Checking airflow in case

[Elledan]

Which method(s) are used to visualize the airflow? Most common method I know of is to use smoke, but what kind of smoke is suitable?

 

[PsychoZX]

A little fog machine works great.

 

[Elledan]

A little fog machine works great.

I bet it will, but it seems like quite an investment for what is basically very simple test.

I seem to recall people using incense sticks for this purpose, but I'm not 100% certain.

 

[ehZn]

I suppose any smoke you can see will work. I would try and pick something with fewer contaminants that may stick behind on your components, like from cigarrette smoke, and go with something that makes more of a white smoke, which I guess could be incense.

Maybe you can get your pc high

 

[Elledan]

Do all kinds of incense produce white smoke? I doubt they would put such information on the package


(I hope the smoke doesn't trigger the fire alarm ^_^ )

 

[UltraJounin]

I what kind results do you want to see? Do you want to see smoke entering AND leaving?

Personally I would avoid using smoke, the size of the smoke particles is enough to damage a hard drive, of course this is in extreme cases and after long exposure, but why even take the chance.

I've had clients who were constant smokers at home, Ive opened up their case and even the dust inside of the case smelled like smoke and I noticed they constantly had HD problems. But like I said, thats extreme

I'd also be a bit weary of fog machines, fog = moisture. Also another extreme, if exposed long.

If its for a few minutes I'd guess its safe to say go ahead with incense if that produces enough for you to see results. GL

 

[El Nacho]

you could allways take everything out before you test it. It will still give you a good idea about air flow and you wont have to worry about blowing anything up.

 

[ehZn]

you could allways take everything out before you test it. It will still give you a good idea about air flow and you wont have to worry about blowing anything up.

Yea even if I was only gonna do a short test I would probably take most of the important things out.

 

[Elledan]

Well, I would need to have at least some parts, i.e., the fans, working to get reliable results. I could power them using a seperate PSU, I guess.

However, things like heat from the videocard, HDDs, etc. will also affect airflow patterns, so there really seems no way to test the airflow patterns without a functioning system or an elaborate simulation.

Would a brief exposure to some smoke really be that dangerous to components inside the case? Seems kind of far-fetched to me.

 

[ehZn]

Well probably not. But in the case of someone who smokes in their home, the smoke is not introduced into the system in any concentration, while with your test you will be putting a large amount of smoke directly into your system to be able to see it. I can't say for sure, but I would probably be on the safe side.

 

[PsychoZX]

I'd also be a bit weary of fog machines, fog = moisture. Also another extreme, if exposed long.

Thats why you use it with just the fans on, not everything else inside your case.

 

[Elledan]

Well probably not. But in the case of someone who smokes in their home, the smoke is not introduced into the system in any concentration, while with your test you will be putting a large amount of smoke directly into your system to be able to see it. I can't say for sure, but I would probably be on the safe side.

But those are two distinctly different types of smoke. One is filled with tar and lots of other unpleasant substances, whereas the other one does not contain harmful substances (to humans or PCs) in significant amounts.

Anyway, I'll be going with the incense idea, then. Thanks for the help

 

[hctimo787]

Try going to a local hardware store (avoid the chainstores if you can) and ask about smoke sticks for finding leaks in HVAC duct work or any kind of air leak. There are these sticks that look like giant qtips that put off a highly visible white smoke. They smolder at a low temperature so that shouldn't effect the smoke particles movement through your case any more than cigarette or incense smoke would. Anyway, just ask the oldest or smartest looking guy you can find at a hardware store where you can get them. You could even try calling and asking independent contractors. Keywords to mention, HVAC, leaks, smoke.

 

[ehZn]

Try going to a local hardware store (avoid the chainstores if you can) and ask about smoke sticks for finding leaks in HVAC duct work or any kind of air leak. There are these sticks that look like giant qtips that put off a highly visible white smoke. They smolder at a low temperature so that shouldn't effect the smoke particles movement through your case any more than cigarette or incense smoke would. Anyway, just ask the oldest or smartest looking guy you can find at a hardware store where you can get them. You could even try calling and asking independent contractors. Keywords to mention, HVAC, leaks, smoke.

Sounds like we have a winner!!!

 

[Elledan]

Try going to a local hardware store (avoid the chainstores if you can) and ask about smoke sticks for finding leaks in HVAC duct work or any kind of air leak. There are these sticks that look like giant qtips that put off a highly visible white smoke. They smolder at a low temperature so that shouldn't effect the smoke particles movement through your case any more than cigarette or incense smoke would. Anyway, just ask the oldest or smartest looking guy you can find at a hardware store where you can get them. You could even try calling and asking independent contractors. Keywords to mention, HVAC, leaks, smoke.

If I could find some of those smoke sticks, that would be fantastic

I'm definitely going to try getting some of those first, incense sticks being the second choice.

Thanks for the tip!