We install a large side fan in a regular case. Housing modding to improve ventilation and reduce noise Exhaust devices in the walls of houses

In bathrooms, you can often feel a not so pleasant smell of dampness, which is quite difficult to get rid of. Constant contact of surfaces with water causes the appearance of mold, fungus, which infect materials, emit extremely dangerous spores. To get rid of such troubles, it is necessary to install a fan that ensures the correct circulation of air masses, the extraction of exhausted and moist air from the room.

A bathroom fan circulates air and draws moisture out of the room.

It is recommended to choose a fan with compact size, it mounts directly into the bathroom vent . Large costs are not required, but the atmosphere in the bathroom will be noticeably improved. The fan is best designed at the stage of repairing the bathroom, as it will need to be connected to the power supply. Even if this has not been done beforehand, it will not be very difficult to install it for an already completely finished bathroom, providing the right microclimate.

Exhaust fan installation requirements

A pipe is inserted into the slotted hole and coated on all sides with mortar.

In order for the fan in the bathroom to perform all its functions, it is necessary to observe the following conditions for its installation:

1. It is necessary to properly prepare the hole for the hood, process the edges, remove all unnecessary, including old grilles.
2. The type of connection is selected, which may vary depending on the requirements of the equipment and its operation.
3. Under the door in the bathroom there should be a special ventilation slot or a special grill for supplying fresh air. This is required for the normal operation of the equipment, which, removing air, must replace it with fresh air.
4. It is worth buying equipment that is not only suitable in size, but also in terms of power, performance and other parameters.

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Fan installation methods according to all the rules

The rear flange is attached to the wall with self-tapping screws, the engine cover is pressed against the rear flange and fixed.

Connecting ventilation equipment in the bathroom can be done in several ways. It all depends on the specific type of equipment, general requirements to installation. Today, the connection method associated with the switch is used. When you turn on the light in the toilet or bathroom, the fan immediately starts to work, removing excess moisture and unpleasant odors.

Humidity is not always a concern in the bathroom, in many cases a fan is required when someone takes a shower or performs other hygiene procedures. In this case, the installation of exhaust fans should be approached differently:

1. First, a two-contact switch is selected, wiring from lighting and ventilation equipment is connected to it.
2. The location of the switch is planned.
3. The wiring from the ventilation equipment is mounted, the connection is made.

After the installation of not only the wiring, but also the equipment is completed, it is necessary to connect the current to the network, check the operation of the ventilation.

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Traditional connection

Traditional connection is not only simple, but also the most convenient. With this option, you can turn on the fan yourself; for this, a button or a special rope is provided on the case, which you will have to pull to turn it on / off. There is also an automatic switch that regulates the operation depending on the decrease in the level of humidity, the equipment turns off automatically when a certain value is reached.

Automation can also regulate the activation of the fan if the humidity has risen above a certain level, but there should also be manual control. It is necessary if ventilation is required to eliminate an unpleasant odor. The installation of the equipment is simple, but it is recommended to perform it only with the participation of a specialist, since the adjustment of automation and sensors is used. If there is no such experience, then it will not work to set them up correctly.

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Fan with wiring

Fans can also be installed self-laying wiring. It is necessary to plan work in advance, observing all safety standards. If such a model is purchased, then it must be equipped with detailed diagram connection provided by the manufacturer.

Before starting work, prepare right amount cable, check that the network is de-energized.

When connecting wires, it must be remembered that twisting is not only ineffective, but also dangerous.

It is recommended to use special terminal blocks providing contact. Use copper cables for connection. If the connection is made during general repair, the fan switch can be connected to the bathroom light switch.

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Fan location

Where is the exhaust fan usually installed? For the bathroom, the ideal place is the opening of a special ventilation pipe, the channel of which goes directly to the roof of the building. Such a hole is in any apartment or private house, it allows you to draw out dampness, normalize air exchange in the room.

