he absence of a proper escape path will lead to hot air accumulating at the top of the cabinet. Obstructions to the airflow lead to hot air collecting further down. If warm air cannot freely rise to the top it will collect and create a hot air pocket where the obstruction is. Shelves that overhang the natural rise of air should be vented, so as not to block the airflow.

Avoid creating hot air pockets

There should be enough space left between each component and the shelf above that turbulence from the general airflow can reach in and set the air above the component in motion. This is what allows the warm air to escape. If you are setting up your system in a way that requires the shelves to be densely packed, then it is highly recommended that you add a single component cooler. A component cooler is a small, local fan unit that sits on top of the individual component and expels its warm exhaust air away toward the cabinet’s overall air stream.

Avoid short cycling

If the air exhaust is located too close to an inlet, the warm exhaust air may re-enter the cabinet through the intake. This phenomenon, known as short cycling, will obviously defeat your the attempt to keep the cabinet cool. If you install a multi-fan panel at the exhaust, you must check the fans regularly to ensure that they are all operational. If one fan stops functioning, it will become a vent that creates short cycling through the remaining, functional fans.

Ensure an escape path

Try to allow as much unobstructed space in front of the exhaust fan as you have in front of the intake fan, so that the warm air can easily escape and dissipate.

The cabinet’s cooling system does not function in isolation from its surroundings. If the room does not have A/C it must be well ventilated by other means. If the warm air that is expelled from the cabinet cannot escape the room, then the cabinet cooling system is not going to work as intended.