# Easy cooling mod?



## DeltaOne (Sep 29, 2013)

I recently helped someone replace a hard drive in a 2 year old Bolt. At the same time we replaced the fan and now have the Bolt sitting on one of those cheap laptop cooling fans from Amazon. 

Had to move the Bolt a little to the left, we didn't want the Bolt's fan blowing out (down) directly over the laptop cooler that was blowing up.

Temperatures before the hard drive died were 65 to 70 ºC. Temperatures after the hard drive and fan replacement have been 50 to 57 ºC.

I wasn't too impressed with the new replacement fan...it really doesn't move much air. I wasn't impressed with the cheap laptop cooler...it has two big fans but doesn't move that much air either.

And I wan't too impressed with the tiny slots on the bottom of the Bolt for air intake. 

I've been wanting to drill a 1/2-inch to 3/4-inch hole in the side of the Bolt. The opposite side from the fan. Not the bottom, not the top...a new hole in the side of the case. Seems to me it would allow the fan to easily pull air in...across the logic board and hard drive...and then out the bottom. 

Or...remove the logic board...and drill holes in the case bottom.

Thoughts? And those of you that have a cooling mod...what temperature is low enough?


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## bkc56 (Apr 29, 2001)

I've seen others report that simply removing the cover from the cable-card slot helps. I suspect that card gets warm, and exposing it allows the heat to escape.


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## Tony_T (Nov 2, 2017)

If the IDT is now 50° - 57°, isn't that cool enough? 
I wouldn't drill holes In the case. The suggestion to remove the CC cover is a good idea.


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## DeltaOne (Sep 29, 2013)

bkc56 said:


> I've seen others report that simply removing the cover from the cable-card slot helps. I suspect that card gets warm, and exposing it allows the heat to escape.


I've read that too. After dinner last night we removed the cover from the cable-card slot. And remember, this Bolt is sitting on a laptop cooler that blows air up.

Just a bit later the temp had dropped from 55 ºC to 51 ºC. That's a reduction of 8 ºF.


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## DeltaOne (Sep 29, 2013)

Tony_T said:


> If the IDT is now 50° - 57°, isn't that cool enough?
> I wouldn't drill holes In the case. The suggestion to remove the CC cover is a good idea.


I just posted when you did...we did remove the cover to the cable-card slot. Temp went down 8 ºF.

Is it cool enough? Maybe...I was looking for opinions. I know there are at least two extensive cooling mod threads here. I plan today to go through them and look for the answer to how cool is cool enough.


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## Tony_T (Nov 2, 2017)

Can you turn the laptop cooler over? Might be better to blow air away from the Bolt. But if you're now always below 50°, that should be cool enough.


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## DeltaOne (Sep 29, 2013)

Tony_T said:


> Can you turn the laptop cooler over? Might be better to blow air away from the Bolt. But if you're now always below 50°, that should be cool enough.


We can try it as a test.

I also want to try putting the Bolt's original fan back in. I got the impression some folks use this replacement fan because it's quieter. But this Bolt's original fan was quiet. And the replacement fan, to me, doesn't move much air.


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## Tony_T (Nov 2, 2017)

Which fan did you use?
When I got my bolt a few years ago, I purchased this one, as I also read reports of a noisy fan, but the stock fan was quiet, so I didn't replace it. This fan is supposed to be cooler though:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00839XK5W/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o02_s02?ie=UTF8&psc=1


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## DeltaOne (Sep 29, 2013)

Tony_T said:


> Which fan did you use?
> When I got my bolt a few years ago, I purchased this one, as I also read reports of a noisy fan, but the stock fan was quiet, so I didn't replace it. This fan is supposed to be cooler though:
> https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00839XK5W/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o02_s02?ie=UTF8&psc=1


Yes, that's the fan we used. It is quiet, to me it sure doesn't move much air.


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## Mikeguy (Jul 28, 2005)

DeltaOne said:


> I just posted when you did...we did remove the cover to the cable-card slot. Temp went down 8 ºF.
> 
> Is it cool enough?


In my personal opinion, yep, especially if you're considering other, more drastic alternatives (drilling holes in the case, etc.). In fact, TiVo has said here at TCF that the "higher" original temps. are fine for the Bolt boxes (take that as you want).


