clear/colored frame that allowed filter removal without disturbing the fan:
FrozenCPU Filter-Right

. . . . is too restrictive -- even when the filter is still clean.

All of these filters that are mounted right at the fan intake require a regular cleaning regimen. And the filters clog so badly over time, that a dirty filter really restricts air-flow.

But I still don't like dirt.

I've come to see an advantage to using that crudely-woven, blue or green-colored fiberglass sold for $1 and change in 18" x 24" panels at Home Depot. The trick is to use this material at the air intake -- if possible a few inches removed from the fan intake. For instance, if your case has a swinging front door and front-intake fans are installed in the chassis, then pad the door with this stuff. Further, the more area through which air is drawn before it gets to the fan means better CFM, and using this fiberglass stuff to cover a wider area means less frequent cleaning.

You can clean the fiberglass filter just by sucking on it with a vacuum cleaner, or hosing it off. And you can assure that fiberglass doesn't unravel from it by putting a bead of silicone sealant around the edge where the material has been cut. It's cheap enough that you can buy gobs of these AC filters, but if you prepare them well, you probably won't need to replace them periodically.
 
I use the foam AC filter stuff that comes in the same size and two sheets a pack and is usually charcoal gray color to make my replacements. And I can use sticky-back Velcro hooks to put a filter where there is no designed-in place for one.

Bonzai,

I don't think he did one like the one you linked, but Vapor did a thread on filters and grilles and he tested 5 different units from the common wire grille to a radiator for WCing. Just go to extremesystems.org/Forums and search (with advanced search) for threads started by Vapor in the Air Cooling section and you'll find it. Just from looking at the one you linked I'd judge it as being more restrictive than any he tested. The type I use is first or second from the highest in restriction of the tested units, but pays for that in the extra time between its needing to be cleaned and the slower buildup of dust inside.

.bh.
 
Originally posted by: BonzaiDuckWhat was otherwise a nice product -- a fine wire-screen mesh in a clear/colored frame that allowed filter removal without disturbing the fan:
FrozenCPU Filter-Right

. . . . is too restrictive -- even when the filter is still clean.

All of these filters that are mounted right at the fan intake require a regular cleaning regimen. And the filters clog so badly over time, that a dirty filter really restricts air-flow.
Click to expand...

I'm using 3 of these on the my rad intakes, with 6, 9-blade fans tugging air though them. Yeah, the clog pretty quick but cleaning them every 1-2 weeks with running water is easy and works well. As for them being restricitve, my temps are well within the "sweet spot" for water, so I'm willing to live with whatever barrier they create.
 
I started using the loosely-woven blue fiberglass stuff last year. It really doesn't seem to shed much in fibers -- although you'd think that would happen. And as I said, you could clamp two boards from both sides of the filter material along the cut edge, run a lean bead of silicone sealant along the fiberglass ends, let it set and unclamp the filter. Then you'd just take it out periodically and hit it with the garden hose -- dry it off and restore it to the computer case.

It seems to be working pretty well, and it adds something between the eye and some blue LEDs.
 
Any filter with a more 3 dimensional medium than the one that BD linked above will take longer to clog.

.bh.
 
Originally posted by: Zepper
I use the foam AC filter stuff that comes in the same size and two sheets a pack and is usually charcoal gray color to make my replacements. And I can use sticky-back Velcro hooks to put a filter where there is no designed-in place for one.
Click to expand...

Those are the ones I like too !
 
For the record, my response to BD wasn't designed to denegrate the choices other people make. The point is that wire mesh grills, in my experience, are no where near being "too restrictive."
 
As much as I like the Antec 1200, I do have to say, I don't really like the fan filters.

With the side panel off, I did a quick test to see how much better the airflow is without a filter. With the filter off, it was able to hold a piece of cardstock up to the grill. Slide the fan into place, and the cardstock dropped to the ground.
 
Now that's an interesting test as a Q&D, but with the filter removed, is it possible that the air was able to find an alternate route to the fan that it couldn't with the filter in place? In empirical tests, one must exclude as many possible explanations for the result before settling on the obvious one. Air, like water, electricity and students, takes the path(s) of least resistance.

.bh.
 
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