Which direction shall I orient PSU for best airflow?

[soarwitheagles]

Hi again!

Ok, I googled the following question:

Which direction shall I orient PSU for best airflow?

I found many, many different answers for up and many, many different answers for down. I thought I would come here to ask the experts.

Personally, I was thinking I should have the PSU fan intake coming in from the bottom of the computer case for the cooler air.

I have other reasons to keep the PSU fan intake pointed down too.

But, maybe is it better to have the intake fan sucking in air from within the computer case?

Please give me some answers.

I posted some pics of newly built rig.

I would like to do it right.

Thanks,

Soar

 

[PP Mguire]

Obvious answer. Down to suck in cooler air and blow the hot air out the rear. Why would you want to suck warm air in from your PC? It's the reason they made bottom mount PSU cases to begin with.

Not only that, but your cable bundle is in the correct position with the fan facing down.

 

[soarwitheagles]

Obvious answer. Down to suck in cooler air and blow the hot air out the rear. Why would you want to suck warm air in from your PC? It's the reason they made bottom mount PSU cases to begin with.

Not only that, but your cable bundle is in the correct position with the fan facing down.

PPM,

Thank you for supporting my thinking that the fan should be oriented downward.

Here are the specific reasons why I chose to install the PSU with the fan oriented downward:

1. I desire cool air coming in from the bottom of the computer case rather than hotter air from within the computer case to keep my PSU at cooler temps.

2. Several bench-markers discovered an increase in the CPU temps after mounting the PSU with the fan oriented upward. Many people have posted complaints that a PSU installed with the fan oriented upward causes a disruption to the air flow within their computer case...

3. I do not have carpet in my computer room, so have need to worry about carpet fiber getting sucked into my PSU [and if I did have carpet, I would place my computer raised off the carpet with the fan filter at the bottom of the computer case in place].

4. Some computer cases come with a very, very nice PSU cover [HAF X]. The PSU cover that comes with the HAF X would completely cover the PSU fan vent hole if I were to orient the PSU with the fan oriented upward. This would lead to no air flow at all, and probably burn up my PSU very quickly!

5. If a screw or other tiny piece of metal ever came loose within the computer case, it could place my entire system at great risk if it fell into the PSU via the fan hole oriented upward rather than downward.

6. Several of the main PSU manufacturer's recommend the PSU to be installed with the fan facing downward.

Thank you for confirming I did it right.

I was a little confused because I read a number of posts at other forums where people were recommending the PSU be installed with the fan oriented upward. They even gave reasons why...

Weird!

Soar

 

[PP Mguire]

Facing the PSU upwards should not change CPU temps at all. Some people just talk out their ass =/

 

[soarwitheagles]

Facing the PSU upwards should not change CPU temps at all. Some people just talk out their ass =/

Oh, ok. Yeah, lots of people talk as if they know exactly what they are talking about, but in reality, they have no clue what they are talking about.

So much misinformation in the world today...

Glad to be able to come to a place like this and discover the truth!

Hey, how do you like my new build?

Soar

 

[PP Mguire]

Not bad, I like your cable management.

 

[soarwitheagles]

Not bad, I like your cable management.

Thank you PPM. Lots of the stuff I learned I learned here at Tech Forum. So thanks everyone for helping me build a rig that so far is working really swell!

Soar

 

[jasonalwaysready]

what is that fan on the bottom doing? is there an outside case vent there?

 

[soarwitheagles]

what is that fan on the bottom doing? is there an outside case vent there?

Jason, the fan on the bottom of the PSU sucks in cooler air from outside the vented case bottom, then shoots out the warm air out the back vent located on the back of the PSU.

It works really, really good.

Soar

 

[PP Mguire]

He was talking about the fan mounted in front of the PSU blowing air in the case. And yes, there is a vent there.