Typically, a standard duct provides up to 100 cubic meters of air per hour, but this may not be enough for a bathroom to completely remove all excess dampness. It is for this that special fans are used, which are mounted in such channels. The question of where to mount the fan is solved quite simply. For the cooler itself, it is very important to determine what diameter such a hole has. After all, the size of the equipment must be determined precisely on the basis of such a parameter. Most often, the ventilation holes have a diameter of 100 mm, 150 mm, 125 mm. It is easy to determine this, you need to take a tape measure and measure. The shape of the hole is taken into account, it can be round, you can see large rectangular and square channels, for which the equipment must be selected appropriately.

If the ventilation duct is much smaller than the fan, then there is no need to panic, the problem is not so difficult to solve. For this, a puncher is used, with its help you can expand the hole. You must have such a tool, but it is not at all necessary to buy it specifically for work. It is not difficult to order such a service. There may be another option when the ventilation duct opening is larger than that of the fan. In this case, it is necessary to act on the basis of the design features, usually the manufacturers themselves regulate the connection conditions. Most often, work on puttying and pouring is performed. mounting foam formed voids, but special overlays can also be used. On this preparatory work completed, you can proceed to the installation of the equipment itself. You can also consider installing a cooler at the same time.

So, now we will make a hole in the top of the computer case for installing a fan there. This will achieve the best cooling for the processor by sucking hot air out of the case.

So let's move on to the drilling itself. Since you hardly have a special tool for cutting such large holes, holes, you will have to do with drilling many small ones around the perimeter. The easiest and fastest way to do this is to drilling machine, but if you have enough patience, then you can use an ordinary drill.

Punch space between holes...

Here is the result ... It turned out scary, but still ahead 🙂

Here is the most interesting. To smooth the edges of the hole, you need to glue them with such rubber gaskets. It's better to use superglue. If someone cannot get exactly the rubber tubes, you can take a piece of any thick black wire, remove the insulation from it and cut it along. You will get just such gaskets. The result is a nice hole with neat edges. The rubber pads also dampen vibrations caused by the fan and reduce fan noise.

Now it remains to drill holes for the screws to secure the fan. This is how it will look like...

In today's article, we will try to talk about what tricks you can use to improve ventilation and reduce noise even in the simplest and most inexpensive case.

When thinking about the experimental specimen, our choice fell on CHENBRO Xpider II , as its low price and very stylish appearance attract a considerable number of computer enthusiasts. However, the cooling efficiency of the components installed inside it is not very high and falls short of the exterior.

What we need to improve it?

Firstly, these are aluminum slats or a corner. You can buy them at any hardware or hardware store. In our case, we acted even more economically - we used a slide from a broken sliding shelf under the keyboard. In the economy, as they say, everything is useful.

Secondly, this is a plastic or metal mesh from the speakers. Technically, it is not very necessary, but if the appearance of your case is important to you, then you should take the choice of this part seriously - it will be in front of everyone.

In addition to the primary details, the following tools will be useful to us:

• 2 screwdrivers - slotted (flat) and figured (cross);
• electric or hand drill;
• hacksaw for metal;
• file and sandpaper;
• wire cutters and pliers;
• some rubber from an old car tube;
• glue, double-sided tape.

Let's get started

The first method is the simplest and most accessible to everyone. This is a reduction in the local hydraulic resistance of the hull or, in Russian, an improvement in the "ventilation of the hull". Now we will try to explain what is behind such clever phrases.

You probably noticed in the reviews of fans and coolers such specifications as "airflow" and "static pressure". And they mean the following:

air flow - the amount of air that the fan can supply per unit of time;

static pressure is the force with which the fan pushes this same air.

From these definitions, we can conclude that even if the fan will create a huge air flow, but have a low static pressure, its efficiency will be practically equal to zero, since the supplied air will have too little force to overcome the resistance in the form of wires or gratings. So we come to the main problem - these are stamped grilles on the holes for installing fans.

Yes, it is stamped gratings that create the main resistance in the way of air movement. If you take a ruler and measure the width of the steel strip, you will find that it is 0.15-0.30 in relation to the gap between them. Consequently, in total, these strips cover from 15 to 30% of the area of ​​the opening allocated for ventilation. But, usually, strips are used not only horizontal, but also vertical, which in total gives from 25 to 40% of the overlap of the ventilation hole. Hence the conclusion that this grill reduces the efficiency of the fan installed behind it. In addition, the stamped grate, unlike the "grill" type grate, has flat sharp edges, which creates additional noise when the air moves.

