[SOLVED] PC in a drawer, 1 intake fan or 1 exhaust?

Bryce Husserl

Honorable
Jul 19, 2013
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Long story short, I took the components out of a PC case and put them into the drawer of my desk to use as a dedicated bot farm pc. I cut out a hole for 1 120mm fan in the back of the desk for airflow, which would be best, to put it in as exhaust or intake.

Its currently running the stock CPU cooler, but I have a 212 evo on the way. The max temps when stress testing currently was 88 C but stayed around 75 C. Obviously this is hot, and will likely go down with the system fan and cooler. Any advice is appreciated.

P.S. The desk isn't against a wall, it is perpendicular to it, so the fan wouldn't be restricted at all.
 
Solution
when installing in a case or drawer you have to have air in and out of the desk enclosure.
My computer is inside my desk, hidden.
But I installed 3 140mm fans in the bottom back with a filter blowing in.
My case just fits the printer side of my desk.
Installed 3 83cfm intake fans in the front of case. Closed off side and top fan mounts then removed all PCI slot covers. An flipped my power supply fan up to draw air from the case.
So now all air comes in the front of case and exits out a hole cut in the back of the desk. Computer runs cool has very low noise and is protected from pets.
It can be done you just have to think different.

Bryce Husserl

Honorable
Jul 19, 2013
14
1
10,525
The drawer is by no means air tight, so I was left to assume via positive/negative pressure, the air would escape/intake from all the gaps and holes...

I could try to cut a second hole, however it would be relatively close to the first hole.
 

USAFRet

Titan
Moderator
The drawer is by no means air tight, so I was left to assume via positive/negative pressure, the air would escape/intake from all the gaps and holes...

I could try to cut a second hole, however it would be relatively close to the first hole.
In the context of your original question, probably not much difference either way.
The gaps are not enough to actually move air through.

You're building a custom 'case'. As such, there is no generic answer that will work, except for the recommendation of IN and OUT.
And those gaps are almost certainly not enough. You need active devices (fans) to move the air.
 

Bryce Husserl

Honorable
Jul 19, 2013
14
1
10,525
In the context of your original question, probably not much difference either way.
The gaps are not enough to actually move air through.

You're building a custom 'case'. As such, there is no generic answer that will work, except for the recommendation of IN and OUT.
And those gaps are almost certainly not enough. You need active devices (fans) to move the air.

Thanks for the advice, I'll try to devise a way to cut another hole out.
 
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Seeing as it’s a drawer it’s not gonna be sealed so if the fan is blowing air into it there’s a chance your gonna be wasting some of the airflow by it escaping other places but with a vacume any of the cooler outside air will come into the drawer
What? Wasting some of the airflow? Not all the air will go to the components you want, whether it's exhaust or intake. Just make a second hole and have both intake and exhaust.
 
when installing in a case or drawer you have to have air in and out of the desk enclosure.
My computer is inside my desk, hidden.
But I installed 3 140mm fans in the bottom back with a filter blowing in.
My case just fits the printer side of my desk.
Installed 3 83cfm intake fans in the front of case. Closed off side and top fan mounts then removed all PCI slot covers. An flipped my power supply fan up to draw air from the case.
So now all air comes in the front of case and exits out a hole cut in the back of the desk. Computer runs cool has very low noise and is protected from pets.
It can be done you just have to think different.
 
  • Like
Reactions: extreme_noob
Solution

Bryce Husserl

Honorable
Jul 19, 2013
14
1
10,525
Update, as of now I installed a 212 evo cpu cooler, and one 120mm noctua fan as the intake. I do plan to cut out a spot for exhaust, however the grille i ordered is on its way. Here are some temp specs though in case you where wondering:

120mm intake, stock cpu cooler: Idle: 40 c Stress peak: 94 c Typical temp running my bots: 55 c
120mm intake, hyper 212 evo: Idle: 30 c Stress peak: 78 c Typical temp running my bots: 42 c

I also noticed when I would open the drawer with the stock cooler, the ambient air temperature was noticeably hot, whereas with the 212 evo its not even warm, just about room temperature.
 

Bryce Husserl

Honorable
Jul 19, 2013
14
1
10,525
when installing in a case or drawer you have to have air in and out of the desk enclosure.
My computer is inside my desk, hidden.
But I installed 3 140mm fans in the bottom back with a filter blowing in.
My case just fits the printer side of my desk.
Installed 3 83cfm intake fans in the front of case. Closed off side and top fan mounts then removed all PCI slot covers. An flipped my power supply fan up to draw air from the case.
So now all air comes in the front of case and exits out a hole cut in the back of the desk. Computer runs cool has very low noise and is protected from pets.
It can be done you just have to think different.

I appreciate your help, and I like how your also a fan of a hidden computer. My current config is that the intake fan is blowing perpendicularly at the cpu cooler, and the cpu cooler fan would be blowing towards the next cut out hole I make for the exhaust.
 
You are getting there.
Once you install the exhaust fan temps will drop a little more.(my experience)
It takes planning and a little time.
Plus the wife had the look of "your not taking a saw and drill to your new $1500 desk I just Bought you?
So after 2 weeks of planning and measuring, I tackled it one Saturday when she was not home.
I started with the three intakes, but temps were a little high after a 24hour soak period. So I added a 120mm exhaust at the top back of the desk.
 

Bryce Husserl

Honorable
Jul 19, 2013
14
1
10,525
You are getting there.
Once you install the exhaust fan temps will drop a little more.(my experience)
It takes planning and a little time.
Plus the wife had the look of "your not taking a saw and drill to your new $1500 desk I just Bought you?
So after 2 weeks of planning and measuring, I tackled it one Saturday when she was not home.
I started with the three intakes, but temps were a little high after a 24hour soak period. So I added a 120mm exhaust at the top back of the desk.
Ah yes, I get that same look from my mother or girlfriend everytime I mess with my new car, and I agree, I expect them to drop when an exhaust hole is cut, however for what I use it for, 55 C is plenty low enough that its not a top priority


EDIT: Actually after swapping the noctua intake fan with the cooler master cooler fan, the temps haven't peaked over 51 C in the same tasks I've been running previous... Another 4 C down, potentially 10 more with the exhaust
 
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