Do you want to improve the airflow of your PC? In this article, we will give a quick review of the most important keys to achieving this so that you can achieve a reduction in computer temperatures and a quieter operation.
In general, our priority is going to be to make the flow as clean and direct as possible. In addition, what we will try in most tips is to avoid unnecessary additional purchases, although in some cases there will be no other option. Finally, we will also explain to you to what extent the airflow of your PC should be a concern. Hint: don't get too obsessed. That being said, let's go with the tips!
Eliminate the obstruction as much as possible
We start with the clearest and most obvious point: you should avoid as much as possible all the physical obstacles that may be inside the PC case. We are talking about:
- Figurines, a decoration that is really common and that can seriously affect the airflow.
- There are extreme cases in which the part of the box where the components are located is littered with poorly distributed cables. You have to get, as far as possible, that these are collected behind the box, so that it does not penalize the airflow.
- Liquid cooling tubes. Do everything possible so that its assembly obstructs the air passage as little as possible, but always with the utmost caution to avoid breaking anything, of course.
That is, what we are looking for is that the internal space of the box is as clean as possible. Realize that when we are looking for good airflow, what we want is for the air to enter on one side and exit on the other in a clear, fast and direct way. For most boxes, this will mean entering through the front and exiting through the back. If there are many obstacles involved, we will reduce the airspeed and cause turbulence that will divert the flow in a very damaging way.
Check your fan system
It is useless to have the airflow perfectly controlled if the fans are incorrectly installed. The priority is usually to have a relatively balanced pressure so that the amount of air entering the box is similar to that leaving. But this question is not excessively relevant, we can have a purely positive or negative pressure, and no matter how objectionable it may be, the level of airflow will be decent. What cannot be done is aberrations with the ventilation system.
What can we understand by an "aberration"? Well, basically, the way to install them and their orientation escape all logic, so that you have an internal airflow that causes turbulence or "looped" air pockets. The air cannot be trapped inside the box, as it will be heated continuously, but must be constantly renewing itself.
For example, mixing fans that go in and out illogically - imagine having the CPU fan installed opposite the rear - there would be no air intake or exhaust. Check out our article on how to install PC fans.
Where we can also commit aberrations, and in fact, it is quite common for it to be done by mistake, it is in the liquid cooling.
And what about the number of fans? The importance of not obsessing
Another issue that is very clear is that the number of fans clearly influences the internal airflow of the computer. It's not about filling the fan cage or constantly running them at full speed.
What we are looking for is to have a reasonably optimal airflow that allows us to maintain adequate temperatures on the PC. In no case do we obsessively seek to get as close to room temperature as possible? This is a real mistake that many people make, and it lacks benefits beyond the sterile peace of mind of seeing a low-temperature setting, and it has disadvantages such as increased dust generation or increased noise. What interests us is to preserve the durability of the components, right? Well, for this it is not necessary to have them at 20 or 30 degrees at rest, or at 50 degrees when loaded.
If we want durability, the only thing that should matter to us is having temperature values far enough from the maximum indicated by the manufacturer. For example, if we have a graphics card or a CPU with an advertised maximum temperature of 90 degrees, which are at 75 under load, it can be considered a success and it is not necessary to obsess excessively, spend more money or sacrifice loudness in exchange for reducing the temperatures. If you don't care about the noise and you still want the temperature to drop further, it is not a problem either, will simply be irrelevant on a practical level.
Leaving aside this reflection, which was essential to mention at some point in the article, let's go back to what we were: the number of fans. The truth is that if we don't have any or we hardly use one the airflow is not going to be especially good. It is ideal that we have at least the front and the back covered if we are talking about a box that has a traditional flow configuration.
In addition, they have to be minimally decent fans, which are 3 or 4 pins to allow their regulation from the BIOS of the motherboard, and thus create a decent curve to be able to control them.
Don't forget to clean the dust
We go with another obvious point, and it is to constantly check that there is no unwanted accumulation of excessive dust on the computer. Check and clean the filters, as well as the fans themselves and their components. A deep maintenance periodically is the best you can do, although to define the periodicity there is no fixed rule: everything depends on the environment of each one.
And there are people who have their computer on the floor, in a house where there is a lot of dust and there are animals, and they might have to do it every month. Then we have the opposite case, of computers on the table in houses where little dust is generated and without animals inside, and there the PC could be 6 months or even more without being cleaned and there would be no problem. Do what suits you best in your specific case!
Do not forget about the power supply either, because although if it is in the lower part of the case and with the fan facing downwards then it will not have anything to do with the airflow of the rest of the computer, it will have its own flow of internal air and it is important to maintain it to ensure durability. You do not have to open it, and in fact, it is NOT recommended and voids the warranty, simply clean the dust filter in the box.
A cash change may be the best option
We are going to end with what is often the best decision that can be made: simply change the computer case. Some have designs that are especially restrictive in terms of cooling, and that causes the airflow to be necessarily bad no matter how much effort we make.
Specifically, we are talking about boxes that have the front totally or partially covered, although some have adequate ventilation holes, or also that have the upper part covered. If we combine both, then what we will have will not be a computer case, but rather an oven in which our pieces can be gaining 10 or 20 degrees too much just for that reason.
Probably the best way to check if your case is causing a problem with the airflow of your PC is to remove its side cover while the equipment is charging and see if there is a large variation in temperatures. In case you see changes of more than 10 or 15 degrees, after having taken all possible measures to improve the airflow, then the box will be a great limitation in cooling and replacing it with another is an excellent decision.
And which one do I replace it with? The priority, without a doubt, should be in getting a box that is not restrictive with the airflow. These will be predominantly those that have a mesh front or 'mesh', that is, instead of being covered, it is full of holes through which the air can pass. It should also have good top gaps and generally have a decent build quality.
Conclusions: it is not only a matter of putting more fans, or obsessing over it
Improving the airflow of your PC is a more than legitimate aspiration, and fortunately, there are very simple ways to achieve it. Simply improving cable management can do this, or change the placement of the fans.
However, it is also true that in some cases there is no better alternative than to spend some money. We are talking about those PCs where extremely restrictive boxes are used for airflow, commonly known by the ironic name of "ovens", and which are characterized by having the front and / or upper part covered almost completely, with minimal openings for cooling or nonexistent. In those cases, it is best to buy a new box, and it is not a matter of being more expensive, but better thought out and focused on airflow ('mesh').
On the other side of the coin, we have those cases in which the improvement of the airflow is not even necessary. Many people become overly obsessed with temperatures, tirelessly seeking to get them as close to room temperature as possible, something that gives no real benefit beyond a kind of "peace of mind" for the person. It is more than clear that what is really important is to keep temperatures reasonably below the maximums when the equipment is under load. Almost everything else is obsessing over no reason.
In any case, resorting to the most elementary tips in the article is something that we recommend doing to anyone since nothing happens to improve the airflow of the PC easily and free of charge. Everything related to changing the case or acquiring more fans is already more focused on PCs where it is really necessary: high consumption, overclocking, high operating temperatures.
And you do you think? To what extent do you think it is important to improve the airflow of your PC? We invite you to leave comments!
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