Modding My Case - Some Concerns

[Whoami4]

I unfortunatly cannot afford a new case to upgrade from my stock HP case (H8-1010) and am looking at modifying it increase some airflow with a filter and huge external fan. I upgraded the GPU to a GTX 560 Ti 448 Core (running 90c+ under load most of the time) and the CPU to a core i5 2500k (not overclocked, and not running too horribly hot either) and the PSU to a Corsair TX750 (doesn't SEEM to get having any issues in the case).

I opened the case and put a box fan pointed at it blowing continously, it lowered my GPU temps by a good 10-15c on average, sometimes up to 20c cooler. My issue with leaving it open is I have 2 cats and 2 dogs in the house that shed like mad and I don't want everything getting clogged up.

Here's my plan:
Use a fan that is about a foot and a half to two feet in diameter blowing into the case through a filter.
Rig up an Air Filter to the open side of the case (cut it down and velcro, maybe use a metal mesh on the outside to give it some support)

The filter I'm looking at is something like THIS

The one only thing that would concern me is the fact potential static buildup or something of the sort that could cause major problems. Does anybody know of any other similarily ghetto rigged machines or if there will be any problems?

Thanks for any help you may be able to offer!

 

[king smp]

Are you able to cut an opening in the side panel with a Dremel or Jigsaw?

what you are describing would work
granted not the most elegant of solutions but would be inexpensive and effective
I myself dont really worry how my case looks to my friends/family
not that many people see it LOL
I had a Dell that was all cut/modded for extra fans that was an ugly looking beast
but ran cool

I wouldnt worry about static buildup
having the fan blowing through the filter the way you described isnt any different
than if the fan was attached
the only issue I would worry about would be liquid spillage
as long as you dont have drinks or open containers near it you should be fine

I used to work in a heating and AC wholesale warehouse
so I am very familiar with those filters
you might want to see if you can build or scavenge an air filter frame to make it easy to remove and replace
they will need to be replaced every so often
try to find a HTG/AC wholesaler near you
if you can show them some kind of business card (doesnt have to be yours)
that relates to a contracting field
then they give price breaks on buying a case of filters
one case would last you about a year I would think
(5/case)

there is the noise factor but if it doesnt bother you then that doesnt matter

BTW nice upgrades to a HP machine
I am impressed with the GPU and PSU choices

 

[Whoami4]

I did think about cutting the panel up to mount extra fans or even just adding fans to the parts that are actually open for airflow, but frankly I wouldn't know how to go about it. I'd have to find a way to power the fans, I'm just starting off actually replacing / adding hardware so I'm not taking too many chances here.

I did go pick up a filter, velcro and gorilla tape and pieced it together. Looks kinda cruddy but it fits the budget and keeps my temps under 80c (usually mid 70's) under full load on Battlefield 3 where it used to top off in the low 90's, so to me it's totally worth it.

Thank you for the response, gave me the confidence to give it a try and achieve what I was after.

Here are some pics of my now ridiculous looking machine:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/76582121@N07/6872751819/in/photostream
http://www.flickr.com/photos/76582121@N07/6872751803/in/photostream

 

[Whoami4]

Best answer selected by Whoami4.

 

[Mousemonkey]

This topic has been closed by Mousemonkey