How to deal with this problem? Yes, it’s very simple - we take wire cutters and “bite out” the grate. Further, for security reasons, we process the sections with a file.

We get approximately the same result. Now the installed fan can “scoop” air freely along the entire diameter of the impeller.

We do the same with the rear grille. Pay attention to the way the fan is attached to the case - the best method is ordinary screws and nuts. But to reduce vibration and, accordingly, reduce noise, we recommend using small rectangular rubber pads cut from an old chamber.

The next step to improve ventilation is to install an additional fan.

Since this case has a very beautiful window on the side cover, we decided not to spoil its appearance by installing an additional fan on the side. So we had to install it in front.

We carefully take out the metal plugs of the 5.25” bays (as well as their plastic counterparts on the front panel) and put them aside - they will still come in handy.

So, on the front panel we have formed a significant space for maneuvers. We leave the upper compartment unchanged - a DVD drive will be installed there. But under it we will install an additional 120 mm fan.

To install it, we need to cut out metal ears with wire cutters from one of the seemingly unnecessary plugs for the 5.25” bay.

We fasten the ears to the fan with ordinary screws and nuts.

And through the second hole in the ear, we fasten the fan into the 5.25 ”compartment second from the top. There is no need for rubber pads, since the fan is actually suspended on springs and its vibration will not be transmitted to the case.

It is worth noting that this arrangement of fans in the case is most effective if the processor uses a tower-type cooler, such as the Noctua NH-U12P. In such a situation, the cooler on the processor will pick up cold air from the front fan and supply heated air to the rear one. A kind of turbine is formed, or, as people say, a draft.

Note that in the case when a horizontal type cooler is installed on the processor, such as Noctua NH-C12P, then it would be most advisable to install an additional fan on the side cover of the case (although this is problematic in our case), so that it blows cold air in the way this is done in AeroCool ExtremEngine 3T.

One of the disadvantages of this case is its small height. At first glance, this is not noticeable. However, when installing a massive cooler, for example, when we installed the Noctua NH-U12P, it became noticeable that the processor cooling system, with its overall radiator, came close to the lower vent of the power supply and half blocked it. Naturally, this led to increased heating of the power supply elements and, as a result, an increase in the rotation speed of its fan. Firstly, this is extra noise, and secondly, reducing the life of the power supply elements is not good.

In order to reduce heat dissipation inside the case and more efficient cooling of the power supply, we decided to move it outside the case.

That is why we need aluminum slats. For our case, the length of the first was 500 mm, the second - 350 mm.

On one side, two small holes must be drilled on the rails.

And on the other hand - stick a couple of strips of double-sided tape. The adhesive tape will protect your power supply from scratches, and will also dampen vibrations and rattles.

Next, to install the rails, you need to work a little with a hacksaw and a file. exact dimensions, unfortunately, we cannot give, since the dimensions of the rails and the shape of the case may be different, but the result you should get is the same as in the picture. The width of the sawn hole should be such that the slats laid through it with the flat side come as close as possible to the side walls of the case.

On one of the 5.25” bays (we got it second from the top) we drill 2 small holes.

At the appropriate height, holes are also drilled on the side of the housing chassis.

Using small self-tapping screws, we fasten both rails by passing them through the hole we saw out earlier. The short rail is screwed to the side wall, and the longer rail is screwed to the 5.25” bay.

Everything, on this you can finish the revision. It remains only to assemble the entire system. But this is where it gets a little more difficult.

Now you have to assemble the system like this. First, all the "insides" are installed, and then the power supply. The wires from the power supply must be bundled and pulled through the hole. While holding the power supply with your hand, gradually move it forward and make sure that the wires do not catch on the cooler or any other element. It is much easier to do this operation with two people.

When all the wires from the power supply are laid inside the case, it can be carefully placed in the constructed slide and pushed close to the back wall of the case (for reliability, you can also fix it with standard screws, but, most likely, you will have to make new holes for this). We recommend that you turn the power supply upside down so that it does not immediately draw in warm air blown out of the case.

