How much will another case fan help...?

[NYHoustonman]

My system temps have generally been very good, <30C, but tonight, when the temp in my house went up to 77-78 while my mom was using the oven (I turned on the AC, but too late...Just airing out the house now), it went to 35C and my CPU temp to 50C. I have two intake 80mm case fans, one in the front and another on the side blowing on the video card. How much will putting another 80 mm case fan in the back as exhaust help (I always thought the PSU I have, with its two fans, would suffice...)? The two current case fans are regular Antec ones, I am planning on getting another one of them or maybe a smart fan. Would this likely keep my system temp at 30C or below? And, don't worry, my house never gets this hot, I just didn't realize it till I brought up the Asus Probe ...

EDIT-Just realized something else...Both my current case fans are attached to the fan only plugs on my PSU...So I'm just going to buy another case fan and turn one of my current ones to a higher speed.

 

[squidman]

Also, where is your cpu located? Does it get ventilated (i.e is it located in a place that has sufficient air gaps). Besides. why u wanna create a noise monster, if your mom seldom uses the oven, and if you have AC? In your case, it wouldnt help much, for as your system alrady has enough air pressure (created by side and front fans). The best solution to the problem - is trying to maintain proper room temp.

 

[shoman94]

More exhaust is better than more intake fans.....add a rear..full speed it and the front fan...you should be ok....

 

[Jeff7181]

By placing fans on the sides of the case you disrupt the airflow... cases are designed to flow bottom front to upper rear. When you blast a stream of air at a 90 degreed angle to the natural airflow of the case, you're gonna slow down the airflow...
If you insist on having an intake fan on the side blow on the processor, make a tube that directs the air ONLY onto the CPU so that the rest of the air can flow more normally.
I have 2 80mm case fans in front... 2 80 mm case fans in the rear, 1 80mm slot fan below the video card, and then of course the fans in the power supply... my system temp stays at room temp most of the time... I've never see it more than 3 degrees F above room temp.

 

[NYHoustonman]

I'm not making any changes...For a few reasons. The potency of my HSF takes a dip with any fan at the back, just look it up, the design is insane...It's a 92 mm fan suspended ABOVE the HS, so that actually didn't help...I tried. So that area is useless. My only two options are in front and on the side, and I would rather have it as is for now. Really, I don't know why I even considered this a problem, as at idle my system temp stays around 30-32 C, which isn't bad, and my CPU temp stays around 42-44C, 48-50C under full load. And, trust me, my computer is NOT loud...All the case fans are running ~1500 RPM, the CPU fan at ~2500 RPM...It is probably one of the quietest computers you will find. Hell, even my A7V w/1.33 Athlon T-Bird is a TON louder, thanks to that beast of a 120mm fan I have in the front and the 5000 RPM CPU fan, and it's STILL hotter. So, thanks for the help, but it turns out I really didn't have a problem to begin with :\...

EDIT-And btw, the fan on the side is JUST below the CPU, blowing on my video card.

 

[beatle]

Jeff, I'll have to disagree with your opinion that side fans disrupt airflow. While they aren't as linear as the front to rear flow, they provide much more cool air right where it's needed -- the cpu and video card. I have my old tbird in an InWin Q500 with 2 holes cut for 80mm fans on the side over the cpu and video card. My previous setup involved a front fan and 2 exhausts at the top of the case. Temps were a whopping 10C higher! Now I have just the 2 intake over the cpu and video and my psu w/L1a to exhaust. It's a happy computer.

 

[Jeff7181]

Are you sure you had good air flow front to back? Nothing in the way? Maybe with less than adequate case designs, it helps to pull air in from the side... however, with my Antec Performance 2 Workstation tower it's almost a direct shot from the front fans to the rear fans... meaing, air comes in, and air goes out. Doesn't stick around in there to spend time heating up.

 

[NYHoustonman]

I take pride in my case, an Antec Performance Plus 660 AMG, AND the wiring job I did inside, so there's nothing obstructing airflow. BUT, my fans are all running on quiet mode, ~1500 for PSU and case fans and ~2500 for CPU fan, so I could do better, but my temps as is are still, under normal conditions, good. I really doubt that my house will get that hot again...My mom told me to turn up the AC, but as I said I payed no mind until I saw my PC temps. But, as I said, no way I can have a case fan at the back, it messes with my CPU temps as it takes air away from my CPU fan, which is basically right there. I would put it towards the bottom, but there are no holes, and as-is the PSU has two fans blowing out, acting somewhat as exhaust, and turning up when temps go up.

 

[pspada]

I just used a RaidMax case for a client's new machine, and it had a side fan standard. But for reference, it blows air OUT of the case, and seems to help cool the interior well. I personally would find it annoying to have it blowing on my legs, but they like it.

 

[oldfart]

People get so carried away with case fans. I have a grand total of 1 intake, 1 exhaust for case fans. Both are Panaflo L1As. My PS is an Antec True330 which is also very quiet. This is more than enough airflow to keep things cool. See my rigs link for system details. If the room temp goes up 5C, case temp goes up 5C. If case temp goes up 5C, CPU temp goes up 5C. Forcing a ton more air through the case wont change that.