Replacing the fan in ReadyNAS Duo - possible?

[kwantai]

Hello. Has anyone replaced/changed the (stock) fan in the Netgear ReadyNAS duo?

I would like to do this, since I think the fan makes far too much noise.

Any comments and thoughts about this is welcome. Is it a good idea? Is it hard to do? What kind of fan do I need? etc

Thanks 🙂

[Staffan1]

Have not done a fan replacement but should be possible if you find one that has enough airflow and are the right size.

It would be a great help if one had the airflow specification of the original fan.

.staffan

[jraneses]

This is the fan currently in the Duo:

http://www.crownelectronics.com.tw/Serpro/AGE06025.pdf

I'm also considering swapping it out with a compatible, lower CFM model.

[jraneses]

In looking at possible replacement fans for the Duo on Newegg, these models might be viable candidates. In my opinion, it's not so much the noise level of the Duo that's the problem, it's the tone of the stock Crown fan.

VANTEC TF6025
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6811999615

Dynatron DF126025PL-3/4G
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6835114064

Those are the top 2 rated 60mm fans from the product category
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductLi ... rchInDesc=

Can any of the Jedi's comment on the compatibility of the replacement fans listed above?

Thanks,

Jason

[Dooku1]

Keep in mind that replacing the fan will void your warranty.

[kwantai]

Thanks for all comments!

I've replaced the fan now, which was very easy by the way 🙂

I'm now using a 60mm fan from Fractal Design - http://www.fractal-design.com/?view=pro ... =4&prod=15



I believe the noise level is much lower now. Haven't had the fan in place for that long, but I do think it made a significant change.

[Staffan1]

I suggest that you at least get the same airflow value on the fan. Then you should be safe when it comes to the components.

.staffan

[kwantai]

Staffan wrote:
I suggest that you at least get the same airflow value on the fan. Then you should be safe when it comes to the components. .staffan

True. The new fan has a CFM of 27 m³/h, which seems to be higher than the original fan... I hope I'm safe 🙂

[Mechanix]

kwantai wrote:
Staffan wrote: I suggest that you at least get the same airflow value on the fan. Then you should be safe when it comes to the components. .staffan True. The new fan has a CFM of 27 m³/h, which seems to be higher than the original fan... I hope I'm safe 🙂

Hi,

i have a couple of questions:
Which model is currently in the duo?
What´s the impact on the temperatures. Did you noticed any improvement?
I have 2 500GB HDD´s in my duo and the temperatures with the original fan are for both HDD´s 44-46 °C

I planing in fact to use this fan:

http://www.papst.de/index/sid/30B11206- ... rent_id%3D

[kwantai]

Mechanix wrote:

kwantai wrote: Staffan wrote: I suggest that you at least get the same airflow value on the fan. Then you should be safe when it comes to the components. .staffan True. The new fan has a CFM of 27 m³/h, which seems to be higher than the original fan... I hope I'm safe 🙂 Hi, i have a couple of questions: Which model is currently in the duo? What´s the impact on the temperatures. Did you noticed any improvement? I have 2 500GB HDD´s in my duo and the temperatures with the original fan are for both HDD´s 44-46 °C I planing in fact to use this fan: http://www.papst.de/index/sid/30B11206- ... rent_id%3D

jraneses wrote:
This is the fan currently in the Duo: http://www.crownelectronics.com.tw/Serpro/AGE06025.pdf I'm also considering swapping it out with a compatible, lower CFM model.

I don't know what the temperature was before, but right now I have 2 500GB HDD with one on 43 C temp and the other at 36 C. The NAS has been powered in all day and music has been playing from one of the HDD now for at least 5 hours.

Fan 1 1923 RPM

I believe the Papst fan will work good.

[kevinl1886]

How do I open the case to replace the fan?

[kwantai]

kevinl1886 wrote:
How do I open the case to replace the fan?

It's just simple small screws. No problem 🙂

[kevinl1886]

I removed 4 small screws on the back. The case seems to stuck in place and will not come off. Did I missed something here? Do I need to remove the front door to get the case off? Need some help on the steps. Thanks

[Mechanix]

The new fan has a CFM of 27 m³/h, which seems to be higher than the original fan.

Well i don´t think its higher. I opened the case and in my Duo there is this model:

AGE06025B12H 12V DC Ball Bearing

Comparing to your list, the only fan which fits the description is AGE06025_12H. This fan has a air flow volume of:

43,56m³/h

[Mechanix]

kevinl1886 wrote:
I removed 4 small screws on the back. The case seems to stuck in place and will not come off. Did I missed something here? Do I need to remove the front door to get the case off? Need some help on the steps. Thanks

You have to pull the side panels. They slide out easly

[toddel68]

Mechanix wrote:
You have to pull the side panels. They slide out easly

To be precise you need to slide them to the side (backwards). Then you can access the other screws to release the back panel. The rest is self explanatory.
If you would remove the front door it would take you to remove another 13 screws 😉

[kevinl1886]

Thanks. I will try

[Mechanix]

Hi kwantai,

i´m kind of confused now, because the fan you replaced with has a air flow volume of 27 m³/h. The original fan in the DUO has a CFM of 43,56m³/h, almost double.
The risk of overheating the drives is more possible with the replaced fan.

Any suggestions?

