panaflo L1A noise

[lordbob99]

i've been using 4 of these panaflos as case fans in my case for a while now. lately i've noticed that they're making a lot more noise that they used to. has anybody else experienced the same problems with these? i've resorted to running them at 7 volts to keep the noise down, but they push so little at 7 volts compared to 12.

i figure i probably need to lubricate the fans. any recommendations of what to use? and how much?

thanks,
lordbob99

 

[BG4533]

Dont the Panaflos have hydrowave bearings that are sealed and never need lubricating? From what I have read they are never supposed to need lubricated.

 

[lordbob99]

Originally posted by: BG4533
Dont the Panaflos have hydrowave bearings that are sealed and never need lubricating? From what I have read they are never supposed to need lubricated.

i don't personally know about them being sealed and supposedly never needing lubricating, but i know for sure that my fans are considerably louder than when i originally put them in.

anybody have any ideas on how to quiet these back down if what bg says is true?

lordbob99

 

[mechBgon]

The Panaflos use a cool actively-pumped oil bath in their hydrowave bearing, I'll try to dredge up a link for you once I'm back on my own system. If you haven't cleaned your fans yet, you might try cleaning them, but I wouldn't try opening one up to lube it.

 

[beatle]

Are you sure that it's a panaflo that's causing the problem? Got any filters on those fans that may be stuffed with dust? I've found the fan on my GF2 to make a racket now and then, and my harddrives now whine when they didn't before (approaching 2 years old) but my panaflos still don't sound like much.

 

[lordbob99]

Originally posted by: beatle
Are you sure that it's a panaflo that's causing the problem? Got any filters on those fans that may be stuffed with dust? I've found the fan on my GF2 to make a racket now and then, and my harddrives now whine when they didn't before (approaching 2 years old) but my panaflos still don't sound like much.

yup... even ran it ouside of the case to make sure they were the culprit. i can definately hear the motor spinning quite loud (for a panaflo).

oh yeah... i've cleaned the dust off em too.

i guess it's possible i'm a lot more sensitive to the noise now than before, but i remember my panaflos being next to inaudible even when close to my ears in the past.

lordbob99

 

[godmare]

Originally posted by: lordbob99

Originally posted by: beatle
Are you sure that it's a panaflo that's causing the problem? Got any filters on those fans that may be stuffed with dust? I've found the fan on my GF2 to make a racket now and then, and my harddrives now whine when they didn't before (approaching 2 years old) but my panaflos still don't sound like much.

yup... even ran it ouside of the case to make sure they were the culprit. i can definately hear the motor spinning quite loud (for a panaflo).

oh yeah... i've cleaned the dust off em too.

i guess it's possible i'm a lot more sensitive to the noise now than before, but i remember my panaflos being next to inaudible even when close to my ears in the past.

lordbob99

I read a thread around here somewhere where somebody ahd indicated that Panaflos tend to get louder after a few years of use... Maybe it's just the bearings going at that time. Possibly you could contact Panaflo directly and briong your concerns to them. Maybe mention you post on Anandtech, it couldn't hurt

 

[Slickone]

Any more people experience this problem? I was thinking of ordering some Panaflos.

 

[OulOat]

Nope. But this is expected from all fans. The longer it's been in use the more noise it makes. Remember, you can't get rid of all the friction.

 

[Slickone]

Originally posted by: OulOat
Nope. But this is expected from all fans. The longer it's been in use the more noise it makes. Remember, you can't get rid of all the friction.

But most last longer than that before they get loud. Maybe just these are noticable since they're quite to begin with. Wonder if the Cooler Master w/ rifle bearing last longer.