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## DeltaOne (Sep 29, 2013)

Mikeguy said:


> In my personal opinion, yep, especially if you're considering other, more drastic alternatives (drilling holes in the case, etc.). In fact, TiVo has said here at TCF that the "higher" original temps. are fine for the Bolt boxes (take that as you want).


Thanks!

One thing that interests me: finding a replacement fan that moves more air than the original fan or the Noiseblocker BlackSilentFan XS-2. The Noiseblocker is rated at 8.8 CFM.

I'd be willing to have more noise if it moved more air.


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## DeltaOne (Sep 29, 2013)

Lots of fan choices here: 50-52mm Fans

The 50x50x10 fans seem rate around 9 to 10 CFM. So, not much more than the NoiseBlocker. And probably not much more than the OEM fan.

I wonder if a 50x50x15 fan would fit? Those are rated up around 13 CFM. But I haven't checked the power draw on those fans.


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## Tony_T (Nov 2, 2017)

bkc56 said:


> I've seen others report that simply removing the cover from the cable-card slot helps. I suspect that card gets warm, and exposing it allows the heat to escape.


I also heard this, never tried it, and forgot about it. My Bolt ran at 57° (it's in a ventilated cabinet), so never worried about cooling. Removed the cable card cover a few hours ago, and Bolt is now at 55° -- Cool


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## Tony_T (Nov 2, 2017)

Tony_T said:


> Can you turn the laptop cooler over? Might be better to blow air away from the Bolt. But if you're now always below 50°, that should be cool enough.





DeltaOne said:


> We can try it as a test.
> 
> I also want to try putting the Bolt's original fan back in. I got the impression some folks use this replacement fan because it's quieter. But this Bolt's original fan was quiet. And the replacement fan, to me, doesn't move much air.


The Bolt it blowing hot air out, and the laptop cooler back in, so having the fans in the same direction should be a better option.


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## leiff (Aug 24, 2005)

Here you can see my Vox bolt I drilled a bunch of holes right over where the heat sink is, inside the TiVo. I also disabled the fan completely so this is a passive cooling solution. I also leave the hard drive compartment slightly ajar to let heat Escape. My temps are slightly lower than stock and much quieter.


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## leiff (Aug 24, 2005)




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## DeltaOne (Sep 29, 2013)

leiff said:


> Here you can see my Vox bolt I drilled a bunch of holes right over where the heat sink is, inside the TiVo. I also disabled the fan completely so this is a passive cooling solution. I also leave the hard drive compartment slightly ajar to let heat Escape. My temps are slightly lower than stock and much quieter.


You might try the NoiseBlocker fan that's frequently recommended around here. Cost is about $10 on Amazon and it's very quiet.


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## KJN (Feb 24, 2019)

This thread is called " Easy cooling mod". Do not drill or damage your Bolt in any way.
I took the CC door off, put it up on 1" blocks, and plugged in a $6 USB fan blowing over the unit.
Temp dropped from 68 to 48.


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## DeltaOne (Sep 29, 2013)

KJN said:


> This thread is called " Easy cooling mod". Do not drill or damage your Bolt in any way. I took the CC door off, put it up on 1" blocks, and plugged in a $6 USB fan blowing over the unit.
> Temp dropped from 68 to 48.


That mirrors our result, except the cheap USB fan (a laptop cooler with two fans) is blowing up -- under the Bolt. Same drop in temperature.


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## Tony_T (Nov 2, 2017)

Wouldn't it be better for the auxiliary fan to blow over or away from the Bolt, moving the heat away? (I have my Bolt in a closed cabinet with an auxiliary fan moving air out of the cabinet)
Recently removed the CC door and temp dropped from 58 to 55.


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## jrtroo (Feb 4, 2008)

Tony_T said:


> Wouldn't it be better for the auxiliary fan to blow over or away from the Bolt, moving the heat away? (I have my Bolt in a closed cabinet with an auxiliary fan moving air out of the cabinet)
> Recently removed the CC door and temp dropped from 58 to 55.


I would push air in the direction the box was designed. This also avoids pushing dust or airborn junk into the tivo directly.


