Do I need a Dust Filter/Mesh for Push Radiator?

ChaoticShadow

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Mar 19, 2016
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The Cooler Master Mastercase Pro 5 has a mesh thing on the front, where I was planning to install the NZXT Kraken X61 Radiator. Will having the mesh negatively effect the radiator and cooling when in Push configuration or can I just leave the mesh cover on so it looks cool?

(I was thinking about routing some LEDs around the inside of the front cover so they would shine through the mesh, but I'm not sure if the push configuration will be damaged by the mesh thing.)


Thanks in advance! :) :)
 
Solution


There will be no problem with what you trying to do. You can do push or pull on front mounted radiator. It would be better if you use them as intake. The stock fans will probably do the job as they are optimized for this radiator. You can replace them if you are not satisfied with noise level or temperature level in the future.


The mesh would only affect the performance marginally. So much so that you shouldn't worry about it as long as you have the stock fans for the AIO or static pressure fans. If the AIO's fins per inch is low and the mesh is very light as well, then you can use high CFM fans and get better cooling.
 


I don't know about my rad fins, but the mesh is pretty light, and the holes are decently-sized. So, would it be better if I took the mesh off and wired LEDs behind or around the edges of the rad?

Thanks.
 


Adding mesh will add noise, and slightly negatively affect performance at the same RPM.
For the convenience, people do PULL on radiators - that does not affect performance at all, but makes cleaning so much easier.
 


Just looked at the case. You can stay with your current fans or go with CFM fans if you wanted since the mesh is pretty light.
In regards to the LEDs, are you talking about the mesh being in the way or the hex grill? And you should be able to lay some LED strips in there if you wanted. Of course, I'm not exactly positive on how you plan on doing it to where it would cause damage.
 


Being in push or pull will have the same results in cleaning maintenance. Especially, when you have a mesh that will "filter" some of that dirt/dust. Having positive pressure in the case will prevent dust getting into the system and is not affected by push or pull configs. It is only affected by if the fans are static pressure or CFM, intakes or outtakes, the size of each fan, and the rpm each fan is spinning at.
 


I was thinking about putting LEDs on the non mesh part of the front cover so they would be hidden from view but the light would be visible.

If I go with high airflow fans, won't my rad be in the way?
 


Let's make it clear. Push/Pull config is when the fans are configured to push or pull air through the radiator. It has nothing to do with the pressure within the case.
Intake or exhaust does have.
Regarding cleaning of the radiator, I live in a dusty place and have a furry cat, no mesh, will prevent the shit building up between radiator and fan in push config. You have no such problem with pull.
Performance affected by so much more different factors. Why not to mention FPI and thickness and their compatibility with SP or AF fans ? 😉
 


The type of the fans on your kraken are the best for this radiator. Try to check if they are SP or AF.
Also depends on the placement of your radiator. The more obstacles (grill, mesh, high FPI rad, HDD cage) the more reasoning for SP fans.
 


I'm glad that you felt the need to insult my intelligence when it comes to how fans work when they are oriented differently. However, you are wrong in regards to maintenance on push or pull or even push/pull configs. They're all about the same. I've had 6 radiators setup in my system for two years and all the rads are equally as dirty as others are for the intakes. Only the exhaust rads are slightly less dirty and that is because most of that crap was caught in the intakes. Positive vs. negative pressure of the airflow in your case is the only thing, outside of air filters, that will prevent dust entering into the system. Grills and mesh, as I said before, only help marginally. They mostly keep that cat hair or other dander from getting into the system if it's not too small. Also, it helps to keep your cat out from in front of the grills.

If you have a radiator that has a high FPI, this one could be that way, then static pressure fans are probably best as long as the restriction is higher. If there is not a lot of restriction then using CFM fans will be more than fine and in some cases will perform better. But, CFM fans will perform poorly if the situation requires SP fans. I will say that stock fans are okay for these systems, but if there is a fan that has better performance for the situation at hand, then use that instead. The proprietary software that comes with the AIO cooler is not really necessary outside of making sure the pump starts and keeps going. You can control fan speeds elsewhere, if needed at all.
 


I'm truly sorry that you felt insulted. That was not my intention.
I just wanted to point out the configuration we are discussing is the pull or push fans on the radiators regardless of radiators positioning withing the case.
And you are absolutely correct that the amount of dirt is the same. It's just the ease of removing it that differs. In push config, it is necessary to remove the fan to clean the rad. Fortunately, in pull configuration, it is not necessary to unmount the fans to remove dust and dirt. And that was the point of my comment. Or the point of why it's more practical to use pull.
I'm using water cooling for about a decade, and do have some experience from personal mistakes, reading and watching other people as i find it very interesting topic 😉
Again, sorry that I was sounding insulting.
 



How am I going to select a best answer, when I don't know whose right? But I think you guys are both trying to tell me that it won't be too big of a problem if there is mesh or if there isn't and that I should check how many obstacles I have and get a good fan for my purpose if the stock ones suck.

Thanks for all the feedback and I'm sure you guys are both right in certain areas. :)
 


There will be no problem with what you trying to do. You can do push or pull on front mounted radiator. It would be better if you use them as intake. The stock fans will probably do the job as they are optimized for this radiator. You can replace them if you are not satisfied with noise level or temperature level in the future.
 
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