Here's what the updated case looks like from the side. To improve the front panel, you can use the mesh mentioned at the beginning of the article. You can give it the desired shape and size thanks to a file, a hacksaw and pliers. You can put it on glue or tape.

The body looks pretty nice. Let's see how much better the cooling inside it has become.

Testing

When testing, the Stand for testing Corps was used.

Motherboard	ASUS M2N SLI Deluxe on nForce 570 SLI (AM2, DDR2, ATX)
CPU	AMD Athlon 64 3600+ X2 (ADO3600JAA4CU), AM2
	Akasa AK859 CU for Socket 754/939/940/AM2
RAM	2 x DDR2 800 1024MB Apacer PC6400
video card	Gigabyte GV-NX76G256D GeForce 7600GS 256Mb DDR2 PCI-E
HDD	Samsung HD080HJ 80GB 7200rpm 8MB SATA-300
optical drive	ASUS DRW-1814BLT SATA
Power Supply	Seasonic M12II-500 (SS-500GM Active PFC F3), 500W

We decided not only to test the cooling in the case before and after modding, but also to compare the results with the performance of one of the most efficient cases in terms of cooling - AeroCool ExtremEngine 3T. True, the price of such a case is much higher than the price of CHENBRO Xpider II.

Let's look at the results.

As you can see, the manipulations we did made it possible to improve the performance in absolutely all criteria. At the same time, it is worth noting that the modified CHENBRO Xpider II approached the AeroCool ExtremEngine 3T by one big confident step, although it did not catch up with it.

conclusions

The case of CHENBRO Xpider II in the basic version is a very good product, especially considering its low cost, and after a little refinement, it also shows excellent results in cooling components. From this it should be concluded that almost any, even the cheapest case, can be made to cool the system well enough. Well, oh appearance and there is nothing to say - modding gives you absolute and unlimited power to change any detail. Paint, glue, cut, and you are sure to find exactly the unique style in which you would like to see your favorite computer. Regarding our experience, we can safely say that, even with a minimum of design imagination, we got a very beautiful and unusual system unit.

The Positive Consequences of Moddinha:

• excellent cooling of the power supply;
• original appearance;
• reduction of noise and vibrations;
• shareware operation;
• improved ventilation inside the case.

Negative features:

• increase in the external dimensions of the system unit;
• requires care and skill.

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One of the most common options for removing a ventilation pipe from an apartment or a private house is a hole in the wall. It is used for supply and exhaust air. Most often, ventilation of a bathroom or kitchen is pulled through the wall to the street. How to make a vent in the wall, what tools to use and how to insulate the resulting hole without breaking the thermal insulation, read on.

Ventilation schemes through the wall

In apartments or private houses, the most rational arrangement of ventilation through the wall:

• with natural traction;
• with mechanical outflow;
• combined.

Natural ventilation is based on the draft principle. Air moves due to the difference in pressure and temperature inside and outside the apartment. Such a system does not depend on energy sources and is a structure of air ducts and holes, usually coming out through the walls.

Natural ventilation was widely used in the construction of old multi-storey buildings, in modern buildings it is much less common.

One of the problems that arise during its operation is the lack of air flow. It is understood that fresh air enters the premises through the gaps between the window sashes, open vents. However, modern windows provide almost complete sealing. Therefore, residents solve the problem on their own, pulling ventilation through the wall to the street, installing supply valves.

Household hoods also often work poorly, but it is not possible to make a ventilation passage from the bathroom through the wall in all apartments. It is much easier to build ventilation in the wall of a private house. It is advisable to design the ventilation passage through the wall in advance, linking it with all other structures.

Mechanical or natural?

Planning for ventilation outer wall, decide on the system. One of the most important indicators of air exchange are speed and temperature.

This is probably why people feel worse in rooms with fans. But in some cases, mechanics are indispensable. For example, if it is not possible to make wide exhaust ducts in the outer wall for exhaust ventilation. The higher the speed of air flow, the smaller the cross section of the ventilation duct. Therefore, mechanical ventilation is often installed in the outer walls. Mechanical stimulation is also more expedient in large areas.

