[SOLVED] Case fan up against ????? part of motherboard

[andrepartthree]

Hi guys - well time for another stupid Andre question

Built a PC for a friend... ASRock B450M PRO4 motherboard, inside a AeroCool Cylon RGB Mid Tower computer case (budget build so the friend wouldn't have to spend a lot on computer parts)

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07FVYKFXF?tag=camelseg9-20&linkCode=ogi&th=1&psc=1&language=en_US

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B079P1VBDY/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o08_s02?ie=UTF8&psc=1

The build went fine.. right up until I tried to install a case fan (120 mm Cougar CFD series ) at the top of the case

https://cougargaming.com/us/products/cooling/cfd_red_led_fan/

The only way I'd be able to install the fan is if I anchor it by two screws.. a thought I'm not wild about since I'm concerned about the fan vibrating itself loose and falling down into and damaging the CPU, RAM, motherboard et cetera ... basically the darn fan cannot fit into the space at the top of the case because there's a part of the motherboard blocking it... hopefully the attached pictures will show up okay ...

https://i.vgy.me/OOCehj.jpg

https://i.vgy.me/YhQ0nX.jpg

The part stopping me from being able to insert the case fan properly is a gray thing covering what I'm guessing are capacitors on the motherboard.

To be honest the case fan already has six case fans installed which some might see as overkill ... the case came with a 120 mm case fan preinstalled in the back... and I also installed 3 case fans in the front of the PC and two case fans on the bottom of the PC such that the bottom fans will blow the hot air upwards (front and back case fans are set up to force/pull air from the front of the case towards the back of the case)... the five case fans I installed are the Arctic F12 model

https://www.amazon.com/ARCTIC-F12-Standard-Configuration-possible/dp/B00NTUJRHK

I'd really love to install that case fan on the top too (the Cougar case fan) just so I can have that final case fan up there assisting the bottom case fans as far as pulling the hot air upwards from the bottom of the case... currently the PC does not have a video/graphics card installed (graphics come from the AMD Ryzen 3 3200G processor I put in there)

https://www.amazon.com/AMD-Ryzen-3200G-Unlocked-Processor/dp/B07STGHZK8

but it's more than possible my friend may want a video card (probably in the $200 price range) installed into the PC case in the future in which case I'd really like to be able to cool the whole thing as much as possible.

So , thoughts? Is it indeed crazy to force-install the Cougar fan in by only two screws (would have to install the fan at an angle so that's why only two screws) ? Is it a terrible idea to even have the case fan (the part touching the motherboard would be the plastic housing of the fan but it's a green LED fan) touching the motherboard all the time like that to begin with? Do I have to worry about the fan vibrating itself loose?

Any comments or thoughts would be appreciated and apologies I know it's the dumbest question in the world ... but after all the blood sweat and tears that went into putting this PC together (I can do these things it's just a long, labor intensive, terrifying process for me as opposed to more experienced computer builders) there's no way I'm taking all those parts out and transferring them into a bigger case ... again thanks to anyone who reads this and responds.

 

[Lutfij]

Honestly, don't bother, you don't need to sacrifice that VRM heatsink which is actually necessary to keep the power delivery area cool , much better than having a fan up there.

Might want to shoot a picture of the fans in the case and the innards of the system for a second opinion from the community. If I were you, I'd keep it simple.

 

[OrlyP]

It seems that it's a design flaw with the case. They didn't put enough clearance between the motherboard and the top fan mount. I've seen other reviewers encountering this interference.

