Do-It-Yourself Fan Noise Reduction

Fan noise was excessive for my peace of mind at home.

WARNING
OPENING DEVICES MAY VOID WARRANTIES.
REDUCING THE COOLING ABILITIES MAY RESULT IN EXCESSIVE HEAT BUILD UP AND CAUSE DAMAGE.
WARNING

First look at replacing a the fan with a quieter one, see my list of low noise fans.

If you cannot replace the fan with a suitable alternative try a fan speed controller. Commercial fan speed controllers ranged in price from $7 to $16. These are just voltage reduces either using a solid state device or a simple rheostat (variable resistor). Here's some projects that I did that you can do yourself for as little as $0.99.

Cisco 3640 Project: uses a volatage regulator for the 24 Volt fans

Cisco PIX Project: uses a resistor for the CPU fan

Sun Ultra 10 Project: simply replace fans

Alternate Ideas: other cheap ways to reduce voltage.

© 2003 Cuzuco, Inc.

See also http://www.cpemma.co.uk/
See also http://www.7volts.com/quiet.htm