Comfort is achieved at a lower speed of movement of air masses. Air speed in natural ventilation in the wall of the apartment no more than 1 cubic meter per hour, while with a mechanical one it can reach 5 cubic meters per hour.

Supply ventilation devices in the walls

Natural ventilation will work satisfactorily if a supply valve is located on the opposite wall from the exhaust opening.

Supply valves for ventilation through the wall are made of PVC various models and forms:

• rectangular;
• oval;
• round.

Places for mounting ventilation in the wall:

• between the window sill and the battery;
• in the sash of a plastic window;
• near the window, as close to the ceiling as possible.

If you bring ventilation to the street through the wall, in regions with cold winters, icy air will penetrate through the valve. Perhaps even icing of the adjacent section of the wall.

To avoid trouble, make a ventilation passage through the wall above the radiator.

Cold air will first be warmed up by the battery, and only then penetrate into the room.

Supply valve installation

Installing ventilation into the wall is not difficult, but requires accuracy:

• On the wall with a pencil, mark the location of the valve;
• How to make a hole for ventilation in the wall: a puncher with a special nozzle. The hole diameter is about 60 mm. Make a hole with a slope to the street approximately for the outflow of condensate and precipitation;
• Pass the air duct into the channel. Some models are sold already insulated. Others insulate themselves with mineral wool. With it, very carefully lay all the voids between the duct and the wall. Fill the remaining gaps with mounting foam. In places where there is no insulation, condensation will appear;
• Now you should make markings for attaching the case and attach it with dowels or screws;
• Put on a protective net on the outer head, and a cover on the inner head.

Depending on the design, valves can be equipped with filters, plugs and other devices. But regardless of the "tricks", the installation procedure is the same.

Exhaust devices in the walls of houses

axial fan design: 1 – power supply wire; 2 - air intake grille; 3 - switch; 4 - switch wire; 5 - impeller; 6 - blinds

In some cases, it is more convenient to resort to a mechanical removal of exhaust air, that is, to install exhaust ventilation through the wall to the street. The main component of the system is the exhaust fan. It is built into the exhaust hole in the wall and performs its functions perfectly. Axial models are presented as household ones. Some of them are equipped with shutters that prevent back draft.

The fan can be started manually or automatically by the command of the humidity sensor. The most advanced are equipped with a timer that starts the engine according to a given mode.

How to bring ventilation through the wall is an important issue, but first you need to calculate the characteristics of the equipment:

M \u003d O x B,

where M– fan power, ABOUT- the volume of the room, (to get it, multiply the length, height and width of the room), IN- air exchange depending on the purpose.

Air exchange rates:

• for the kitchen 15 times;
• for the toilet 8 times;
• for a bath or shower room up to 20 times.

The best place to install a fan in the wall of a private house is on the opposite side from the source clean air but not too close to it. At the top of the wall.

The fans are connected to the power supply through fuses that are installed in the electrical panel.

If you doubt your own knowledge of electricians, invite a professional master to connect the fan. And to help the brave our video.

Modding is not the end result
but the process of achieving it.

Probably, talking about what modding is to those who are at least a little familiar with computers is a completely useless exercise. Initially originating as a hobby of computer enthusiasts, modding has long ceased to be exclusively the business of the Kulibins and has become a whole industry. Now you can’t count how many companies specialize in the production of modding accessories. And what you can’t find on the market today - here are specialized cases, from completely transparent (such as aquariums) to cases with a window, and coolers with various backlights, and neon lamps, and reobasses, and control panels, and braids for cables, and grilles for fans, and phosphors...

In the classical sense, modding is any independent modification of a computer or even a device connected to it. But, of course, first of all, modding is a modification of the PC system unit. When from a boring, ordinary PC case they create a unique masterpiece in terms of design, this is real modding. You can, of course, buy a ready-made modding case, but ... it's so unaesthetic and even vulgar - to buy ready-made something that, by definition, you need to do it yourself.

So, with this article, we open a whole series of illustrated articles on the practical basics of modding. Together we will go through all the steps and learn the basic techniques for modifying a computer case - from cutting holes and windows in the case to painting it and installing backlights.

