MP 6,1 Mac Pro 6,1 in a very dusty environment. Air filter how to?

[adam9c1]

Looking for ideas how to filter incoming air going into the Mac Pro 6,1.
This computer will be in a very dirty environment.

Yes, I can remove the cover and blow air through the heat sinks, but would rather have a solution where the air going into the computer is filtered with a removable / washable or replacable filter such as a small furnace type filter. This way I'm protecting the equipment better.

 

[Bigwaff]

Looking for ideas how to filter incoming air going into the Mac Pro 6,1.

There used to be a product called CoreFilter. It was kind of like a round stand w/ filter in which Mac Pro sat within. I imagine its going to be virtually impossible to find something like that now for the discontinued Mac Pro.

 

[JayKay514]

Looking for ideas how to filter incoming air going into the Mac Pro 6,1.
This computer will be in a very dirty environment.

Yes, I can remove the cover and blow air through the heat sinks, but would rather have a solution where the air going into the computer is filtered with a removable / washable or replacable filter such as a small furnace type filter. This way I'm protecting the equipment better.

You need an industrial computer enclosure for factory environments. Something like this:

Mini PC, Micro PC – DS SFF - DustShield® Computer Enclosures

The DS SFF is our smallest tower enclosure and is the perfect fit for compact PCs, providing maximum protection while taking up minimal space.

www.dustshield.com

That, or you need to make one yourself, that has positive air pressure flow to keep dust from infiltrating, and gaskets / filters etc, with adequate airflow to ensure cooling.

 

[Darren.h]

could mount it in a 2013 Mac Pro server case . 6.1 equals 2013 Mac Pro right? 7.1 is 2019 model.

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[andrewv69]

Sounds like a DIY project. Just a quick idea I had while typing this - use a PVC pipe as an enclosure. Make some kind of mount to secure it inside, maybe a smaller diameter PVC pipe, epoxied on one side and removable on the other. Cut out a hole for the ports, preferably with a gasket and some way to index the rotation. On the exhaust side, a relatively thin dust filter should do. On the intake side, a heavier duty filter, and a fan to help with pulling air through the filter. Possibly even remove the internal fan to avoid overspinning and just use dedicated intake and exhaust fans that can force more air through.

Bonus points for getting dust covers/plugs for the ports, that is commonly overlooked and can lead to failures if the dust is conductive. Also clean out and re-paste the machine before this so if any dust does get in, you'll have more time to clean it before it starts to cook.

 

[adam9c1]

What I'm thinking thus far is this:

1ftx1ft furnace removable filter sitting in a thin wooden cage.
On top of that a stand for the Mac Pro so that there is a large gap between the filter and the bottom air intake.

From there, two options:
1. build out rectangular enclosure for the whole computer using thin wood planks on the edges and thin plywood as sides, cut out a hole for cabling and seal those with expando foam, and a cutout for the top - exhaust
or
2. use some sort of tape to seal up the area between the air filter and the bottom of the computer so that the ingested air is filtered.

I may start out with option 2 first to see if the air filter is actually doing anything.

Then finish with a roof, so that debris does not fall into the exhaust port of the computer.

Good point on the port covers.

 

[th0masp]

So are these air filters breathable enough for an enclosure to not require any extra ventilation? Because this is a computer that is kinda prone to overheat.

Last time I had a machine in an enclosure (in that case a noisy workstation I wanted to silence) even with extra ventilation from a fan array top and bottom the temperatures inside went up noticeably.

 

[adam9c1]

I have not started this process yet.
The air filter is a furnace/hvac filter 12"x12"x(.5"?)

My plan is to create a makeshift stand for the Mac Pro, then have the filter in distance. So that the comptuer fan has air to pull from that is filtered.

Use most likely that red stucco semi flexible tape to seal things up and watch temperature levels.

If this does not work, then go back to the drawing board.