Is It Okay To Leave The Panels Off My Case?

[stevem326]

Call me weird, but I kinda like a computer that's noisy and I'm also interested in keeping my PC as cool as possible. So, I'm thinking about running it with both side panels off. Some people say this will actually make it run hotter because the air isn't being channeled directly at the parts inside that need it. But others say it will make it run cooler by virtue of the fact that the panels are off in the first place and more air is getting in. Does anyone have an opinion?

I know the argument about excess dust getting in, but I can blow it all out once a week pretty easily.

Maybe I should just buy a server tower with dual processors and six hard drives or something

 

[chaudharymic]

I have my window panel off, and it runs cooler for me. Just try it both ways and see which runs cooler...
It really doesn't make a big difference

 

[cubby1223]

First, you are weird, and quite crazy to want a dust-buster sitting next to you. Anyways, I probably have the panels on the side of my case <1% of the time, nothing wrong with that. I tinker around with stuff a lot, often hooking up another harddrive to salvage what info I can off it before it dies, or test out cd/dvd drives on occasion. So it's just a pain to keep taking the sides on & off.

And you've got my vote for a server tower, dual processors, & six hard drives. Have a friend who recently built up a 4TB file server using IDE drives! Fun. =Þ

 

[YOyoYOhowsDAjello]

I think it depends on your particular airflow whether it will be cooler or not. Mine tends to be about a degree cooler with the side panels on.

You can run it with them on or off, it's up to you.

 

[stevem326]

Thanks for the feedback everyone. I don't have an LED temp thing on my case, so I have no idea if it's running cooler with the panels off but my guess is it is (just a guess though). My biggest concern is excessive dust getting in there.

 

[tiap]

You really should check your temps, it can make a big difference on some models. Lots of software around for that.
At least with the panels off, it should be easy to blow out the dust.

 

[YOyoYOhowsDAjello]

You can use a program like Motherboard monitor to check your temps. Some motherboards also come with monitoring programs on their driver/utility disks.

I don't have an LED readout either, and I'd imagine most of the other people who know their temps don't either.

 

[stevem326]

Cool, thanks! I didn't even know there was software out there to show you the temps inside your case, so I'll definitely try some of them to see. Thanks again!

 

[Navid]

Very likely, your CPU will run cooler with the sides off. However, your hard drives will run hotter unless you have a hard drive cooler.

 

[stevem326]

Okay, I just installed MotherBoard Monitor and it says my CPU is at 120 and my case is at 84...do those temps sound okay? My case has one 80mm exhaust fan and a second 80mm fan in the front.

Are these the only 2 temps that MBM reads? CPU and Case?

Thanks again for everyone's input...pretty cool utility

 

[cubby1223]

120 is fine. In the early days of Socket A when there weren't any good HSF's and the only great cooling was 7200rpm fans, I always used the 60 C point myself as the cutoff as to what temp to keep the cpu below. You're under 50 C right now.

 

[Googer]

Originally posted by: YOyoYOhowsDAjello
I think it depends on your particular airflow whether it will be cooler or not. Mine tends to be about a degree cooler with the side panels on.

You can run it with them on or off, it's up to you.

Yes, you can. Typicly the processor and other componets will run hotter. I like to leave mine on because the steel panels do a decent job of blocking EMF, that can cause interference and data coruption.

 

[Googer]

http://www.niehs.nih.gov/emfrapid/booklet/basics.htm

 

[SilentZero]

If you live in a tropical climate (where I live in Hawaii for example), bugs are another problem if you leave your PC's internals exposed. A bug had a run-in with my HSF last year, and had a gecko run rampant inside the case a few months later. Sufficed to say I closed up the case and haven't left any of my computers exposed since.

 

[bacillus]

Originally posted by: SilentZero
If you live in a tropical climate (where I live in Hawaii for example), bugs are another problem if you leave your PC's internals exposed. A bug had a run-in with my HSF last year, and had a gecko run rampant inside the case a few months later. Sufficed to say I closed up the case and haven't left any of my computers exposed since.

and there was I thinking that all the bugs were actually in windows!

 

[Acanthus]

I had a mosquito bake a powersupply last year

Antec Smartpower 380w i believe.