Lesson 1. We cut a window and a hole for a fan in the case

required tools:

• marker;
• fan grill;
• dremel;
• cutting wheel for dremel, reinforced with fiberglass (4 pcs.);
• aluminum oxide grinding stone (dremel attachment);
• drill with a diameter of 3 mm;
• protective glasses.

Hull preparation

Before you start curly cutting hull, we strongly recommend to practice on some old hull (which is not a pity) or just on a piece of sheet metal. In our case, we chose old cases for modding (by the way, found in the garbage), deciding to embody all our imagination in them and turn the old junk into a new stylish case.

It is worth noting that any cases can be used for modding, but it is better that the thickness of the case walls is not too small. As a rule, the wall thickness of the case is from 0.8 to 1.5 mm, but if it is less, then it is better to look for another case. Also, try to use a case with smooth sides for modding, otherwise you will have problems with painting the case.

Initially, the case had only one seat for an 80mm fan at the bottom of the front panel. Of course, this is clearly not enough for a modern, powerful PC (especially since our case is quite thin). Therefore, our modding will also have a practical purpose - the creation effective system heat sink.

So, we will cut out three holes in the case for 120 mm fans (these holes are called blowholes) and a side window, which will subsequently be covered from the inside with tinted plexiglass. One 120mm fan will be installed under the top panel of the case and will blow hot air out of the PC case, the second fan will be located on the side panel and will blow cold air into the system unit. The third fan, which will also suck cold air into the system unit, will be installed on the front panel. The side window will be in the form of two compound rectangles with rounded corners.

It is necessary to mark the hole for the fan in the top cover of the case without disassembling the case as a whole and without removing the power supply and optical drive from it, so that later the installation of the fan does not interfere with either the power supply or the optical drive. If we are talking about the side wall of the case, then the fan must be positioned so that it does not touch the video card, and the center of the hole is best placed at the bottom left. In our case, this side fan will blow cold air into the PC case.

The best way to mark the hole for the fan is to use a fan grill (fig. 1), also called a grill. With a marker, draw a circle under the fan along the contour of the grill, as shown in fig. 2.

Similarly, we apply the contour of the future hole, as well as the contour of the future window, on the side wall of the case (Fig. 3).

When laying out the window, do not make the fillets too small, otherwise they will be difficult to cut. You should also not make the window too large, because, firstly, the case will lose strength, and secondly, it is necessary to provide a place for attaching backlights from above and below. This remark also applies to the marking of the hole for the fan - leave a place at the bottom of the case to install the backlight. When marking the window and the opening for the fan on the side surface of the case, it is recommended to step back from the edges of the case by at least 5 cm.

After that, the case can be completely disassembled by removing all the stuffing from it and separating the side walls, front panel and top cover (Fig. 4). Next, you can proceed to the most important stage - cutting holes and a side window.

Dremel and attachments

So, in the first lesson, we will get acquainted with the main universal tool for modding - the Dremel. This device is by no means cheap, but, unfortunately, there is simply nothing to replace it with, and as soon as there is a desire to do modding, you will have to fork out. But trust me, the Dremel is a truly versatile tool in every way, and worth the money.

In principle, Dremel is now not quite correctly called a whole class of tools similar in functionality, produced by various companies. However, there can only be one dremel produced by Dremel itself (www.dremel.com). Dremel is a miniature drill, but with a significant more speed rotation. Actually, the rotation speed is the main characteristic of the Dremel, which distinguishes it from similar tools. Other important parameters are the weight and dimensions of the dremel. The Dremel, unlike a two-handed hammer drill, should be such that it can be held with two fingers at the base in the same way that a fountain pen is held. For our work it is important that maximum speed rotation was at least 30,000 rpm. A whole arsenal of all kinds of attachments (more than 150) is produced for the Dremel, which makes it a truly versatile tool.

