Fanless alum. external drives/enclosures:Will they overheat?

[using]

I'm in the market for a large hard drive (300gb), which I'll have to
use externally. I've noticed that many of the external enclosures,
as well as the external-only drives, are using this
vertically-mounted, aluminum heat dissipating design, instead of a
fan.

Is this actually adequate for a 7200rpm drive that will usually be on?
What is the likelihood of overheating?

I'd feel more comfortable with a fan-based enclosure, but I'm having a
lot of trouble finding one with acceptable specs (USB 2.0, supports
ATA-133, can address 300gb drive, not made by Bytecc) except for
these fanless ones.

(And one fanless model has the power transformer INSIDE the unit!
Surely that's just further inviting overheating, no?)

Thanks in advance for any tips or suggested enclosures (or external
drives).

 

[Folkert Rienstra]

I'm in the market for a large hard drive (300gb), which I'll have to
use externally. I've noticed that many of the external enclosures,
as well as the external-only drives, are using this
vertically-mounted, aluminum heat dissipating design, instead of a fan.

Is this actually adequate for a 7200rpm drive that will usually be on?
What is the likelihood of overheating?

I'd feel more comfortable with a fan-based enclosure, but I'm having a
lot of trouble finding one with acceptable specs (USB 2.0,

supports ATA-133,

Why? ATA66 is enough.

 

[Toshi1873]

I'm in the market for a large hard drive (300gb), which I'll have to
use externally. I've noticed that many of the external enclosures,
as well as the external-only drives, are using this
vertically-mounted, aluminum heat dissipating design, instead of a
fan.

You could also get 5400rpm 300GB drives, which would
pretty well eliminate the heat issue. That's actually
the approach that I take, but I only use the external
drives for backups, not as primary storage.

Is this actually adequate for a 7200rpm drive that will usually be on?
What is the likelihood of overheating?

Depends on the ambient temp in the office. My office
varies from 65F to 85F, which means I can easily cook an
unventilated 7200rpm external drive.

I'd feel more comfortable with a fan-based enclosure, but I'm having a
lot of trouble finding one with acceptable specs (USB 2.0, supports
ATA-133, can address 300gb drive, not made by Bytecc) except for
these fanless ones.

CA-405U2 by the Mace Group / Macally at least has an
exhaust fan and isn't much bigger then a removable drive
bay. TheNerds.net usually carries them. I have 6 or
so, with 5400rpm drives inside (150-250GB).

 

[dh]

Get one of those cases intended for a cdrom, they have a fan. My case
does not have a fan and gets very hot, I only turn it on long enough
to do a backup.

 

[Arno Wagner]

I'm in the market for a large hard drive (300gb), which I'll have to
use externally. I've noticed that many of the external enclosures,
as well as the external-only drives, are using this
vertically-mounted, aluminum heat dissipating design, instead of a
fan.

Is this actually adequate for a 7200rpm drive that will usually be on?
What is the likelihood of overheating?

I have one that is Aluminium all around and has good mechanical
contact on one side. It gets hot enough during operation to
get close to the 55C maximum drive tempereture specified e.g.
by Maxtor. Definitely not enough cooling for longer-term operation.

I'd feel more comfortable with a fan-based enclosure, but I'm having a
lot of trouble finding one with acceptable specs (USB 2.0, supports
ATA-133, can address 300gb drive, not made by Bytecc) except for
these fanless ones.

(And one fanless model has the power transformer INSIDE the unit!
Surely that's just further inviting overheating, no?)

So-so. Since these things have now reached efficiencies in the 80%
range, the PSU does not contribute that much. But I agree that an
external design is better from a thermal point of view.

Arno

 

[Toshi1873]

So-so. Since these things have now reached efficiencies in the 80%
range, the PSU does not contribute that much. But I agree that an
external design is better from a thermal point of view.

I always tend to lose track of the external power-
supplies which is why I prefer units with built-in PSUs
that take standard AC cords. In a pinch, I can always
swipe a power cord from the next cubicle over.

The ones with interal PSUs also tend to have exhaust
fans.

(And 55C operating temp for a drive is way out in
"iffy" land, IMHO. I prefer drive temps down around
35C.)

 

[Victor Ng]

No! Get an external enclosure with fan! It will damage your hard drive
if you use a fanless external enclosure. 7200rpm is already generating
much heat. Therefore, do not take the risk.

There are many types of external enclosure, you may want to visit this
site:

http://www.removable-storage-guide.com

My two cents worth.

 

[Folkert Rienstra]

No! Get an external enclosure with fan! It will damage your hard drive
if you use a fanless external enclosure.

7200rpm is already generating much heat. Therefore, do not take the risk.

Clueless parrot.

There are many types of external enclosure, you may want to visit this site:

http://www.removable-storage-guide.com

My two cents worth.

Not really worth it.