Thon Rack Panel 1U Flat Air Vents

One of these at the top of your rack, and another at the bottom, will help set up a little convection current of air running over the hot gear in the middle. Think of them as the venting panel bread in a hot gear sandwich. Since keeping your rack equipment cool prolongs its life and ensures its day-to-day reliability, and since fans and extractors are noisy, these little panels are very worthwhile.
Be aware that because most of the length of the panel is punched through with apertures, these aren't as sturdy as solid blanking panels; they bend more easily, and sometime have arrived a little warped. That said, it's a moment's work to gently bend them back; and once installed they look very neat and professional.

This panel is great at what it does. It is well built and very economical. I use one above and below my rack units, so as to provide additional ventilation and air-cooling around them. The panel seems to be made from steel and is slightly thinner than the aluminium rack panels that are usually found on the front of rack equipment. This means that it can be prone to flexing/bending if pushed in the middle when attached. Also, being slightly thinner means that it will sit slightly lower than the other front panels of your other rack gear -but at this price it would be very hard to complain about anything!