Reduced my RT-AC68U cpu temp by -18c

[Patrick0525]

Cpu temp dropped from 75c to 57c using a PC 120mm fan blowing in from the back-side. It took 15 minutes. I was surprised using Merlin 780.65 for monitoring.

 

[Patrick0525]

The pic says 59c but the temp eventually settled to 57c.

 

[joegreat]

Cpu temp dropped from 75c to 57c using a PC 120mm fan blowing in from the back-side. It took 15 minutes. I was surprised using Merlin 780.65 for monitoring.

And what is the reason and benefit of doing this if the chips in the router are build for temperatures above 100°C?

 

[Reinvented]

And what is the reason and benefit of doing this if the chips in the router are build for temperatures above 100°C?

Just because they are rated for that doesn't mean it SHOULD run at that 24/7. Heat stresses chips, period. Just cooling it down a bit, can extend life of the product.

 

[atkinsom]

Just out of curiosity...is it drawing power from the USB 3 port as I can't tell in the pic very well. Thanks

 

[Patrick0525]

Just out of curiosity...is it drawing power from the USB 3 port as I can't tell in the pic very well. Thanks

It is drawing power from the right most usb port. I think it is 3.0 port(???), I visually can't get to it without shutting down the router.

 

[Nebulaz]

It is drawing power from the right most usb port. I think it is 3.0 port(???), I visually can't get to it without shutting down the router.

I agree with your sentiments of needing to cool things. Pretty much very thing that has vents and USB I attach a fan to. With that I went the opposite and face the fan to pull out the heat of the router. Achieving the same results. Also, I went with the USB 2.0 port consciously as it allows me to have access to the higher bandwidth port when needed.



Sent from my Nexus 5X using Tapatalk

 

[martinr]

https://www.snbforums.com/threads/9-router-cooling-rt-ac68u-example.26733/#

 

[TonyH]

Just because they are rated for that doesn't mean it SHOULD run at that 24/7. Heat stresses chips, period. Just cooling it down a bit, can extend life of the product.

Right, worst enemy of electronics anything is heat. In my working days around super computer main frames, I cooled down room temp about near freezing and system started running faster, LOL! I am audio hobbyist playing with audio tube amps, guitar amps, etc. Main cause of component failure is due to running too hot. Onkyo A/V receivers are known for HDMI logic board failure due to over heating for an example.

 

[Nullity]

I wonder how all the extra dust & crap that's now being forced inside the device will affect the internals.

My ancient, fanless, 10+ year-old ADSL2+ modem has ran scary hot with no problems. I opened it recently and it was spotless. No dust.

My PCs and other devices with fans get filled with tons of dust and require cleaning once or twice a year.

 

[joegreat]

I wonder how all the extra dust & crap that's now being forced inside the device will affect the internals.

...and may kill the router faster then the normal temperatures without cooling...!?

 

[bandit8623]

Now you're just putting more stress on your power supply. Which you can replace. I would still argue though that is longevity going to be an issue? Probably not. Your just using more power yearly with the added fan. Now if you saw extra performance from the lower temperature then ide say go for it. But i doubt u will.

 

[TonyH]

I wonder how all the extra dust & crap that's now being forced inside the device will affect the internals.

My ancient, fanless, 10+ year-old ADSL2+ modem has ran scary hot with no problems. I opened it recently and it was spotless. No dust.

My PCs and other devices with fans get filled with tons of dust and require cleaning once or twice a year.

All things man made has life expectancy. Electronics components/devices has something called MTBF. Dusty(dirty) environment will surely shorten MTBF, IMO. Our cleaning lady once mentioned ourhouse always has little to dust compared to other houses. Sure we don't have much dust causing things in the house and it's HVAC system has incorporated an elaborate filtering system. Only polluting guy is our beloved dog 'Walter' as an exception.

You can open up partially damaged by statics, over heating still limping solid state component's guts under microscope. One can see what it's like compared to good ones. Most of my work was related with mil-spec. Testing them under extreme environment.

 

[TonyH]

Now you're just putting more stress on your power supply. Which you can replace. I would still argue though that is longevity going to be an issue? Probably not. Your just using more power yearly with the added fan. Now if you saw extra performance from the lower temperature then ide say go for it. But i doubt u will.

When you crunch the number it shows difference. So do you use most power efficient, high capacity PSU?
The current draw is a few mA for a fan. Some times actual experiences in the field is more valuable than just text book knowledge.

 

[Reinvented]

Now you're just putting more stress on your power supply. Which you can replace. I would still argue though that is longevity going to be an issue? Probably not. Your just using more power yearly with the added fan. Now if you saw extra performance from the lower temperature then ide say go for it. But i doubt u will.

It's no more than a USB hard drive, that's constantly spinning...

 

[RMerlin]

Considering how fragile the RT-AC87U (lots of early deaths), cooling this specific model might not be a bad idea. For other models however it's usually not really worth the trouble/extra noise (unless the router is away from your ears).

 

[Makaveli]

Cpu temp dropped from 75c to 57c using a PC 120mm fan blowing in from the back-side. It took 15 minutes. I was surprised using Merlin 780.65 for monitoring.

Great job I also got a similar drop in temp when I did the same.

Since the R7000 sits horizontal a cooling pad was all I needed, this one has a 140mm fan in it.

image post

And what is the reason and benefit of doing this if the chips in the router are build for temperatures above 100°C?

As someone that has been overclocking for about 15 years now I never lets chips run close to their rated temps.

My stock temps were about 70c and I got a 17c drop and the cost was $19.99 CAD.

 

[TerminX]

...and may kill the router faster then the normal temperatures without cooling...!?

Well, no. It would have to clog with so much dust that the temperatures with cooling were greater than the temperatures originally were without. It's highly unlikely.

 

[Nullity]

Well, no. It would have to clog with so much dust that the temperatures with cooling were greater than the temperatures originally were without. It's highly unlikely.

Aren't there other possibilities?

Shorts caused by dust? Hot spots? Other things I'm unaware of?

 

[Reinvented]

Aren't there other possibilities?

Shorts caused by dust? Hot spots? Other things I'm unaware of?

Unless you smoke heavily near your equipment, no. Smoke debris + dust is a lot thicker/dense. It CAN cause a temperature increase and slow down. But, that would have to be like that over a period of a few months or more. Power surges will kill it too, though. That can and is easily avoidable though as well.