[sibe1]

Just replaced the stock fan in my duo a couple of days ago with a Fractal Design Silent Series 60mm fan and everything is working great! Actually it´s better than great! The duo with two 500gb barracudas installed are running much cooler now, 35-36C as opposed to 40-41C with the stock fan with no modification to the automatic fan speed controls. And the best part is; it is almost quiet! It is almost as if the disks are noisier than the fan 🙂 I have been really annoyed about the noise of the stock fan, especially as they market the duo as quiet! "Our designers went so far as to sleep with the Duo at night to make sure it was quiet so you can be sure it can fit in discretely anywhere in your home." yea right!

My advice to everyone out there, buy a new fan! But be careful, look for a fan that moves enough air to cool your drives!

________________________________________
http://komponenttoppen.blogspot.com

[netegalkaka]

sibe wrote:
Just replaced the stock fan in my duo a couple of days ago with a Fractal Design Silent Series ; it is almost quiet! It is almost as if the disks are noisier than the fan 🙂

Thanks for the tip, I'm going to replace mine also but I have searched for a FD-FAN-60 on the internet and it seems that it is not sold here in FRANCE.... :cry:

[Yann2]

Indeed, the Duos are not quiet...

To ReadyNAS modders... 😉
But on my side, my concern is about the fact that one of my 2 ReadyNAS Duo has a fan with a rotating speed fluctuating constantly :
When idle, the sound generated is varying every 1-2 seconds, and this is quite difficult to handle. The other ReadyNAS makes a steady sound and it is easier to accept.
My ReadNAS units are stored in a quite fresh closet (still perfectly dry...). Gaining a -10°c approximatively, regarding temperature in the rooms I live in : no more than 25°c during Summer, and down to 15°c at winter time. Despite the 15°c ambiant, fans still rotate at 1550 RPM approximatively (at the lowest, Drives are in sleeping mode).
Digging into PDF specs (see link page 1 of this thread), I'm assuming the AGE06025 is rotating at 1500 RPM when 7V are provided and up to 5000 RPM when 13V. With the max RPM, we have 0.726m3/min and 33 dBA (!).
ReadyNAS Duos are not built to be quiet with such fan. No matter how low you go on minimal RPM here...

I'm planning to make a significant move by replacing the fans but as the replacement parts recommended in this thread are difficult to find in my country (France), I'll probably give a try to the following solution :
As I didn't open the case yet, I'm here supposing we have a standard 3 pins plug (ground/current/RPM). To be confirmed...
I want to replace the provided noisy 60x60x25mm fan as follow : I will use a 80x80x25mm fan with a 80>60mm adapter, all mounted externally.
So far, my choice (based on good experience with other models from Noctua I use in my Computer case (and they are easy to get in France)) goes for the Noctua NF-R8 :
See specs here : http://www.noctua.at/main.php?show=productview&products_id=9&lng=en
4-13 voltage range, 0.11 A max, 800-1800 RPM, from 0.43 to 0.88m3/min and... 7 to 17 dBA!! Seems interesting, isn't it? 😎

So... I want to hear your feedback and please tell me if I 'm missing something before giving a try to this... Excepting the lose of Netgear warranty, of course! :wink:
Actually, my concern is how RAIDator will handle the voltage/RPM ratio as it will be quite different with the Noctua. But I'm relying on fact that Fan Calibration is meant precisely to adjust this ratio (my assumption). Then, another concern is RAIDator expectation regarding given RPM and air flow (i.e. lowering HDD temps), but the Noctua is a better air mover so effective efficiency should be better than software coded "expectations".

What do you think?

[edit] Regarding voltage/RPM ratio and Air flow... Fan calibration makes me think RAIDator is driving Fan by RPM, obviously. So RAIDator will probably never reach the max RPM it expects, the Noctua Fan will rotate to its max speed (1800) most of the time (but moving more air than AGE06025). And even when RAIDator wants 1500, we are still close to Noctua max RPM (still quieter than AGE06025).

[NASNoob11]

dooku wrote:
Keep in mind that replacing the fan will void your warranty.

dooku,
Can you please state why replacing a failed cooling fan in a ReadyNAS will void my warranty? Can you please point me to a Cooling Fan Hdw Compatibility List I can use for shopping?

My ReadyNAS has been installed/online for 6 weeks and the cooling fan can be heard all over the house!
Perhaps you can share a link to the "I need a replacement cooling fan!" area at NetGear? I can not find same.

I do not wish to kill my warranty. But, trying to sleep with the current howling "Crown" cooling fan is getting very old................ 😐

I have been a satisfied NetGear user for the past 10 years. This current ReadyNAS RD2150 may probably outlive me.............. 🙂

Thank you very much.
Duncan

[Dooku1]

the reason that replacing the cooling fan might void your warranty is because each fan is different and has different CFM, if you replace the fan with a quieter fan it might push less air through and cause the unit to overheat.
I am sorry but currently we do not have a list of third party compatible fans.

[NASNoob11]

dooku wrote:
the reason that replacing the cooling fan might void your warranty is because each fan is different and has different CFM, if you replace the fan with a quieter fan it might push less air through and cause the unit to overheat. I am sorry but currently we do not have a list of third party compatible fans.

dooku,
Thank you. I understand this position. I plan to use a fan that has an equal or greater CFM as a replacement. I have found 2. I will test both for "noise." No harm, no foul! 😄

[Dooku1]

It would be great if you could report your feedback back here on the forum for future knowledge. 😄