Pro/Forums - View Single Post - Is it worth the trouble to vent radiator output outside the case?

Ruiner · 08-14-2005, 06:09 PM

Most (well designed) internal watercooling setups have the radiator drawing air from the front or top of the case.

Assuming the goal of a quiet setup (i.e. one slow turning 120mm exhaust fan and perhaps a fanless PSU), is the waste heat of the radiator a big issue? The dT over ambient air isn't huge, but that heat is still going into the case. It would mostly affect NB, mosfet, PSU, HDD and vRAM cooling.

I'm kicking around some ideas for my next rig. One is to mount my fan/BIP2 combo to the top of a mid tower case so that ducted fresh air moves through filtered openings in the drive bays (or case sides), through the rad, then the fans, then out through blowholes. I've found the airflow noise on the intake side of my BIP is louder than the fan side.

Another would be to do the same thing pointing down through the case floor, with ducted intake air coming through a filtered front/lower intake. This would be the quieter solution but the longish BIP2 might interfere with the mobo.

Another solution would be to mount a pa160 in the traditional bottom front, place an acoustically dampened barrier 2" behind the fan, and vent the exhaust through the case bottom or sides.

Thoughts? Flames?
Any direct experience?

08-14-2005, 06:09 PM	#1
Ruiner Cooling Savant Join Date: May 2003 Location: New Smyrna, FL Posts: 258	Is it worth the trouble to vent radiator output outside the case? Most (well designed) internal watercooling setups have the radiator drawing air from the front or top of the case. Assuming the goal of a quiet setup (i.e. one slow turning 120mm exhaust fan and perhaps a fanless PSU), is the waste heat of the radiator a big issue? The dT over ambient air isn't huge, but that heat is still going into the case. It would mostly affect NB, mosfet, PSU, HDD and vRAM cooling. I'm kicking around some ideas for my next rig. One is to mount my fan/BIP2 combo to the top of a mid tower case so that ducted fresh air moves through filtered openings in the drive bays (or case sides), through the rad, then the fans, then out through blowholes. I've found the airflow noise on the intake side of my BIP is louder than the fan side. Another would be to do the same thing pointing down through the case floor, with ducted intake air coming through a filtered front/lower intake. This would be the quieter solution but the longish BIP2 might interfere with the mobo. Another solution would be to mount a pa160 in the traditional bottom front, place an acoustically dampened barrier 2" behind the fan, and vent the exhaust through the case bottom or sides. Thoughts? Flames? Any direct experience?