65C+ too hot for Hard Drive? How can I reduce hard drive heat?

[Shpati]

My Hard Drive in my Dell E510 is getting high temperatures I think. It is a Western Digital Cavier. 250 GB capacity. Anyway, the temps stay around 65C. I thought that was pretty high for a HDD. My laptop HDD stays around 40-44C. I would think my laptop HDD would be hotter if anything. A recording even recorded as high as 77C for the HDD on the Dell E510.

What do you think the problem is?

The BIOS setting for the HDD is on "Bypass". The other options are Quiet, Suggested, or Performance. You also had some options with "RAID" and all of that. But I had no idea what that would do.

And just wanted to ask, could dust be a problem for the Hard Drive as for temperatures go. I looked at it, and it has a fair amount on the surface. But I just did not think that would drop the temperatures down from 65 C to 45 C. Or am I wrong?

 

[sminlal]

Yes, 65C is pretty hot for a hard drive. The Google Study on Disk Drive Failure Rates seems to suggest that temperatures in the 40-50C range are optimal.

Keeping temperatures down is simple: make sure there is cool air blowing over the drives. That means placing the drives inside the case in the path of the airflow between the air intake vents and the exhaust fan. The air that flows past the drives should be cool air from the outside, not air that's already been heated by the CPU or video card. If the airflow in your case doesn't do this directly then you may have to move your drives or fashion baffles from cardboard or some other material to direct the air to the right place.

Simply having the drives in an open space with no airflow isn't sufficient. In fact if the space is too open even good airflow may not be all that effective - it's better for the air to be forced to flow directly past the surface of the drive through a relatively constricted channel than to have the drive in a wide open space where air can easily move without having to flow over the drive's surfaces.

 

[Shpati]

Yes, 65C is pretty hot for a hard drive. The Google Study on Disk Drive Failure Rates seems to suggest that temperatures in the 40-50C range are optimal.

Keeping temperatures down is simple: make sure there is cool air blowing over the drives. That means placing the drives inside the case in the path of the airflow between the air intake vents and the exhaust fan. The air that flows past the drives should be cool air from the outside, not air that's already been heated by the CPU or video card. If the airflow in your case doesn't do this directly then you may have to move your drives or fashion baffles from cardboard or some other material to direct the air to the right place.

Simply having the drives in an open space with no airflow isn't sufficient. In fact if the space is too open even good airflow may not be all that effective - it's better for the air to be forced to flow directly past the surface of the drive through a relatively constricted channel than to have the drive in a wide open space where air can easily move without having to flow over the drive's surfaces.

I get what you are trying to say. But I am kind of limited in ideas of what I can do. Here is picture I found on the web of the inside of my E510 model:

The Hard Drive slows on are on the bottom left corner. The 2 blue slots. I only use 1 of them. I tried to put the HDD in both slots. Same temperatures. Right now, it is at 62C. Put sometimes it get higher. Like when I first turned it on one time, a program said it was 77C.
-The big black thing in the middle is the CPU heat sink and fan.

I am short on ideas.

I was thinking, is there a way I can find a fan, and just put it into the 2nd slot to keep the HDD cool.

Here is how the outside of my desktop looks like:

It has 2 vents, 1 for each hard drive. I was thinking of putting some sort of external fan there, but that is just ugly, takes up some room, noisy, and plus it is blowing air back into my case.

PS, all my other parts seem to be in good condition. PSU is great for all my parts as well.

 

[jsc]

It has 2 vents, 1 for each hard drive. I was thinking of putting some sort of external fan there, but that is just ugly, takes up some room, noisy, and plus it is blowing air back into my case.

A fan on the front of the case should be blowing air into the case.

Basic rules for case fans:
Front and side - intake, and
Back and top - exhaust.

 

[sminlal]

Is that CPU heat sink drawing air in through those funny vent-like things on the side of the case? I'm having a hard time understanding what the circulation through that thing is doing, but I suspect that the CPU is hogging all of the airflow. If lots of air is being pulled into the case via the CPU heatsink fan and less air is being pulled out by the rear case fans, then there may not be much airflow over the drives. In fact it's even possible that hot air is flowing OUT of the case past the drives.

Actually, I don't even see a way for the air to get past the drives - there don't seem to be any ventilation slots on the back of the drive cages. If I'm interpreting the photo correctly, it seems to be a pretty bad design as far as airflow is concerned, at least for the drives.

A radical solution would be to buy an SSD for the OS drive and a "green" drive for bulk storage - those will put out a lot less heat and will run cooler if the airflow can't be fixed.

 

[Hawkeye22]

This is a typical Dell BTX case. I'm not too fond of them myself.