Here are your options:

1. See if a thinner/slim-type 120mm fan would fit
2. Use a smaller-diameter fan (ie. 90mm)
3. Forgo installing a fan in that location

 

[andrepartthree]

This is why I love this forum (and you guys) so much .. super quick, super helpful informative replies.. thank you both so much ... Lutfij that's super valuable information... got it, do not let a case fan or anything else go up against what I now know is a VRM heatsink so it can do it's job and keep things cool ... and OrlyP thank you so much as well, I didn't even know they made case fans smaller than 120 mm ! (which shows my ignorance I guess )

I did the measurements with a (wooden) ruler inside the case and I think I can safely install this into the case without it touching the VRM heatsink

https://www.amazon.com/Zalman-ZM-F2-LED-Cooling-SF/dp/B00NMXE90E/ref=nav_signin?dchild=1&keywords=90mm%2Bcase%2Bfan%2Bled&qid=1607373553&s=electronics&sr=1-6&th=1&

" Zalman Ultra Quiet ZM-F2 92mm Blue LED Shark Fin Blade Case Fan Cooling, White ZM-F2 LED (SF) "

And yep Lutfij you're absolutely right I should have included pic's of the setup inside the computer case as far as fans

https://i.vgy.me/xfqqlz.jpg

https://i.vgy.me/Cpoh5w.jpg

So in your guys opinion though (by guys I mean anyone who reads and responds ) ... is that seventh fan (Zalman blue led 90 mm fan) on top of the computer case necessary to begin with? I'd really like to install it in there to help the two bottom installed fans "lift" the hot air from the bottom of the case upwards ... but I also have 3 case fans in front and one in the back as per the pics .... but there's a strong possibility my buddy will ask for a video/graphics card to be installed in the $200 range in the future and while I know those cards often have their own fans I'm guessing that will also drive up the amount of heat inside the case... which unfortunately isn't that big to begin with (mid tower sized case , Case Dimensions (Overall): 198 x 459 x 413mm (W x H x D) or 7.79 inches wide by 18 inches height by 16 inches deep).

 

[Flayed]

This is why I love this forum (and you guys) so much .. super quick, super helpful informative replies.. thank you both so much ... Lutfij that's super valuable information... got it, do not let a case fan or anything else go up against what I now know is a VRM heatsink so it can do it's job and keep things cool ... and OrlyP thank you so much as well, I didn't even know they made case fans smaller than 120 mm ! (which shows my ignorance I guess )

I did the measurements with a (wooden) ruler inside the case and I think I can safely install this into the case without it touching the VRM heatsink

https://www.amazon.com/Zalman-ZM-F2-LED-Cooling-SF/dp/B00NMXE90E/ref=nav_signin?dchild=1&keywords=90mm%2Bcase%2Bfan%2Bled&qid=1607373553&s=electronics&sr=1-6&th=1&

" Zalman Ultra Quiet ZM-F2 92mm Blue LED Shark Fin Blade Case Fan Cooling, White ZM-F2 LED (SF) "

And yep Lutfij you're absolutely right I should have included pic's of the setup inside the computer case as far as fans

https://i.vgy.me/xfqqlz.jpg

https://i.vgy.me/Cpoh5w.jpg

So in your guys opinion though (by guys I mean anyone who reads and responds ) ... is that seventh fan (Zalman blue led 90 mm fan) on top of the computer case necessary to begin with? I'd really like to install it in there to help the two bottom installed fans "lift" the hot air from the bottom of the case upwards ... but I also have 3 case fans in front and one in the back as per the pics .... but there's a strong possibility my buddy will ask for a video/graphics card to be installed in the $200 range in the future and while I know those cards often have their own fans I'm guessing that will also drive up the amount of heat inside the case... which unfortunately isn't that big to begin with (mid tower sized case , Case Dimensions (Overall): 198 x 459 x 413mm (W x H x D) or 7.79 inches wide by 18 inches height by 16 inches deep).

You already have 6 case fans do you really need another one?

 

[andrepartthree]

Thanks Flayed.. so to be clear... and not arguing with you by any means just want to make sure I understand you correctly .... in your opinion even with a video card in there in the future the six case fans are enough? No need for an additional fan on top to help out?

 

[Flayed]

Thanks Flayed.. so to be clear... and not arguing with you by any means just want to make sure I understand you correctly .... in your opinion even with a video card in there in the future the six case fans are enough? No need for an additional fan on top to help out?

