I’m planning to add a fan to my Orbi 970 to help extend its lifespan, and I’m curious about how others have configured their setups. For instance, do you typically mount the fan on top to direct hot air upward and out? If so, how effective has that been in keeping the device cool? Alternatively, have you found better results by positioning the fan to blow air downward into the unit, or perhaps mounting it on the side to channel airflow upward and out through the top? I would greatly appreciate any advice or insights you can share. Thank you!
I've never used a fan with any of my netgear routers. At any given time, I've got about 120-150 devices connected to my network. While its warm, I wouldn't say its hot. CPU load sitting around 20-30% without armor/parental controls active.
I’m with @FURRYe38 , I have the same unit just sitting on top of the unit.
There’s a fine line on fan diameter for top use. There’s an 85mm solid round plate at top center on the RBE’s. Your fan will work better if the blades extend beyond the center plate so it can pull air up thru the RBE. But, if you go beyond a 145mm fan-base width, it will hang over the outside of the RBE, and end up pulling most of the fan air from the outside top of the router and not up thru the inside of the router (pulling air thru the router has more resistance than pulling unobstructed air from the outside of the router).
I have a 120mm diameter fan (I think that’s what furry has also) and it covers the top of the router (not an exact fit because my 120mm fan-base is a square shape while the RBE top is basically a modified triangular base.
You are wise to add this “insurance”. I use them on the router and satellites.
a fan is never a bad idea as heat is the death of electronics. and with that expensive of a unit, its a pretty cheap investment. Its just not something that you have to have. Thats all I was going for with my setup description.
In the past year or so, there were posts in the forum of specific Orbi routers overheating, while other apparently identical units did not. At the time, there was speculation that perhaps some units came out of the factory with inadequate thermal paste. My opinion is:
If manufactured correctly, these devices should not overheat in temperatures from 32 to 104 degrees Fahrenheit.
Adding a cooling fan cannot possibly harm a router, and may actually increase performance or lifespan.
I completely agree that adding an external fan to the router isn’t essential. However, providing extra airflow for a device that lacks it can significantly improve overall air circulation. This enhanced airflow helps keep internal components cool, ultimately extending the device’s lifespan. For example, the location of my Orbi router doesn’t have optimal airflow, and during the summer months, it tends to get quite warm. Given these conditions, I prefer to invest a modest amount in an external fan to help prolong the life of my devices.
I was just cruious for those who do want a fan, how did they add it to the outside...
I've been using fans on routers for 10 plus years. User choice and not required. Ya for flat styled routers, place fan on botton of router and push air upwards. For these cylinder style cases, a fan on top and pulling air upwards from the top of the case has worked for me.
Seems like a waste in most cases as these routers seems to have ample breathing room, Now for persons who have the routers locked away I can see the use of this other wise naw. I also think a batch of these routers was faulty some of the first batch hence so many returns that were fixed and now back on the market on Ebay and other places. Netgear was well aware of the issues. But where the fan is concern a guess its peace of mind to each his own.
A fan may not be necessary in most cases, but it certainly won't hurt anything. It can be especially useful for devices in confined spaces with limited air flow. I have never had an issue with heat, but I have used a small fan that blows over the Orbi and even a rack type fan that circulates the air around. The cooler you can keep devices that generate heat, the longer they last.