It looks as if there are two vents on the lower front of the case. Is there any way to mount a fan below your GPU facing towards the rear of the case? That would at least get some air moving in the direction of the drives.

 

[Shpati]

As far as all my other parts go, those temps seem to be fine. GPU hardly goes over 60C.

HDD is the only problem I have with temperatures. CPU, GPU and everything else is fine.

Can reformatting your hard drive reduce temperatures?

 

[Guest]

Dell is not known for their innovative cooling apparatus. If your having heating issues, the easiest way is to just leave the case open.

Can reformatting your hard drive reduce temperatures?

Not usually.

 

[Ubrales]

I purchased an 80mm fan (actually got it for $2 from MicroCenter) and installed it in my Dell 745 case at the rear since mine did not have a rear fan. In your case, since you already have a rear fan, you can add a rear fan on the outside of the rear panel to help air flow.

 

[Shpati]

I purchased an 80mm fan (actually got it for $2 from MicroCenter) and installed it in my Dell 745 case at the rear since mine did not have a rear fan. In your case, since you already have a rear fan, you can add a rear fan on the outside of the rear panel to help air flow.

Yikes, forgot to mention that picture is just someone elses picture of the same model. It seems that he installed that rear fan himself (the black one on the right side of the picture). That one is not actually my computer. I do not have the rear fan.

If I were to get on like that would that help?

 

[Shpati]

I purchased an 80mm fan (actually got it for $2 from MicroCenter) and installed it in my Dell 745 case at the rear since mine did not have a rear fan. In your case, since you already have a rear fan, you can add a rear fan on the outside of the rear panel to help air flow.

Alright, I found a cheap 80 mm fan on ebay:

http://cgi.ebay.com/New-MassCool-FD08025S1M3-4-80mm-3-4pin-Sleeve-Case-Fan-/190387935986?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item2c54015af2

I was going to buy 2 of these. In which places should I put them? I was thinking of putting one at the rear like that guy in the picture, and not to sure about the 2nd fan.

Since I have one HDD sport open, you think I can place one fan in there and have a fan blowing direct air to the HDD? Is that alright? If so, one which side is it best to be blowing air on the HDD, the top side (the silver side) or the botton side (the green side).

Questions: If I have air blowing in wrong directions, could that increase temperatures in other areas (like the CPU and graphics card). Just asking because the guy's computer in the picture seems to have modded his heat sink a little bit or something. It looks different than mine.

EDIT: I am buying these cheap fans, because I do not believe my machine requires great cooling tools. This is just to reduce my HDD temperature, and maybe other temperatures as well. However, I am up for more suggestions if you guys think I should buy a different fan, or more or less fans. I think the fan I found is alright, and on NewEgg it has over 1000 reviewers (all 5 eggs).

 

[Ubrales]

Install one fan on the rear perforated sheet metal. As long as you are able to get any 2 screws to secure the fan, it will be ok.

I do not advise you to use up the space for the 2nd. HDD for a fan. Some day you may need to add a 2nd. HDD. However, there is a 4" wide x 1/2" high free space under the space for the 2nd. HDD. An effective 'static convection copper coil' can be fitted in this space. Use 1/2" OD copper tubing and make a spiral that seats under the 2nd. HDD (I know that you don't have one now). Route the other end of the tubing to just above the newly installed rear fan at a 15 degrees upward angle protruding past the fan to create a 'Venturi' effect. Now you will have convection plus a slight positive venturi effect to draw away some heated air.

In normal situations, this will not have a great effect; but since your HDD temps seem to be high, the temp delta will be significant and therefore this will work for you.

Another option is to install a mini blower (not fan) and pipe the air in the general vicinity of the HDDs. There is plenty of room at the bottom of the case to add a mini blower.

 

[Shpati]

Install one fan on the rear perforated sheet metal. As long as you are able to get any 2 screws to secure the fan, it will be ok.

I do not advise you to use up the space for the 2nd. HDD for a fan. Some day you may need to add a 2nd. HDD. However, there is a 4" wide x 1/2" high free space under the space for the 2nd. HDD. An effective 'static convection copper coil' can be fitted in this space. Use 1/2" OD copper tubing and make a spiral that seats under the 2nd. HDD (I know that you don't have one now). Route the other end of the tubing to just above the newly installed rear fan at a 15 degrees upward angle protruding past the fan to create a 'Venturi' effect. Now you will have convection plus a slight positive venturi effect to draw away some heated air.

In normal situations, this will not have a great effect; but since your HDD temps seem to be high, the temp delta will be significant and therefore this will work for you.

