Fans are crazy!!

[alintatoc]

I've noticed for some days now that the fans are making quite loud noise. Does the heat from the room influence that much?
I have a good case, Antec P180 so the noise shouldn't be that bad.

[G)-(OST]

Due to the thermostat setting, they will make more noise because they are running faster when temperature is up.

[alintatoc]

Due to the thermostat setting, they will make more noise because they are running faster when temperature is up.

So I guess there is nothing to do, just wait for the winter

[G)-(OST]

So I guess there is nothing to do, just wait for the winter

Ohhhh, alintatoc.........................that............ ..........is..........................funny

You could even pack some ice around the case...................................if you can't wait for winter

[alintatoc]

So I guess there is nothing to do, just wait for the winter

Ohhhh, alintatoc.........................that............ ..........is..........................funny

You could even pack some ice around the case...................................if you can't wait for winter

It is easier to put the pc in the fridge, rather then packing some ice around the case

[G)-(OST]

So I guess there is nothing to do, just wait for the winter

Ohhhh, alintatoc.........................that............ ..........is..........................funny

You could even pack some ice around the case...................................if you can't wait for winter

It is easier to put the pc in the fridge, rather then packing some ice around the case

They just keep getting better

You will need to cut some holes out for the cables to pass through though! a metal cutting hole saw should do the trick

[bendixG15]

The inside of the case may need cleaning out.

[minidv2dvd]

like bendix said open it up and check the fins of the heatsinks under the fans. they may be clogged up with the dustbunnies that took refuge there to stay warm in the winter.

[Snakebyte1]

Have you determined exactly which fan or fans are making the noise? I had a noisy fan and I was certain it was the PSU fan but when I fully investigated turned out to be the CPU fan....

The bearings on the fans could be going. A tiny amount of light lubricant can quiet a squealing CPU fan sometimes. Clean off the fan's blades. Its amazing the amount of sticky gunk that can adhere to the blades, throwing them off balance causing noise. If you smoke the fans are likely glazed with crud. Replace any fans that are failing.

If the noisy fan is on the PSU you can consider blowing some compressed air to clean it out. Do I need to remind that the machine should be powered off when doing this?

[lordsmurf]

I've heard to use olive oil for fans -- I have one that chirps like a cricket. When I get some down time, I'm taking it out and doing just that. If it fails, oh well, in the trash it will go.

[G)-(OST]

I've heard to use olive oil for fans -- I have one that chirps like a cricket. When I get some down time, I'm taking it out and doing just that. If it fails, oh well, in the trash it will go.

If it has come to that, then it is to late, bearings running dry usually mean that it is only a matter of time until they fail completely, even if lubricated after being once dry, they get pitted & are no longer smooth.

[AlanHK]

I've noticed for some days now that the fans are making quite loud noise. Does the heat from the room influence that much?
I have a good case, Antec P180 so the noise shouldn't be that bad.

Which fans?
If in the power supply, not much you can do about it, except blow the dust out.

If on the processor or graphic card, they will be removable, take them out and take them to your local PC parts shop (assuming you have one) to match the size and spec and replace with higher quality -- even "high quality" after market fans are only a couple of dollars.

[mikel]

Replace with magnetic bearing fans...

[lordsmurf]

I've heard to use olive oil for fans -- I have one that chirps like a cricket. When I get some down time, I'm taking it out and doing just that. If it fails, oh well, in the trash it will go.

If it has come to that, then it is to late, bearings running dry usually mean that it is only a matter of time until they fail completely, even if lubricated after being once dry, they get pitted & are no longer smooth.

Bah, I'll just remove the fan, then. It's redundant anyway. With summer heat starting hit in the past couple of weeks, and me not willing to pump the AC like a freezer all day long, it's been working more than normal. The chirping went from here-and-there to almost constant the past few days.

I guess it's dead, Jim.

[usta]

You can also eliminate the build in fans
A few years ago I had decided to make one of my desktops silent (it was in the leaving room), so I did this:
1) Replace the CPU fan with a large Cuprum/Aluminium based heatsink/fan (I think it was just under 1kg...). This was absorbing the heat produced by CPU and cooling the remaining heat by a slow moving fan (about 1500rpm). Almost no noise.
2) Remove the fan from Nvidia graphics card. Instead I've used Zalman heat-pipes, that wrap the video card like a sandwich and kept it passively cooled.
3) Replaced the PC case fan with a larger one, that was running slower but producing the same airflow.
4) Got some rubber holders for HDD, that move it from 3.5 inch bay to 5.25 inch bay. It absorbs the noise and trilling of Hard Disk and keeps it cooler.
5) Placed the PC on a rubber surface on floor.
This PC is working still without any problem and is super silent.

[G)-(OST]

1) Replace the CPU fan with a large Cuprum/Aluminium based heatsink/fan (I think it was just under 1kg...). This was absorbing the heat produced by CPU and cooling the remaining heat by a slow moving fan (about 1500rpm). Almost no noise.

This is probably your best bet, the more heat today's computer processors generate, the more efficient the CPU coolers must become in order to avoid using a noisier, higher and higher speed fan to cool them.

For the heatsink, go the copper (cuprum) alternative, although copper is more expensive, it is essential in making a quiet (slow spinning fan = quiet) CPU cooler. Copper is nearly twice as efficient at conducting heat than aluminum.

[lordsmurf]

I replaced my CPU cooler some years ago too, with a larger one, and then have a large Zalman bracket fan blowing over it. This is far quieter than the buzzing little crap fan that it came with.

I'm ripping that problem fan of mine out of the case in about an hour. It's made me edgy all day long... Grrrr......

[redwudz]

Lubricating a noisy fan just delays the failure a little. Those bearings are usually sealed and if the oil gets in there, the seals are shot anyway. If you must use oil, use a light machine oil like 3-in 1, or better, a synthetic oil.

I'm lucky I have a modern AC heat pump system for my home that is really efficient and not that expensive to run. The daytime temps here have been about 107F this week, so AC is a must. But I keep it at 80F to keep down the bills a little. It does make a big difference with my PCs temps.

If you are hearing a lot of fan noise, I would also recommend cleaning out the internal dust. If you do blow out the dust, do it outdoors. You don't want to be breathing that stuff.

And you might also install a software temperature/fan speed software program so you can see if the PC is really hot, or just has noisy fans. The freeware HWMonitor is easy to use and doesn't have to be installed, and is probably accurate enough for what you want to monitor: http://www.cpuid.com/hwmonitor.php

[hech54]

My computer has been LOUD the past few days too....then again it is pretty hot here.

[alintatoc]

Wow, lots of information here, that should be enough for me to do something about the noise.
Yesterday and today was a bit better but it's not so hot inside anymore