Drilling holes in PSU cover

[darkfalz]

In my HTPC I'm using an older Antec Earthwatts 500. It was released before the bottom mounted PSU, dedicated air intake for PSU in cases was the norm, so it has no holes in the bottom, only in the back where the cords come out. As a result it draws no air in through the vent in the bottom of the case, and I suspect it instead "steals" airflow from the front fans which would be better distributed up through the GPU/CPU area.

I'd like to keep the power supply though because it's otherwise a perfectly good unit with good efficiency and low standby power.

What I am thinking of doing is drilling a number of holes in the cover (the side which is mounted facing the case vent), and then sealing off the grill in the back.

Anyone tried something like this or have any recommendations?

 

[Vectronic]

I have never tried it, but there is no reason why it shouldn't work.

Assuming you take it apart accordingly (remove the shell, PCB, etc whatever might be in the way)... then drill away.

The only problem you might have, is that it will probably be designed for the original air-flow... so the heatsinks and capacitors and stuff might be blocking decent air-flow from another direction.

I tried finding a shot of it without it's shell... didn't. My only suggestion is: sandpaper. If you are going to try and re-create a sort of hexagonal hole pattern, you will end up with a lot of nasty little edges that are going to just love collecting dust, and be incredibly annoying to clean.

You might be better off cutting out a whole square/rectangle and then using something else as a filter.

You might also want to find a way of re-sealing the now exposed metal, repainting it, even nail polish or something, so it doesn't start rusting (depending on what kind of metal it's made out of).

Edit: Obviously I didn't try too hard the first time.

Link to image because HardwareSecret are f*gs.

That could be a bit of a problem... I would assume that it doesn't run very hot, and if it's not under a lot of strain (running near max amps) it should be ok... but you might also want to consider reversing the fan once you have drilled holes... turn the exhaust into the intake... which will help cool those heatsinks better.

As a result it draws no air in through the vent in the bottom of the case.

Can it be mounted upside down? Drilling/cutting out the top (from perspective of the picture), then flipping it over, would definitely be the best option if possible... better air-flow than drilling out one of the sides, and makes use of the bottom vent.

Anyways, all that said... it shouldn't be drawing that much air from inside the case and this might all be rather pointless. How hot does the PSU get?... and how fast does it's fan run?... you might be better off finding a slower 80mm fan, or possibly putting in a resistor to the existing fan, but otherwise leaving the case alone. Possibly even disabling it's fan entirely and letting positive pressure cool the PSU.

 

[bballkenn]

As a result it draws no air in through the vent in the bottom of the case, and I suspect it instead "steals" airflow from the front fans which would be better distributed up through the GPU/CPU area.

Is the fan in the back an intake or an exhaust? If its an exhaust, why not just flip the fan so it would be an intake? This would solve your problem form it overheating. PSU's don't really heat up that much, unless its really under heavy loads. If you're using over 450 watts on it, then that when your looking at heating issues.

If you do drill into it, make sure you take out all the components. And spray compressed air to remove all the metal shavings. Also rather than drill, I would just but a big hole. That would be more effective than some holes. I would also put a dust mesh on it.

 

[bryanl]

Don't simply put in one big hole since that will expose the internal high voltage components to the outside. Keep any hole less than 1/4" (6mm) diameter.

Best air flow is not always obvious, and adding vent holes can actually cause overheating by letting the flow take a shorter path and no longer cool some components.

 

[Eureka]

Are you having temperature problems with the PSU? If it ain't broke, don't fix it.

 

[mvbighead]

Is the fan in the back an intake or an exhaust? If its an exhaust, why not just flip the fan so it would be an intake? This would solve your problem form it overheating. PSU's don't really heat up that much, unless its really under heavy loads. If you're using over 450 watts on it, then that when your looking at heating issues.

If you do drill into it, make sure you take out all the components. And spray compressed air to remove all the metal shavings. Also rather than drill, I would just but a big hole. That would be more effective than some holes. I would also put a dust mesh on it.

This seems like a bad idea. Generally speaking, sucking in air from the back through the gaping hole is going to draw in more dust than you would get from the front. Basically, having a fan draw in air that is not in some way filtered or covered is just going to fill that PSU up with dust, which will cause it to become more insulated and eventually overheat.

As for the PSU, if it is pushing air out the back, and isn't getting hot, it is doing fine. If it doesn't seem to have an opening for air to enter from inside the case, you might consider putting a few small holes in the side or something. But chances are, it isn't creating a vacuum and is getting air to pull through the power supply as it is supposed to.

 

[VirtualLarry]

As for the PSU, if it is pushing air out the back, and isn't getting hot, it is doing fine.

This. No need for risky mods, IMHO.


If you must mod, then mod the case so that there is extra airflow near the PSU, but don't mod the PSU itself.

 

[darkfalz]

I decided not to bother, I'll just leave it as is.