Searching for most effective air filter material

[startrek03]

Hello,

There are couple of air filter materials on the market. The most common from my understanding are those really fine meshes, that most case manufacturers use in their removable fan filters, the less fine filters, that are either used as permanent fan filters or are purchasable on the internet. And there are these foam ones. So, of the second type I know, that they filter out rough dust but not the fine stuff you will hardly get of the PCBs without maticulous cleaning.

I know that better filtering usually decreases airflow. However, I want a solution that allows me to clean my PC as rare as possible and my plan is to use overpressure and efficient fan filters to reduce the amount of dust in the case as much as possible. Cleaning the filters regularly is way easier than cleaning the whole PC. Obviously.

I'd really appreciate your advice and your suggestions. Thanks a lot in advance!

[SupaKomputa]

more filter creates less air flow obviously.

maybe you could try having negative pressure, get the filter on the air intake only.

any dust inside will be blown outside.

[startrek03]

2 minutes ago, SupaKomputa said:

more filter creates less air flow obviously.

maybe you could try having negative pressure, get the filter on the air intake only.

any dust inside will be blown outside.

The problem with that is, that in almost any computercase are tiny holes, through which dust will enter. That basically defeats the purpose of the intake filters...

[manikyath]

the mesh that is on most decent-quality cases these days gets you about 90% of the way there.

 

another thing to consider is, the more dust your filters stop, the more often you'll have to clean (or replace, depending on material) your filters.

 

i ran my computer with kitchen extraction hood filters for a while, pretty much zero dust.. BUT i had to replace the filter pretty much on a weekly basis...

[Cyracus]

5 minutes ago, SupaKomputa said:

negative pressure, get the filter on the air intake only.

any dust inside will be blown outside.

That's positive pressure fam

[startrek03]

1 minute ago, manikyath said:

the mesh that is on most decent-quality cases these days gets you about 90% of the way there.

 

another thing to consider is, the more dust your filters stop, the more often you'll have to clean (or replace, depending on material) your filters.

 

i ran my computer with kitchen extraction hood filters for a while, pretty much zero dust.. BUT i had to replace the filter pretty much on a weekly basis...

If I had something, I can clean quite easily this wouldn't even be such an issue imo. Better than taking the whole computer apart once in a while and cleaning more difficult to clean stuff like PCBs and fans, heatsinks etc.

[SupaKomputa]

 

2 minutes ago, startrek03 said:

The problem with that is, that in almost any computercase are tiny holes, through which dust will enter. That basically defeats the purpose of the intake filters...

well, just filter everything, close the holes and the gap, let the exhaust fans do its job.

I prefer this approach then a positive pressure.

 

2 minutes ago, Cyracus said:

That's positive pressure fam

if you put 1 intake and 3 exhaust, that's negative.

[Moonzy]

minimal airflow = minimum dust

so maybe try passive cooling? i've done it on my old i5 6600 system, not sure if it's possible for yours

 

but yes, the finer the filter, the harder is it for airflow and dust to get through

so you'll really sacrifice on thermals

 

as for material, HEPA filters will pretty much block most visible dust particles

[startrek03]

8 minutes ago, manikyath said:

the mesh that is on most decent-quality cases these days gets you about 90% of the way there.

 

another thing to consider is, the more dust your filters stop, the more often you'll have to clean (or replace, depending on material) your filters.

 

i ran my computer with kitchen extraction hood filters for a while, pretty much zero dust.. BUT i had to replace the filter pretty much on a weekly basis...

 

2 minutes ago, Moonzy said:

as for material, HEPA filters will pretty much block most visible dust particles

I was thinking about HEPA filters at some point (I'm stupid I know), but right now I really want something reusable because of environmental reasons. Throwing such a filter away every month or so is really not worth it imo.

[Moonzy]

3 minutes ago, startrek03 said:

I was thinking about HEPA filters at some point (I'm stupid I know), but right now I really want something reusable because of environmental reasons. Throwing such a filter away every month or so is really not worth it imo.

i doubt you'll have to change HEPA filters THAT often tbh

 

but i would think most filters that filter fine dust particles like these arent reusable, because the dust particles are too small to be washed/blown out

[Cyracus]

1 minute ago, SupaKomputa said:

if you put 1 intake and 3 exhaust, that's negative.

What you were describing when you said negative pressure above was positive pressure, when you have more air blown into the case than out of it, air escapes through cracks and crevices in the case.
Negative pressure, more air blown out than sucked in, causes air to be sucked in through said cracks and crevices and bring dust with it.

[startrek03]

2 minutes ago, Moonzy said:

but i would think most filters that filter fine dust particles like these arent reusable, because the dust particles are too small to be washed/blown out

That's probably true. But my common sense tells me that other filter types might be usable for way longer than hepa filters since they're not really cleanable at all afaik.

[Moonzy]

1 minute ago, startrek03 said:

But my common sense tells me that other filter types might be usable for way longer than hepa filters since they're not really cleanable at all afaik.

ive seen car mechanics re-use HEPA filters by just blowing pressurized air in the reverse direction

that probably gets rid of most dusts, but idk if i would recommend that

 

ever thought of getting a decent air filter for your room so there's less dust to begin with?

[SupaKomputa]

6 minutes ago, Cyracus said:

What you were describing when you said negative pressure above was positive pressure, when you have more air blown into the case than out of it, air escapes through cracks and crevices in the case.
Negative pressure, more air blown out than sucked in, causes air to be sucked in through said cracks and crevices and bring dust with it.

I never said to have more air blown inside.

Yes air will sip in small crevices, you can close them off if you want to.

[startrek03]

5 minutes ago, Moonzy said:

ive seen car mechanics re-use HEPA filters by just blowing pressurized air in the reverse direction

that probably gets rid of most dusts, but idk if i would recommend that

 

ever thought of getting a decent air filter for your room so there's less dust to begin with?

I neither have AC nor venting. I pretty much rely on windows. And getting a window sized HEPA filter isn't really feasible, right? However, I plan on lifting the case a bit from the floor. That might already help a lot with dust.

[startrek03]

4 minutes ago, SupaKomputa said:

Yes air will sip in small crevices, you can close them off if you want to.

To achieve the necessary seal on a common PC case you'd basically have to dump it into a silicone bath.

[Moonzy]

2 minutes ago, startrek03 said:

I neither have AC nor venting. I pretty much rely on windows. And getting a window sized HEPA filter isn't really feasible, right? However, I plan on lifting the case a bit from the floor. That might already help a lot with dust.

pretty sure there are house sized HEPA filter if you ask for it ahaha

 

but yea, lifting your case off the floor should improve your situation a lot

though my PC on my desk also gets dusty eventually

[startrek03]

2 hours ago, Moonzy said:

pretty sure there are house sized HEPA filter if you ask for it ahaha

 

but yea, lifting your case off the floor should improve your situation a lot

though my PC on my desk also gets dusty eventually

I'll probably try the foam ones at some point of time, since similar ones are used in dryers in combination with those fine mesh ones. If I find out something a year or so later and still remember, I might post something on the forums.