There are various modifications of the Dremel, such as Dremel Professional, Dremel MultiPro, wireless Dremel MultiPro. These devices differ in their functionality and cost, and for the purposes of computer modding, we recommend using the Dremel MultiPro model. The fact is that the Dremel Professional model, which costs much more, has a lot of extra “bells and whistles” that we don’t need, and the wireless model has insufficient rotation speed. In the Dremel MultiPro model, the rotation speed varies from 5000 to 33,000 rpm, which is quite enough for our purposes.

Dremel is sold with a set of all kinds of nozzles, but not all the necessary nozzles are included in the set. For our purposes, we will also need a glass fiber reinforced cutting wheel, type 426 or 456 (not included in the standard delivery). So you should immediately take care of their purchase. Reinforced fiberglass cutting wheels (Fig. 6) are designed specifically for cutting metals.

Cutting a fan hole

So, having fixed the cutting wheel in the mandrel 402 (included in the delivery of the dremel), we install it in the dremel chuck. The rotation speed should be maximum. Hold the dremel in your hand as shown in fig. 7. It is necessary to cut along inside outlined circle so that the boundary of the circle remains visible. Cutting is carried out only with the edge of the circle, so in no case should you apply force in a direction coaxial to the dremel.

Cutting the hull absolutely needs to be effortless. Cutting occurs only due to the speed of rotation of the circle. The movement of the dremel during cutting should be like small strokes. Please note that during cutting, your hand should move, but not your hand. The dremel must be moved in such a way that the resulting sheaf of sparks would be directed against the forward movement of the cutting wheel.

A circle for a 120 mm fan is cut out in about 20 minutes. Well, the last thing I would like to immediately warn about: do not forget to wear safety glasses during all metal cutting work.

Cutting a hole with a dremel is shown in fig. 8, 9 and 10.

circles

for each stroke, a cutting wheel is drawn
several times, until a through cut appears

After cutting a hole, the resulting circle is usually far from ideal (see Fig. 10). Indeed, it is not so easy to cut out a perfect circle, especially if there is not enough practice.

Therefore, the main thing is that during the cutting process, the circle outlined by the marker remains untouched. At the next stage, using the same cutting wheel, it is necessary to more carefully process the edges of the circle. This is done by light movements of the outer edge of the cutting wheel, as shown in Fig. 11. After such processing, the edges of the circle become quite tolerable (Fig. 12).

And finally, at the last stage, it is required to bring the circle to an ideal state. To do this, we need to use an aluminum oxide grinding stone attachment (Fig. 13). Dremel must be held with two fingers so that its axis is perpendicular to the surface of the body (Fig. 14).

Rice. 13. Aluminum oxide sanding pad

After the circle for the fan is cut and sanded, you need to attach the grill to it and mark the four holes for the screws, with which the fan and grill will be attached to the case. Holes for screws are drilled with a dremel or a small drill with a 3.2 mm drill bit. When drilling, set the minimum rotation speed of the dremel (Fig. 15).

and dremel or conventional drill drilled holes for screws to mount the fan

Cutting a hole in the body

So, after the holes are ready, you can start cutting the window in the case. However, most likely, after cutting through the first window, you will have to replace the cutting wheel with a new one. For example, to cut two holes for fans and a side window, we had to change four cutting wheels. Worn cutting wheels are shown in fig. 16.

Rice. 16. Worn cut-off wheels compared to a new wheel

The cutting techniques in this case are the same as when cutting a hole, with one exception. The forward movement of the dremel is carried out not with the hand, but with the whole hand, which allows you to cut in a straight line (Fig. 17). Rounded corners are cut with straight line segments, which are then processed (Fig. 18).

After cutting through the window, it is necessary to process the edges with a grinding stone made of aluminum oxide (Fig. 19).

with aluminum oxide nozzle

We cut a seat for a fan in the rear and front walls of the case

So, after cutting a hole for a 120mm fan and a window in the case, we need to cut a hole in the front wall of the case to install the fan. Our case is not designed to mount a 120mm fan on the front panel and has a 80mm fan slot with a distinctive ridge. Therefore, first of all, it is necessary to cut off this protrusion (Fig. 20) in order to front surface the chassis could be attached to the grill (Fig. 21).

So, all the holes are cut, and you can proceed to the next step - cleaning, sanding and painting the case. That is what we will do in the next lesson.