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## DeltaOne (Sep 29, 2013)

We ordered an AC Infinity S4 fan. Connects to the Bolt via USB. I put the S4 fan under the right side blowing up (the cable card side). I'll report back later with temperatures. Cost was $14 on Amazon. The S4 is 140mm (5.5 x 5.5 inches). And this fan, unlike the laptop cooler, does not interfere with the output from the Bolt's internal fan.

Off topic, but we also bought two AC Infinity S5 fans. 80mm, 3.2 x 3.2 inches. Cost was $15 on Amazon. One fan sits on top of our Netgate router. Before the fan the router's config page reported an internal temp of 50 ºC. After the fan, 24 ºC. That's an amazing reduction! The Netgate's case has nice vents on three sides and the top. The S5 fan sits on top, blowing up. Seems to work really well at cooling the router.

The other fan sits on top of our UniFi smart switch, which also provides power over ethernet (POE). The switch does not report its temperature. The top of the case was very warm to my hand, after the fan it's significantly cooler. Unfortunately, this case has very little venting.


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## DeltaOne (Sep 29, 2013)

Update: The Bolt with the new AC Infinity S4 fan was at 50 ºC when I checked. It was a bit warm in the house, as it was in the mid 80's here in central Maryland yesterday. After giving the A/C about an hour to run, the Bolt was at 41 ºC. 

So, the AC Infinity S4 is a keeper.


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## k2ue (May 9, 2002)

Found my solution: a 7 inch long piece of 2x4 placed front-to-back under the Bolt in the center where the label is and there are no vents to be blocked. Paint matching color, or as desired.


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## shoek (Jan 23, 2002)

+1 for the AC Infinity S4 ... probably the easiest way to cool the Bolt. Just put it under the Bolt and remove the cablecard panel. 

I wish I knew about it before I opened up my Bolt, swapped the fan, broke and scratched the case.


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## leiff (Aug 24, 2005)

KJN said:


> This thread is called " Easy cooling mod". Do not drill or damage your Bolt in any way.
> I took the CC door off, put it up on 1" blocks, and plugged in a $6 USB fan blowing over the unit.
> Temp dropped from 68 to 48.


My temps are cool enough with the holes I made in my case and the hard drive compartment slightly ajar so I don't need to bother with any fans. As long as I don't spill any beverages on top of my TiVo I'll be fine. I'm sensitive to noise so this is also the best solution for me


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## teavaux (Jun 29, 2007)

shoek said:


> +1 for the AC Infinity S4 ... probably the easiest way to cool the Bolt. Just put it under the Bolt and remove the cablecard panel.
> 
> I wish I knew about it before I opened up my Bolt, swapped the fan, broke and scratched the case.


The Infinity S2 is working great for me - I just have it behind and to the left of the Bolt (which is raised on one inch rubber feet), blowing air under the Bolt. The top of the Bolt is no longer hot, and the coax connection is no longer hot enough to fry an egg!


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## ingsoc747 (Apr 5, 2017)

Not sure if this has been mentioned. Has anyone considered a USB powered cooling mat that are made for laptops?


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## JoeKustra (Dec 7, 2012)

ingsoc747 said:


> Not sure if this has been mentioned. Has anyone considered a USB powered cooling mat that are made for laptops?


Not since April: Easy cooling mod?


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## Mikeguy (Jul 28, 2005)

ingsoc747 said:


> Not sure if this has been mentioned. Has anyone considered a USB powered cooling mat that are made for laptops?


While I've been figuring matters out, I'm indeed using my old USB-powered laptop cooling mat, a very basic one (the plastic kind with a fan in it, blowing up), which cools the Bolt by ~6 degrees. My system is not particularly hot to begin with--it currently (with the laptop cooling mat on) is at 55 degrees, with 2 shows being recorded and one recorded show being played; removing the cablecard compartment door itself has lowered the temp. by ~3-4 degrees.


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## KevTech (Apr 15, 2014)

k2ue said:


> Found my solution: a 7 inch long piece of 2x4 placed front-to-back under the Bolt in the center where the label is and there are no vents to be blocked. Paint matching color, or as desired.


I just put metal condiment cups under each corner.
This gets the Bolt 2 inches up from the bottom of the shelf.
Also makes it so now I can dust under the Bolt without moving it.


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