PSU facing up or down?

[HungryHamster]

Hey guys,

 

Sorry for this really basic questions, but should I put my Corsair RM850i facing with the fan up or down in my case (Corsair 760t). I would much prefer to have it facing up since I think it would look better. Does it make much difference in regards to heat and air flow? Any help would be appreciated.

 

Thanks.

 

[Lurick]

The fan is supposed to pull air in so depending on where you'll be putting the PC and the current airflow setup in the case it might be best to have it pointed down.

[BlargKing]

The fan on your PSU should be facing downwards so it can pull cool air through the bottom of your case as your case has vents on the bottom specifically for this purpose. 

[HungryHamster]

Just now, Lurick said:

The fan is supposed to pull air in so depending on where you'll be putting the PC and the current airflow setup in the case it might be best to have it pointed down.

What if it is on the ground with carpet. Won't it be pulling in a lot of dust? I can also install a fan next to it on the bottom of the case.

 

Thanks for your help.

[manikyath]

it depends on the situation.

 

that said, does the fan on the psu need to spin up? if it has enough headroom for that to not be necessary, it's better to put it fan side up so it can vent passively easier.

[Praesi]

Down. The 760t has a dustfilter on the bottom extra for the PSU.

[byalexandr]

3 minutes ago, HungryHamster said:

What if it is on the ground with carpet. Won't it be pulling in a lot of dust? I can also install a fan next to it on the bottom of the case.

 

Thanks for your help.

If you're putting the PC on carpet then have it facing up.

[DHelios]

Fan facing down will allow your PSU to draw cooler air from outside, which will keep it slightly cooler. Do not do this if you're putting the system on a thick carpet, as that will starve it for air.

 

Fan facing up will basically turn your PSU fan into an extra exhaust fan for your system. The PSU will draw warmer air from your case, but that should not be an issue considering you're getting a decent PSU that won't run too hot to begin with.

 

So for the PSU itself it really doesn't matter. Things to keep in mind are:

 

Fan facing up, you have an extra exhaust fan. They may cause negative pressure in the case, which may draw dust into the creases around the chassis. Having more total intake fans than exhaust fans is usually recommended (bigger intake fans than exhaust can also be used to create positive pressure).

 

If your graphics card is very close above the PSU, its fan(s) may have to compete with the PSU fan for airflow. This can negatively impact the cooling performance of your GPU.

 

Though in the end, any differences will be very minor, especially since I believe the RMi's fan doesn't even turn on until it's at pretty high load. I'd personally go for what looks best if you're using a windowed case.

[carsonwen]

I always go fan up for aesthetic reasons. If you think it looks better like i do, go fan up. Also, with the 850 watt your fan will rarely spin up. Fan up will allow heat to rise up out of the fan hole and like someone said, vent passively. It makes virtually no difference in actual performance and temps.

[STRMfrmXMN]

With the RMi it doesn't matter much as A. The fan hardly ever comes on and B. it has a temperature tolerance of 50C so the fan facing down or up shouldn't be a big concern to you. However, if you want it to remain coolest and keep cable management easiest then have the fan face down.