# 3 5.25" bays into one 120mm fan



## nat45928 (May 8, 2010)

Hey,

Just thought id post up my latest project, i had 4 spare drive bays in my COOLER MASTER Centurion 5 case and some pitiful air intake from the stock 80mm fan buried behind the hard drive bays. so i figured id use the Extra bays form some. I figured out that if i replace 3 of the bays i can fit in a new 120mm intake fan to the front. So i looked on newegg and found these:

2 Rosewill RFA-120-BL 120mm for $5.99 each

I figured id replace the fan in the back and put a new one in front and try and move some more air over my current V8 cpu cooler. So i took the drive bays out and found there were nice screw holes for mounting already on the case so heres what i did:

took out the blanks in the bays:










Then I find a template for a 120mm fan online and drew a sketch of what i needed to cut out in metal.


















Then got busy in the shop and cut the piece out of metal.










and here it is on the case:










Now im just waiting on the fans. Any thoughts?


----------



## GZ (Jan 31, 2010)

Nice job!


----------



## nat45928 (May 8, 2010)

Thanks! im hoping that putting in a fan that moves just shy of 80cfm in the front and back will help cool things down a bit more. Especially considering the exhaust fan i have now is rated at 40cfm.


----------



## GZ (Jan 31, 2010)

It looks as though the fan is low enough to actually do some good. I would, actually, move it down to the lower slot. You could also move the HDD(s) into the 5.25" bays to benefit from the increased airflow. 

A little modders mesh and nylon screen can be molded into a nice replacement for the drive bay covers, and allow more cool fresh air into the area.

Keep an eye on the temperatures... any change to the airflow properties of a case has the potential to cause overheating issues.

You may want to look into a high CFM replacement for the rear fan as well, and possibly a fan controller.


----------



## nat45928 (May 8, 2010)

The case has air filters on the external covers. and Yeah heres where the airflow currently is except there is now a V8 in place of the stock intel cooler. the yellow line is where the new air will flow. I was planing on replacing the current exhaust fan with a new rosewill one to increase the air flow.










When I tried to mount the bracket to the case i found out the screw holes in the case wernt threaded so i went over to my grandpas house and found what i needed:


----------



## nat45928 (May 8, 2010)

OK, Finally go the fans yesterday (Neweggs egg saver shipping is slow)










It didnt take long to get the back one in:


















But as you can see the wiring was a bit of a mess. So i broke out the zip ties and re ran cables (dont you love the hot pink???  ).











Then drilled some new holes and got the front one in:


















and all finished:










My computers running about 10C cooler at idle with the fans at ~1500RPM Im hopefully going to get a NZXT Sentry-2 or NZXT Sentry LXE. Your thoughts?


----------



## GZ (Jan 31, 2010)

I still suggest moving the fan down to the lowermost bay... This will help prevent eddies from forming from the air being blown in by the new fan being disrupted by the lower edge of the PSU.

You could always use the upper 5.25" bay for a fan speed controller to optimize noise/cooling.


----------



## nat45928 (May 8, 2010)

Alright i might do that. IM debating between a NZXT Sentry-2 or NZXT Sentry LXE. Your thoughts or suggestions.


----------

