my ideas to combat heat - Page 2

P4_2.66GHz · 03-13-2004, 09:51 PM

Quote: Originally Posted by wizardPC

Air conditioners remove water from the air. the water that forms on the air conditioner is the result of that.

Adding an extra fan probably won't help, since it will be blowing 120F air around

Cool down a piece of metal, than take it where it is warm. What happens?

anaxagoras · 03-13-2004, 10:01 PM

I used to have a similar cooler, the ceramic element is called a peltier, a computer wouldn't last a few hours in one of those... they're condensation whores

bondbond55 · 03-15-2004, 08:16 AM

I've found some cheap rear quarter panels for my car that have built in vents. You could water-cool your system, have the water pumped out into an area where the air flows freely (space inside quarter panel for me) and set up a heatsink there. I'm not totally sure what I'm doing yet though. My car is a convertable so the trunk is the same airspace as the cabin, minus a leather seperator.

siberia37 · 03-15-2004, 08:28 AM

Quote: Originally Posted by wizardPC

since heat seems to be the biggest issue with my system (I get lockups etc when the case temp gets to be about 90F), I am going to take some drastic measures.

How about just designing your system to be easy to remove and take with you when the weather gets extreme? That seems less drastic than tearing holes in your car.

NightHunter · 03-15-2004, 09:34 AM

Why not just run your AC in your car.

, make some venting going from a floor vent and run that to your PC. I did this and it works pretty good. all vents run under neath carpet so you dont even see them. I made the vents from old vaccuum cleaner attachments becaus they were flat and fit on to the vent in my car. Lucky. Water cooling is common, but kind of sucks on a cold day if your cooling your computer. Im in wisconsin and travel south occasionally so I needed it to run off the cars vents. Now that I placed the computer inside the cab of the car, I did away with the venting thing, but it does work good.

MP3DUB · 03-16-2004, 08:14 PM

A TEC aka peltier (a thermo eletric cooler uses the peltier effect) is simply a heat pump, it sucks heat from one side of the tec to the other, dumping it what ever heatsink/intercooler one might have. It simply moves the heat from one point to another, adding its own thermal inefficiencies in the processes. The cyrix chip might be low wattage, but if the tec wasnt able to dump all the heat into the surrounding air, itd simply start cooking the chip.

wizardPC · 03-17-2004, 06:48 PM

^^See, that works when the car is running, but i want to be able to leave the computer on all the time.

Filip · 03-17-2004, 10:49 PM

Water cooling works well because water has a high specific heat - so it keeps its temperature longer. This is why you can bite into the crust in your pizza w/ problems but not the toppings that have more water/oil.

When you get back into your car after a hot afternoon, grab a hold of that water bottle sliding around in the back seat - it'll be quite hot. How long will it take to cool that down to the point where it benefits the cpu? Cooling that bottle down takes a lot longer than cooling the cabin down to a manageable temp. Granted you'll have a radiator for the water... but just a thought.

They sell these solar-powered fans that clip onto your car windows. I've been toying around with the idea of getting a few solar panels, coupling them with a small tank battery, and a few low power case blowers. If it's your car, then i wouldn't worry about the hole,you can always patch it (providing it's done right). have an in and out port with butterfly valves. you can even set up a system that will open and close them using shifter hardware for a mountain bike. Just make the in/out tubes into an S to prevent any major splashes coming into your case. I'd also put a really fine mesh in the opening (and perhaps some filters - like a scouring pad or something). Of course this will reduce your airflow so you may need bigger openings.

Also, someone correctme if I'm wrong, but doesn't condensation happen when hot moist air is rapidly cooled (touches something cold)? I've never had a problem with condensation in a Texas summer, unless the AC is turned on full blast and it's blowing directly at a window. During the winter you could just shut the valves. Besides, isn't winter air naturally dry? So you'd be concerned with the moisture that you're bringing in yourself - which is the same concern everyone else on this board has (nothing new by dding the vents).

Just some thoughts. Best of luck!
-F

beaverpants · 03-18-2004, 11:18 PM

it get realy hot b/c the glass in the car. maybe your glove box isnt as hot since its closed off from the sun

Magnezium · 03-19-2004, 04:21 AM

I live in a hot area of Southern Cali. The best way to vent the computer (that I've seen) was to use a duct from the grill of the front of the car (obviously filtered) through the firewall and direct to the computer. Now I do believe that is REALLY exteme and not worth the time and effort. But, using something similar, you could properly vent the PC. If you have vents in your rocker-pannels, or if you put any face (ricer) air scoops on your car, I'm sure that would work.

I recomend just putting over-kill heat sinks and fans on. I put a XP3300 Heatsink and fan on a 1.13 GHz PIII and it took the temp down to 25 degrees under idle and 34 degrees under 100% load. It was really stable and pretty damn quiet. I believe it was made by Techtools and only put a 15 dollar dent in my wallet after tax.

Give it a try before you destroy something on your car.

MG

anaxagoras · 03-19-2004, 05:24 AM

As for overkill heatsinks, if your in a car that you tend to drive to it's limits...not that i do that

....

you might want to take into account the weight of the heatsink. Some overkill sinks go well beyond spec in tems of weight and the stress placed on the motherboards may end up being enough to break the suckers loose and let them go to town in your case.

Enforcer · 03-19-2004, 08:09 AM

Quote: Originally Posted by wizardPC

^^See, that works when the car is running, but i want to be able to leave the computer on all the time.

So how is the hole in the bottom of your car going to help if the car is stationary?

If it's heat when the engine is not on, you are going to have to have something that is powered and moving. More drain on bettery.

Suggest you move to alaska.

wizardPC · 03-19-2004, 10:22 AM

fans connected to my second battery.

MP3DUB · 03-19-2004, 10:46 AM

Quote: Originally Posted by Magnezium

I live in a hot area of Southern Cali. The best way to vent the computer (that I've seen) was to use a duct from the grill of the front of the car (obviously filtered) through the firewall and direct to the computer. Now I do believe that is REALLY exteme and not worth the time and effort. But, using something similar, you could properly vent the PC. If you have vents in your rocker-pannels, or if you put any face (ricer) air scoops on your car, I'm sure that would work.

I recomend just putting over-kill heat sinks and fans on. I put a XP3300 Heatsink and fan on a 1.13 GHz PIII and it took the temp down to 25 degrees under idle and 34 degrees under 100% load. It was really stable and pretty damn quiet. I believe it was made by Techtools and only put a 15 dollar dent in my wallet after tax.

Give it a try before you destroy something on your car.

MG

trunk scoop on a saturn

thats just an amusing mental picture.

Adam432823 · 03-19-2004, 05:30 PM

I don't leave my pc on all the time like Wizard says he does, but when I leave my car in the parking lot and then come back, the internal temperature is so high that it prevents the pc from passing post. Yet, once the fans begin to run, it cools off enough that all i have to do is reset the machine. That's a pain in the ***. Basically I need to move all the air out of the trunk while the car is parked. I was thinking something along the lines of a series of solar powered fans forcing air into the trunk from the outside. Not into the PC case itself, just the ambient air in the trunk.

I'm hoping more people reply to this thread. No idea is too wierd!