Case Fans???

[Computer]

So I was at the computer store looking for a ram upgrade. The guy said when i put more ram in it will probably raise my temperature by roughly 5 degrees. since my cpu idols @ 60 he reccomended i get a case fan. the question is how do i know what to get. He said i should get one in the front that sucks in and make sure my back one blows out. I got 2 questions. How can i be sure which way my fan is blowing. I put my hand next to it and i feel faint blowing on it but it seems so miniscule that it's hard to believe that its drawing air out but i'm not sure. The next is the guy asked me something along the lines of i needed to know if my case would use one screw or 3. I am not really certain what he said but maybe someone could clarify. and he said i would need to know what size of fan i needed. I don't know how to find that out either.

Thanks

[twiztidtruckie]

TIP:

1. plug in fan to power connector in case
2. dont mount fan to case yet
3. turn on system and feel which way fan blows
4. remember which way it blew and then mount the fan in the proper direction
5. Congradulations on installing your new fans...lol

PS: Most cases use 80mmX80mmX20/25mm fans...
PSS: actually, my cases use all four screws in each corner of fan..better to be safe than sorry...

PSSS: buy fans that plug into your extra psu plugs, as most mobo's only have one or none( slots for fan power).

Later Bro,

Truckie, Juggalo King!!!

As for fan sizes...contact you computer manufacturer, or just freaking measure it with a ruler. Length, width, height...blah blah blah....

[Omardeth]

if you look on the fan , most have a arrow pointing which way the fan blows on the side of the fan . another rule kinda , least it is this way on most fans i have found , there is a sticker in the center of the fan . MOST , note the word most , of the time the fan blows to the side the sticker is on the hub .

[jmichna]

Most case fans have the spin direction and air flow direction molded into the plastic case somewhere... just look. If not, do as twiztidtruckie said and just plug in the fan to a power supply (4-pin Molex) or 3-pin (mobo) connector while the fan is not yet moyunted and see which way it blows.

The most common air flow pattern for better ventillated case designs has cool air drawn in at the front bottom, and exhausted at the top rear. That means (at least) two fans, in addition to the one or two fans that your power supply contains.

The 80mm diam x 25mm thick case fan size is probably most common, but I use 120mm case fans because they can push more air at a lower fan speed, hence are much less noisy while delivering the same/better air flow. Check out your case to see what it will accomodate.

Also, like twiztidtruckie mentioned, I always use all four mounting holes for each fan I mount; you'd be foolish not to.

Pay attention to the power draw (amps) of each fan. If you use real powerful, high speed fans you may not want to plug them into the mobo even if they come with a three pin connector. I try to use 4-pin Molex wherever possible (why stress the mobo?). If your fans come with 3-pin connectors, 3-to-4 pin adapters can be had for a couple dollars, or you can make them yourself.

Although IMO you can never have too much ventillation, I seriously doubt that you are going to increase your case temps 5°C just by adding a couple sticks of RAM... I think the sales guy was blowing some smoke.

[ChubTub]

I seriously doubt that you are going to increase your case temps 5°C just by adding a couple sticks of RAM... I think the sales guy was blowing some smoke.

Agreed, I do not think that you would see a noticable change. Although good air venting always helps with system life.

[cbuddha42]

ram wont increase your temps much but idol @ 60 is high anyway so go ahead and get a pair of fans

[JohnE.]

i needed to know if my case would use one screw or 3

Perhaps he was meaning either 4 pin or 3 pin power connectors? Most fans can be purchased with either (and sometimes both) configuration.

4 pin connectors go to the power cables coming off the PSU (no speed monitoring with 4 pin) or an adapter of some sort from the HDD or CD-ROM. Most case fans are safe to connect to the 3 pin motherboard connectors and can be monitored from those. Some CPU fans are real juice hogs and require a 4 pin connection and may also have an additional 3 pin connector (with only 1 wire) to connect to the mobo for monitoring.

[shrae]

To figure out your fan size just measure it with a ruler. The size is one edge of the fan, NOT the radius/diameter of the fan blades or the hypotenuse. The typical sizes are 60mm, 80mm, 92mm, and 120mm.

Also, generally fans blow in the direction of the logo on the fan. I know some fans have two logos but one will usually be more "prominent" or "colored" than the other one. Also you can just look at the way the fan blades are shaped. They will be curved in the direction of the airflow. Of course nothing will beat plugging it in and turning it on before mounting.