The power supply fan is one of the most crucial components, and if anyhow the fan fails, then many beginners get confused about whether they should replace the fan or buy a new PSU.
You can replace the Power Supply fan, but replacing the fan can be challenging for those who doesnt have any prior technical knowledge.
If you open the PSU and touch any electrical component inside the PSU, then you will get a shock because the capacitors inside the PSU hold a charge for a long period even after unplugging the Power cord.
Because of this reason, many PC experts recommend unplugging the power cord from the PSU and leaving the PSU for 2 to 3 hours before opening it.
Apart from this, you also have to check several small factors when replacing the PSU fan, and all those factors are thoroughly explained in this article.
When To Replace The PSU Fan?
If the Power Supply fan fails and stops working, then you have to replace the Power Supply fan.
Apart from that, some unbranded PSUs doesnt have a quality fan inside, and therefore it often causes problems after using them for some period.
So, if your PSU fan is running loudly, that could be an indication that the PSU is getting hotter and the airflow inside the PSU is inferior.
However, some other issues can also give you an indication that the PSU fan is not working perfectly.
Some of those issues are- noise inside the PSU, system crashing issues, burning smells coming from the PC, random shutdown issues, and BSoD (Blue screen of death issues).
Moreover, If the fan inside the PSU is not spinning at all, then this could also be an indication.
These are some of the symptoms through which we can understand when we have to replace the PSU fan.
Things To Check Before Buying A New PSU Fan
We have to buy a new fan before replacing it, and while buying the fan, we have to keep a couple of factors in our mind.
Here, we will discuss all those factors one by one-
Size Of the Fan
The fan size is the first parameter that we need to check before purchasing a new PSU fan.
Power supply fans have different sizes, including- 80mm, 92mm, 120mm, and 140mm.
Among these different sizes, the 120mm & 80mm fans are the most common sizes and are used inside most PSUs.
You have to check your PSU’s fan size; based on that, you can purchase a new fan. You can easily figure out this size by checking your PSU specifications.
However, if you don’t know the model number of your PSU, then you have to manually check the fan size by using a measuring tape after opening the PC case.
RPM
The fan RPM is the second most important factor that we have to check before replacing the PSU fan.
RPM stands for revolution per minute; this parameter indicates how much air the fan can move and how much noise it will produce.
We recommend not going below the 1500rpm fan to avoid the PSU overheating issues. At the same time, going higher than 2200rpm fans will generate a lot of noise.
So, picking a PSU fan between 1500rpm to 2200rpm will give you the best balance to avoid noise and heating issues.
Voltage
Voltage is another important parameter that we have to check before deciding which fan we should buy.
When the Power Supply gets started, they begin with very low energy, about 3 or 3.2 volts.
That’s why always buy a PSU fan that starts to spin with low voltage; otherwise, the fan will not spin, and your PSU will overheat.
Fan Connectors
The PSU fan is connected inside the circuit board; therefore, before buying a new fan, you have to check what fan connectors the PSU will support.
Most PSU fans have a 4-pin, 3-pin, or 2-pin connector header inside; you need to check your PSU specification or manual page to find this information.
Some PSUs do not have these connector types; the fans are directly soldered on the Power Supply PCB.
The easiest way to figure out whether your PSU has a soldered fan or not is by opening the Power Supply.
If you find out that your PSU has a soldered fan, then you have bought this type of fan connector for your PSU.
Brand
Always buy PSU fans from reputed brands so that you get a warranty for the product.
Most PC experts recommend going either for Be Quite fans or Cooler Master fans.
Not only the fan, but it is also always advised to pick a PSU from a reputed brand like Corsair. Read this Corsair PSU, good or bad.
Check This Be Quite Fan
The Be Quite Pure Wings 2 will meet all the requirements that your PSU will have.
This fan is available in different sizes (80mm, 92mm, 120mm), and its RPM is between 1800 to 2500 RPM.
Moreover, more than 17,000 buyers purchased this fan on Amazon and gave positive reviews.
Check out this Be Quite Pure Wings fan on Amazon.
Replacing The PSU Fan: Step-by-Step Guide
To replace the Power Supply fan, firstly, you need to unplug the power cord from the wall socket, and after that, you need to disconnect all the PSU cables (24-pin ATX cable, EPS cable, PCie cables, and SATA cables).
Now, pick a screwdriver and follow the steps below-
Step 1
In the first step, you have to unscrew the screws from the PC case and then take out the PSU from the PC case.
After extracting the PSU from the PC case, next unscrew the Power Supply screws and open the PSU cover.
Step 2
The Power Supply fan has a header or cable that is connected to the PCB, so you need to unplug the header.
For some old PSUs, this cable can be soldered on the PCB, so in this case, you have to unsolder the fan from the PCB.
Step 3
After disconnecting the PSU fan header, unscrew the fan from the PSU and get the new fan.
Screws will come with the new fan, so screw the fan on Power Supply and plug the fan header into PCB.
Step 4
In this final step, you need to attach the PSU top cover, and then you have to plug the Power cord into the wall socket to test the PSU.
Do a simple paper clip test to figure out whether the PSU fan is working properly or not.
Verdict
This entire article explains that it is possible to replace the PSU fan, but you need to buy the new fan by considering all the factors, including the fan size, voltage, connector type, and RPM.
I hope this article may be helpful for you, and if you have any other questions, then comment us in the comment box.