Another option is to install a mini blower (not fan) and pipe the air in the general vicinity of the HDDs. There is plenty of room at the bottom of the case to add a mini blower.

I really doubt I will use 2 HDD, just for the fact that the air flow for the HDDs in my model are not that great. So having 2 very close to each other would not help. And I also have a 2TB external hard drive that I back up all my big files.

I am not that experienced and really do not know what you are talking about with that copper coil stuff.

But I am probably going to try that mini blower you were talking about. Can you give me a good mini blower name. I tried on eBay and NewEgg, all I found is blowers for PCi slots.

You still think it will be ok to use the 2nd HDD space for the fan, if I choose not to do the mini blower thing.

 

[Ubrales]

I really doubt I will use 2 HDD, just for the fact that the air flow for the HDDs in my model are not that great. So having 2 very close to each other would not help. And I also have a 2TB external hard drive that I back up all my big files.

I am not that experienced and really do not know what you are talking about with that copper coil stuff.

But I am probably going to try that mini blower you were talking about. Can you give me a good mini blower name. I tried on eBay and NewEgg, all I found is blowers for PCi slots.

You still think it will be ok to use the 2nd HDD space for the fan, if I choose not to do the mini blower thing.

Yes the copper coil idea is based on convection and venturi principles; it is a little high tech even though my solution looks simple.

Try the mini blower approach. Take a look at this one priced under $15 - http://www.newark.com/nmb-techologies/bg0703-b044-000-00/dc-blower-75-x-30mm-12v/dp/68K1090?in_merch=Popular%20Blowers&MER=PPSO_N_P_Blowers_None

The source is Newark Electronics, an industrial supplier.

Another source for blowers is Grainger (W. W. Granger) - http://www.grainger.com/Grainger/wwg/start.shtml?cm_guid=1-_-100000000000001053397-_-4624274423&cm_mmc=PPC%3A+Google-_-TPN+-+Brand-_-Ww+Grainger-_-ww+grainger

Grainger is an industrial supply house.

A third source is McMaster Carr - http://www.mcmaster.com/

Install the mini blower in the space under the HDD cage in any orientation. Don't worry about air flows, streamlined (laminar) flows, Reynold's number etc. - as long as you can create turbulence in that area, the HDD will be cooled. And this will not affect the CPU cooling fan or temp significantly.

(BTW, I noticed that you have a Corsair 400W PSU in your Dell. Was it straight forward to change the Dell PSU to the Corsair PSU?)

 

[Shpati]

Yes the copper coil idea is based on convection and venturi principles; it is a little high tech even though my solution looks simple.

Try the mini blower approach. Take a look at this one priced under $15 - http://www.newark.com/nmb-techologies/bg0703-b044-000-00/dc-blower-75-x-30mm-12v/dp/68K1090?in_merch=Popular%20Blowers&MER=PPSO_N_P_Blowers_None

The source is Newark Electronics, an industrial supplier.

Another source for blowers is Grainger (W. W. Granger) - http://www.grainger.com/Grainger/wwg/start.shtml?cm_guid=1-_-100000000000001053397-_-4624274423&cm_mmc=PPC%3A+Google-_-TPN+-+Brand-_-Ww+Grainger-_-ww+grainger

Grainger is an industrial supply house.

A third source is McMaster Carr - http://www.mcmaster.com/

Install the mini blower in the space under the HDD cage in any orientation. Don't worry about air flows, streamlined (laminar) flows, Reynold's number etc. - as long as you can create turbulence in that area, the HDD will be cooled. And this will not affect the CPU cooling fan or temp significantly.

(BTW, I noticed that you have a Corsair 400W PSU in your Dell. Was it straight forward to change the Dell PSU to the Corsair PSU?)

Yes, easy as 1,2,3. Remove old PSU, put in new PSU. Screw new one securely, attach cables in right spots. Not hard at all. If I was able to do it, anyone was.

Only problem I had, was I could not make it look nice and neat like the way Dell did it. Mine is kind of messy.

EDIT: Can I use one of these instead?

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835119144&cm_re=dc_blower-_-35-119-144-_-Product

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835119145&cm_re=dc_blower-_-35-119-145-_-Product

And, would it be bad if I were to go to my own fan suggestion (putting a 80mm fan in the extra HDD slow to fan the other HDD)? Would using a blower be a much better option?

 

[Shpati]

What about something like this? It is a HDD cooler.

http://cgi.ebay.com/PC-SATA-IDE-3-5-HARD-DISK-DRIVE-HDD-COOLER-2-FAN-/250528078417?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item3a54a31a51

Could I put something like this in place of the 2nd HDD spot.

