Air Filter Bracket (6x10x1 air filter) for mounting to 2x120mm PC fans

thingiverse

For a big box for a shared space, I recommend a REAL Corosi-Rosenthal box or Comparetto Cube which is probably not only cheaper per unit but also way more simple and effective. https://engineering.ucdavis.edu/news/science-action-how-build-corsi-rosenthal-box https://cleanaircrew.org/box-fan-filters/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y7eL2OAnqc8 CR Boxes rule and the dudes are just so humble and it's amazing. https://pca.st/u5ywxsov My problem with these and what set me off to build this thing was that it generates a lot of waste in the tape when the filters needed to be changed and that as a base it is not aesthetically pleasing till you dress it up a little, which decreases adoption. Also the likelihood that someone goes through the trouble of destroying and re-taping a small one like this much less a larger one just felt wild to presume. I wanted something more permanent, where the replaceable media could, you know, be replaced. Thus we have now the thing. For the rest of the materials: USB Wall wart with enough Amps (~1.5 or so) : https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0119BUJDQ Extension Cord (optional) : https://www.monoprice.com/product?p_id=5432 Splitter from USB to Fan : https://www.amazon.com/dp/B081K8LBH3 Basic RGB Fans : https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09B6Y3CWXYes they come in sets of 3 but we only need 2. Math sucks and we carry on Sheaths for the fan cords : This is way more than you need for ~8 units, much less one. You should probably either build multiple, find a shorter set, or accept overage. That said this stuff (though slightly wider) is great generally for managing cable runs so maybe extra is fine for a given person or the same volume of greater girth could easily run both the fan and other split for several units. https://www.amazon.com/Alex-Tech-25ft-Protector-Sleeving/dp/B07FW86XV6 Air Filters: These are just the ones I got, they were cheap and easy to order. https://www.nordicpure.com/product/6x10x1-air-filter/ Yes this come in packs of 6, I'm sure you can just go to home depot and get a loosie or whatever, but otherwise, yay spares. And you could of course get worse filters or without the carbon, but like... why bother? Measurements on some of these can be nonstandard or confusing. Anything matching the dimensions specified on this site should work fine. Note that the staples can get in the way, but also that they (and the lattice) can also be removed if you want a cleaner look) https://www.nordicpure.com/product/6x10x1-air-filter/ Fan covers/faceplates/grilles:I had a maker on etsy make a bunch of 2x120s instead of 3xs. They were cheap, arrived fast, and look good, and you could pick from the different designs. But really any grille cover that fits over a 120 or 2x120mm computer fan will work. https://www.etsy.com/listing/822249029/custom-computer-pc-fan-grill-360mm-x Note that if you get something much heavier you may have to work to redesign the "legs" so that you can still stand the unit up. A few notes on assembly: Getting the power lines coming out of the fans so that they are of the same length is hard. As the fans have to be in slightly different orientations, I found rotating the fans so that the lines were coming out "almost" in the same spot and in the center and then pulling one to give some slack before threading them through between the two fans was both difficult and gave the best results. Whether you care that one of the two strands ends up an inch  (or several) longer or whatever is up to you but it annoyed me because then the cable guard ended up scrunched weird or covering more/less of each cable. You'll see what I mean if you build one and better ideas accepted. Don't overtension the screws, especially if you go with the acrylic faceplate that I bought, or you could crack things (I did). The bracket side should be more resilient, and also matters more since you're trying to get a better seal there. The grille side is just for show if you care about having that side outward facing.For the cord sleeves, note that I could also have used this on the split before the fan cords after USB. I didn't because that segment might require a slightly wider gauge and I didn't take the time to try and figure that out. Also this one box was maybe just enough for that for 8 units, so it was only ever a stretch. Don't forget to seal the ends with fire, also please do that with good ventilation because dear god lighting low quality petrochemicals on fire and huffing it feels like a bad vibe given the overall project. Speaking of the screws, I'm not sure if you have enough just from buying these pieces. I had extra due to some other mistakes while building and because I just have a bucket of computer screws at this point in my life (who doesn't?). If there aren't enough for a unit (each takes 16 with the given bom) you can either omit the 4 from the center of the grille (if it's a single piece), and use those for the backplane or just buy some (which is what I'd recommend). These are standard computer case/fan screws, dime a dozen. I'm sorry I am not inspired to find a good source at this time. The fans are stupid and have a notch on the filter side that should probably be sealed to improve performance. Hot glue or tape depending on if you like the light seepage or not. Unfortunately the fan direction and the filter requirements do not allow the cool shiny side of the fan to face out towards the grille (in the direction of airflow). Instead they have to be mounted with the "shiny" side towards the bracket. This exposes a gross logo sticker, which I pulled off easily after heating with a hair dryer. This leaves a black face pointing out and the shiny side toward the filter. Maybe there are fans with a specified shiny side on their output, or a way to buy a filter with a specific direction, but I didn't have time to figure that out or source such parts. So either assemble them this way or put the shiny side out and flip the filter, but do know that "push fans" are generally worse than "pull fans" in this sort of usage. I have not tested if this actually improves the air but the filter does eventually start to look bad which means it's doing something :D If any real scientists want to take the arts and crafts project up a notch and measure CADR or whatever, that would be rad. CURA says it takes 115g of filament to print one so be sure to have that much handy. As another note to refer to anyone who builds one, it really is intended to work in pretty much all orientations. Flat/Standing/Laying and with the grille facing in or out. About the only thing that will not work is fan side down onto a flat nonporous surface. PS: All of this inspired by this guy's work (aside of course from Corosi and Rosenthal offerings earlier in the pandemic https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corsi%E2%80%93Rosenthal_Box), particularly when he got to here: https://twitter.com/CRBoxKits/status/1582174668684787712