I guess another won't hurt lol

 

[andrepartthree]

Well darn it... of course this doesn't occur to me until AFTER I ordered the " Zalman Ultra Quiet ZM-F2 92mm Blue LED Shark Fin Blade Case Fan Cooling, White ZM-F2 LED (SF) "

https://www.amazon.com/Zalman-ZM-F2-LED-Cooling-SF/dp/B00NMXE90E/ref=cm_cr_arp_d_product_top?ie=UTF8

I'd much rather install it with normal metal screws as opposed to the rubber pins it comes with to avoid the projection out of the top of the case of the rubber pins messing with the magnetic dust filter that attaches to that spot (top of the case where you install a fan normally)...

Has anyone had experience with mounting a 92 mm case fan in a spot where you'd normally install a 120 mm fan? The part where I'm installing it seems to have a lot of holes on the top as you can hopefully see from the picture below so I'm hoping there are four holes in there somewhere wher eI could anchor the 92 mm fan in there via the screws

https://i.vgy.me/Amso6W.jpg

also, would the screws you'd normally use for a 120 mm case fan work on a 92 mm case fan or are the screws too big?

 

[Flayed]

Well darn it... of course this doesn't occur to me until AFTER I ordered the " Zalman Ultra Quiet ZM-F2 92mm Blue LED Shark Fin Blade Case Fan Cooling, White ZM-F2 LED (SF) "

https://www.amazon.com/Zalman-ZM-F2-LED-Cooling-SF/dp/B00NMXE90E/ref=cm_cr_arp_d_product_top?ie=UTF8

I'd much rather install it with normal metal screws as opposed to the rubber pins it comes with to avoid the projection out of the top of the case of the rubber pins messing with the magnetic dust filter that attaches to that spot (top of the case where you install a fan normally)...

Has anyone had experience with mounting a 92 mm case fan in a spot where you'd normally install a 120 mm fan? The part where I'm installing it seems to have a lot of holes on the top as you can hopefully see from the picture below so I'm hoping there are four holes in there somewhere wher eI could anchor the 92 mm fan in there via the screws

https://i.vgy.me/Amso6W.jpg

also, would the screws you'd normally use for a 120 mm case fan work on a 92 mm case fan or are the screws too big?

As long as the screws fit through the holes they will anchor to the fan

 

[andrepartthree]

Flayed thanks so much for all your help and .. well just paying attention to me and helping out in general ... I won't know until Dec 15th if the fan works out because that's how long amazon will take to ship it to me because I'm cheap and went for the free shipping option so I guess I'm in suspense until then .. I will post back here and let you guys know how it all works out but in the meantime if anyone has any thoughts who has or has not posted yet and sees this please by all means let me know I'm a sponge, happy to soak up whatever you guys throw at me (well cripes that just sounded obscene didn't it now? )

 

[andrepartthree]

Hi guys just thought I'd give an update (primary to let you kind folks who posted know what happened .. but also in case anyone else who comes across this issue reads this and they can see what the outcome was too)... I was able to successfully indulge my paranoia and install a seventh fan , the 92 mm Zalman case fan I mentioned above, in the slot on the top of the case fan... I had to mount it at a goofy tilted angle as you can see in the picture (so not the greatest as far as looks ) but it is not touching the heatsink .. granted there's a very slim space between it and the heatsink so hopefully it doesn't interfere with the heat dissipation from the heatsink ...

I was able to successfully screw it on through the holes on the top of the case fan (put fan up against the PC case inside of it then while holding the fan towards the case screwed in screws on the top)... there's a very slight bulge the screws are creating on top of the magnetic dust filter that attaches to that top spot for the case fan but hopefully that doesn't create any problems as far as protecting the PC from dust.

Again thanks so much to everyone who posted I really appreciate it

https://i.vgy.me/JX79Jw.jpg