 

[Ubrales]

All 3 are good solutions and will work well. The Newegg blower you linked looks very much like the Newark blower I posted. Price-wise too. Probably the same product.

The twin fans HDD cooler has a very attractive price.

Go ahead, do it!

'Git it done' as Larry the cable guy would say!

 

[Shpati]

All 3 are good solutions and will work well. The Newegg blower you linked looks very much like the Newark blower I posted. Price-wise too. Probably the same product.

The twin fans HDD cooler has a very attractive price.

Go ahead, do it!

'Git it done' as Larry the cable guy would say!

That cheap one with the attractive price. It says it is 3.5". My HDD is 2.5", does that matter? So would I just be able to slip it under my HDD, I can make room by removing the 2nd HDD spot.

 

[Ubrales]

That cheap one with the attractive price. It says it is 3.5". My HDD is 2.5", does that matter? So would I just be able to slip it under my HDD, I can make room by removing the 2nd HDD spot.

If it fits, it is fine!

Usually, Dell desktop HDDs are 3.5". Did you install this 2.5" HDD using an adapter? In any event, install the twin fans or the blower, or both. A little overkill won't hurt!

 

[Ubrales]

That cheap one with the attractive price. It says it is 3.5". My HDD is 2.5", does that matter? So would I just be able to slip it under my HDD, I can make room by removing the 2nd HDD spot.

If it fits, it is fine!

Usually, Dell desktop HDDs are 3.5". Did you install this 2.5" HDD using an adapter? In any event, install the twin fans or the blower, or both. A little overkill won't hurt!

 

[Shpati]

If it fits, it is fine!

Usually, Dell desktop HDDs are 3.5". Did you install this 2.5" HDD using an adapter? In any event, install the twin fans or the blower, or both. A little overkill won't hurt!

Adapter? Al I did is put the HDD in that one spot, and made sure those 2 cables were correctly connected (the power, and the blue one to the motherboard).

 

[Ubrales]

Adapter? Al I did is put the HDD in that one spot, and made sure those 2 cables were correctly connected (the power, and the blue one to the motherboard).

How did you get a Dell desktop with a 2.5" HDD? Usually, they come with 3.5" HDDs.

 

[Shpati]

How did you get a Dell desktop with a 2.5" HDD? Usually, they come with 3.5" HDDs.

LOL, I am very sorry. I just checked it, compared it to my 3.5'' external HDD, and they were the same exact size. Silly me. sorry again.

 

[Shpati]

Adapter? Al I did is put the HDD in that one spot, and made sure those 2 cables were correctly connected (the power, and the blue one to the motherboard).

Still waiting on my fans to come in. But I thought I had a good point to share. I took out the HDD and wiped it clean with a napkin. And then wiped the area of where the HDD goes in. Anyway, temperatures went down. Before, when the HDD was idle it would stay around 60-65C. One time when I booted my PC, it actually went up to 77C. Now after the clean, it has yet to go over 60C, even while usage. When I booted it up it was around 45C, and never went higher than 55C while ideal. Just thought that was interesting, a simple clean and temps on the HDD went down 10C. I did nothing different.

BTW, when I get those fans, I was going to put one on the rear. And one underneath the HDD (since I am not going to use that 2nd HDD spot). My first question is for the rear fan, should the side that blows more air be facing the front or back of the computer. I was just wondering because someone said that the back is suppose to be for exhaust while the front is suppose to intake. 2nd is, for the HDD, where should I blow the air. Should I blow it on the bottom, where it is silver and has the Western Digital logo, or the top where green part and the chips are visible.

 

[Ubrales]

BTW, when I get those fans, I was going to put one on the rear. And one underneath the HDD (since I am not going to use that 2nd HDD spot). My first question is for the rear fan, should the side that blows more air be facing the front or back of the computer. I was just wondering because someone said that the back is suppose to be for exhaust while the front is suppose to intake. 2nd is, for the HDD, where should I blow the air. Should I blow it on the bottom, where it is silver and has the Western Digital logo, or the top where green part and the chips are visible.

The rear fan must exhaust the air inside the case.

The fan in the HDD cage - install it such that it blows air towards the printed circuit board (green side with components). You will definitely notice a drop in temps. Just to confirm, try it both ways. And if this drive is out of warranty, spray paint the silver metal side with flat black paint. This will improve the heat transfer since the HDD is hotter than the surrounding air. (If not, the reverse will be true!).

Just curious. How are you measuring the temps on the HDD? Are you using a non-contact Infra red temp device? If so, it will help to calibrate this device against a known temp. (human body temp?)