Hard drive heat?

[bhxtyrant]

Hey guys,
This is just a question not really a problem yet but is quite strange to me.I recently cleaned out my Tower because it had some dust and normal dirt buildup from the past year of use.After cleaning i installed a new additional 250GB HDD to it along with the 3 HDD's i already had in previously.I notice now my case seems to get alot warmer then it used too but i cant get over one hard drive making so much difference in temperature.Quite strange,fan setup is still the same as before with one rear 80mm fan blowing out,one front 80mm blowing in and one side fan blowing in towards the processor HSF.Just wanted to get some thoughts on it.

[Reverend]

Is the new HDD located near the inward airflow?

[bhxtyrant]

It's located right under the other 3 which are right under the 5" 25 bays so pretty much same exact place as they always been with the exception of there being 4 instead of 3.I removed my floppy drive and put the hard drive in it's place since i dont use floppy's these days and just figured i'd get an external floppy if needed.

[Reverend]

what case have you got?

Is it possible you can open the case and take a pic and post it here.

[bhxtyrant]

It's called "Antec Lanboy" a light aluminum case i purchased at CompUSA when i built the PC.I'll try and snap a few pics tommorrow have to charge my digi camera.In the meantime here are some images of the case if that helps.

http://img526.imageshack.us/img526/4780/mainxd0.th.jpg (http://img526.imageshack.us/my.php?image=mainxd0.jpg)http://img526.imageshack.us/img526/5985/lanboyinok0.th.jpg (http://img526.imageshack.us/my.php?image=lanboyinok0.jpg)

I snapped this one real quick but i cant take a good one until i pull the PC out and disconnect it all since it's in a very tight spot.
Inside PC
http://img359.imageshack.us/img359/1567/pc1tm1.th.jpg (http://img359.imageshack.us/my.php?image=pc1tm1.jpg)

[blackhat]

BHX, You're either working the HD's hard or you're restricting the air flow. When I'm doing something that will really exercise an HD, I always open the case and put an external fan on it. I also try to split up the work to give it time to cool off. Those babies can cook! What is the wattage of your PS? There should be a standard method to take the temp of an HD and a listed danger temp beyond which you should not go. Trying to determine 'what's too hot', really sucks. I'd put the lightest duty HDs in the center of the group or try to get more separation. DRB

[bhxtyrant]

Nope blackhat wasnt working it hard at all i noticed this during the last 3 days and these days all i did was normal internet usage and a little MSN messenger.Thats about it.my PSU is an antec 450W.

Never had this issue before which is why i find it so strange to make such a huge different in temperature from a single new HDD.If you look at the above picture you can see the 4 drives right there.They are in the same place as they always been with the exception of the 4th drive added.

Also about order of the hard drives i have them set up like this in the case.
HDD1- 40GB With XP pro SP2
HDD2- 120GB slave with programs and music files/work files
HDD3- 80GB used for video media
HDD4- 250GB new drive currently empty

The main drives being used are HDD 1 and 2

[blackhat]

The question is still "How much heat is too much?" and what is okay. I struggle with that question alot. Heat is the killer. My guess is that you've restricted the air flow or the processor is doing more work keeping track of the added HD.
Assuming that you're using most of your PS, say 400watts, that's how much heat is being produced inside the tower. (the same ammt as 4 100w lightbulbs) and must not be allowed to accumulate. DRB

[bhxtyrant]

Your right there but i dont think im in any danger of damage while the case is alot warmer then before it's not like it's burning hot.

In the past the side of the case which the mobo is connected to would get warm for obvious reasons.Now the other side gets slightly warm to the touch which didnt happen before.It was warm but not as warm as now.I think i might install additional an additional fan to see if i can cool it a bit more.

But no aitflow is not restricted that im sure of as everything is in the exact same setup as before the new drive was installed.In reguards to finding out how much power is being used out of the 450W PSU i'll have to try and do the math on that one.

[Reverend]

By installing the new HDD you have in effect restricted the airflow and heat dissipation two-fold.

Looking at your case the bottom (new) hard drive is slightly hindering the natural upward flow of the intake fan.

With the extra hard drive your mobo chipset and PSU will also get hotter, even if you don't use it that much.

Don't know if your case can accomodate larger fans, but i would firstly replace the front and rear 80mm fans with 120mm versions.

Your 450w PSU is probably getting quite close to the limit as well. A 600w + PSU would be more efficient at handling the loads therefore creating less heat. A larger PSU would also generally have better cooling capabilities.

[bhxtyrant]

Hey rev,
Thats the thing.Originally i had the floppy in the position that the top hard drive is in now.I had it like this

Floppy1
HDD2
HDD3
HDD4

Now it's set up like this
HDD1
HDD2
HDD3
HDD4

with the floppy removed and 1 HDD taking it's place so airflow should be about identical.PSU could be the culprit for the heat and yep i am planning to get a more roomy case with a 600W PSU :D

[Reverend]

You case looks big enough, i would just go for a larger wattage PSU first and see if that improves things.

I would recommend an Enermax with adjustable fan speed. They may be a bit pricey but you should never scrimp on costs when buying a PSU. ;)

[bhxtyrant]

Hey rev,
Yep i know it's a great size case for being a mid tower.I was looking at a few full tower cases on newegg though got some nice ones there.Might grab one later on case i was thinking of adding 2 additional hard drives hehe.

As for the PSU couldnt agree more PSU is usually the most overlooked piece of hardware but i always try and go for the best i can get in that area.I havent used enermax before i always stuck more to antec and thermaltake.

[Reverend]

Another cheaper option you could try first is to replace the 2 80mm fans with ones that have a higher CFM (Cubic Feet per Minute).

But make sure the exhaust (out) fan has a slightly higher CFM than the intake fan.

[blackhat]

The Rev has the most sensible solution as far as I'm concerned. The math calc of your power consumption will only get you in the Ballpark. Some Stadiums are pretty big. They sell some inexpensive watt meters that you can plug your computer into then plug the watt meter into the wall. Tells exactly what you're drawing. I just use my wraparound ammeter and a cheap extension cord and multiply the amp reading by the ac voltage- not exact, but closer than estimating with math. (and I'm downright deadly in math). DRB

[bhxtyrant]

Thanks again Rev and black,
I think i will go and do that grab a watt meter and also some high rpm fans (think thats what you meant right rev?) and give that a go.Maybe i might look into adding a top exuast blowhole to my case that i think could make a bit of difference.I'll see what happens then and if needed i'll go for the new PSU.

Also about the suggestion on 120mm fans nope they wouldnt fit my case.The front fan on the case has a plastic snap in structure to hold the fan in without screws.The rear is just screwed onto the rear of the case but isnt large enough for anything bigger then 80mm.

[tarun]

Change your computer's fan speeds, read the temperatures of your motherboard and your hard disk, read voltages and fan speeds and check the status of your hard disk using S.M.A.R.T. or SCSI attributes
SpeedFan (http://www.almico.com/sfdownload.php)

It supports changing fan speeds only if your motherboard supports it as well.