I heard a click type sound, PC powered down, never powered back up, found the baked carcass inside the psu with black marks around it. I have no idea how it made it through the fans.

 

[Promethply]

Taking most things into consideration, its probably best to keep the side panels on.

 

[stevem326]

Thanks a lot for everybody's advice. I think I'm going to leave the panels on. My temps are well within the safe range, plus I didn't even think about the bug issue. I leave my windows open a lot in the summer, so the last thing I need is something flying in there and getting fried (while frying some hardware at the same time)...although that would give me an excuse to go buy a new PC...hmm, let's see...

"Well, my mobo just got fried...I guess I better go buy a liquid-cooled dual processor rig with 15K RPM SCSI hard drives"....hehehehe...

 

[imported_Phil]

Originally posted by: stevem326
Thanks a lot for everybody's advice. I think I'm going to leave the panels on. My temps are well within the safe range, plus I didn't even think about the bug issue. I leave my windows open a lot in the summer, so the last thing I need is something flying in there and getting fried (while frying some hardware at the same time)...although that would give me an excuse to go buy a new PC...hmm, let's see...

That's probably a good idea. The general rule of thumb for case cooling is that because the air is channelled more effectively when the side panels are on (otherwise the fans just create useless, swirling vortexes of air), they should remain on.

If the temperatures drop more than a few degrees with the panel(s) off, then the case ventilation is insufficient.

Plus, as Googer mentioned, the panels are there to shield EMF emissions; you may notice the effects of interference if you leave them off.

I should add that part of my job is to evaluate and design cooling solutions for business PCs (I work for a UK manufacturer), and that includes the hot and noisy 3.6Ghz Prescott chips. :shocked: Hopefully the BTX format will help combat that (BTX evaluation board from Intel came into stock the other week, haven't had time to play with it yet but it looks good so far).

 

[stevem326]

Originally posted by: Phil

That's probably a good idea. The general rule of thumb for case cooling is that because the air is channelled more effectively when the side panels are on (otherwise the fans just create useless, swirling vortexes of air), they should remain on.

If the temperatures drop more than a few degrees with the panel(s) off, then the case ventilation is insufficient.

Plus, as Googer mentioned, the panels are there to shield EMF emissions; you may notice the effects of interference if you leave them off.

I should add that part of my job is to evaluate and design cooling solutions for business PCs (I work for a UK manufacturer), and that includes the hot and noisy 3.6Ghz Prescott chips. :shocked: Hopefully the BTX format will help combat that (BTX evaluation board from Intel came into stock the other week, haven't had time to play with it yet but it looks good so far).

Yes, that's what I was thinking. By leaving the panels on, you're creating a tunnel affect where the air is being directed right at the parts inside that need to be cooled. But by taking the panels off, the air is just swirling around not really hitting too much of anything (not good).

I think the trend will be to start going with liquid cooling, considering how powerful (and hot) processors and video cards are getting these days. I'd love for my next PC to be a Koolance system but I'd probably be fine with just two 120mm fans in an Antec Sonata case.

 

[apoppin]

Originally posted by: SilentZero
If you live in a tropical climate (where I live in Hawaii for example), bugs are another problem if you leave your PC's internals exposed. A bug had a run-in with my HSF last year, and had a gecko run rampant inside the case a few months later. Sufficed to say I closed up the case and haven't left any of my computers exposed since.

i moved from Hawaii to the SoCali HiDesert . . . bugs aren't a problem here (except Windows) . . . DUST is . . . . leave the panels on.

 

[imported_Kiwi]

Originally posted by: SilentZero
If you live in a tropical climate (where I live in Hawaii for example), ... , and had a gecko run rampant inside the case a few months later. Suffice to say I closed up the case and haven't left any of my computers exposed since.

Our bugs & lizards are (seemingly) smarter than that. Our "Gecko" is actually the Aniole, I'm told, but I think it would take a biology major to be sure. They come in the houses often, but AFAIK, never go into PC's. Similar to one of the replies, the one that I have easiest access to, closest to where I sit, usually has the left side panel off. I use it for partitioning and initial setup of new drives, or older ones being put to new uses.

My nearby system isn't nearly as noisy with the side off as the more powerful, faster, gaming machine a couple of feet further away, behind me, on which the sides have to stay on, or the noise would drive me crazy.