Don't you just love server cooling equipment? - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / general

author: XOIIO
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 05, 2014, 03:10:24 am
content: Well, moved to a place with "modern" radiator heating, so no AC, and Christ my pc heats up my room, there is a good 5 degree difference from this room to the next, which is brutal today, it's also humid as hell.So, went and grabbed the APC rack cooling fan I have and proceeded to pump a ludicrous amount of cooler air into my roomHelped loads, I just wish it fit in the window.It also makes an amazing regular fan on hot days, you'll have trouble sweating with this aimed at you.Too hot/lazy to get the specific model now but I believe it's around $900 new (if this one is sill being sold) and I got it for $30 or so.

author: justanothercanuck
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: July 05, 2014, 03:56:38 am
content: That thing's gotta be bloody loud though...

author: XOIIO
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 05, 2014, 03:58:34 am
content: Quote from: justanothercanuck on July 05, 2014, 03:56:38 amIt's actually not too bad.edit: kinda shit comparison, the mic barely picks up the tower fan, can't find my good one, it's somewhere :/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L_TsTQqrxTc&feature=youtu.be

author: justanothercanuck
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: July 05, 2014, 04:32:22 am
content: Quote from: XOIIO on July 05, 2014, 03:58:34 amnoise-cancelling mic?

author: XOIIO
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 05, 2014, 04:59:25 am
content: Quote from: justanothercanuck on July 05, 2014, 04:32:22 amNo just a build in iphone one, I'll do a comparison when I find my wireless mic.

author: T3sl4co1l
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 05, 2014, 05:42:23 am
content: Where does the heat go? Or is it just a powerful fan?Tim

author: SeanB
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 05, 2014, 06:16:29 am
content: Just a fan in a case. They work quite well to cool you down gently in humid climates, and are very low in power use, and can be quite quiet. I use them to keep the air moving, and they are good at that. I used ones I bought for a glass door display fridge, as I had spares. Best to use a fan guard with those 120 by 120 fans as otherwise you can nip your fingers.

author: TMM
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: July 05, 2014, 06:21:51 am
content: What you want is a few of these bad boys:http://www.delta.com.tw/product/cp/dcfans/download/pdf/FFB/FFB140x140x38mm.pdf

author: XOIIO
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 05, 2014, 06:29:26 am
content: Quote from: TMM on July 05, 2014, 06:21:51 amOooh. I've got some from server power supplies I cold not get running, not sure the size exactly, but they are ridiculously strong, then push themselves back no problem, and the blades are aluminum or some sort of alloy, and they would rip your fingers to shreds in an instant. I need to put a hotdog in one and record it lolAlso, it's an APC ACF001http://www.apc.com/resource/include/techspec_index.cfm?base_sku=ACF001Apparently 503 cubic feet per minute, not sure how that compares with tower fans and the like, seems pretty good though.Quickly looking at the manual there are blanking plates apparently, so don't know if some only come with one fan or not, mine has both.

author: SeanB
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 05, 2014, 06:35:53 am
content: I have a 28VDC tubeaxial fan, that really moves air. Ex aircraft, but not something you want to have on all the time because of the noise it makes. Originally was used to cool the power diodes in an aircraft DC bus/battery charger. The small transformer was capable of handling 100A IIRC, so definitely did need the airflow.

author: XOIIO
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 05, 2014, 06:39:08 am
content: Oh cool! I guess some server rooms have raised floors where the AC comes in, and these are used to push the air up through the rack, I figured it just mounted on the top or something.Man I only have one server but I really want a rack. I know where I could get one but it would be $500Maybe if I get the job I interviewed for I'll grab it after saving a bit for a couple months. I'll need to get some rails for my server too since I lost them, but I have a Lenovo rack mount display unit type thing, the kind you pull out, flip up and it has a monitor, keyboard and track pad in it. Never tested it though, but it probably works. I'll have to try tomorrow.edit: ok, 73 decibels at 1 meter with both fans. I could also get 656 CFM removing the filter and finger guards, though I think the finger guards wouldn't do much.

author: justanothercanuck
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: July 05, 2014, 11:59:20 am
content: Quote from: TMM on July 05, 2014, 06:21:51 amDelta fans are screamers.

author: XOIIO
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 05, 2014, 04:33:02 pm
content: Quote from: justanothercanuck on July 05, 2014, 11:59:20 amThe bigger ones I have a similar to that, I'll take a video later lol. They are pretty terrifying with the metal blades lol

author: XOIIO
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 05, 2014, 06:24:04 pm
content: https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=X1OU6ePf58g

author: NiHaoMike
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 05, 2014, 07:34:16 pm
content: Teardown? I wonder if it's inverter drive (ECM/VFD) or just a pair of PSC squirrel cage fans. I'm guessing the latter since ECM lends itself to using temperature sensors to vary the speed.All too many beginner PC builders cheap out on the fans, then wonder why they're having issues with heat. Their usual reaction is to stuff in more of those "cheap" fans, when in fact what they really needed is one of those $30 GHE Deltas that easily beats $30 of "cheap" fans. And that Delta is sine wave drive (more precisely Cindy Wu sensorless FOC, which transitions to trapezoidal waves at high speed), which means it actually runs quieter than a cheap square wave fan at the same RPM.ECM is just awesome for efficiency. In one of my projects where I converted (more like total redesign) a cheap window A/C into a heat pump water heater, the original (PSC) fan used 50W (about 10% of the total power use!) while a pair of HHE Deltas only use 16W at full speed. The condenser water pump (also ECM) only uses 2-3W in normal operation.

author: XOIIO
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 05, 2014, 08:15:50 pm
content: Quote from: NiHaoMike on July 05, 2014, 07:34:16 pmI can do a little teardown when I find the time, if I recall correctly those are just direct AC powered fans though.Who needs water cooling when you could cut a hole in your PC for a server rack fan

author: SeanB
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 06, 2014, 08:47:22 am
content: Wonder what would happen if you took one of those PABST fans and attached it to a flat plate, and powered it up to see if you could get it to lift on ground effect like a hovercraft.

author: NiHaoMike
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 06, 2014, 04:47:40 pm
content: You can make a hovercraft from a good computer fan. I actually did it with a 60mm Comair Rotron on a styrofoam plate 10 years or so ago, powered by an 8 AA NiCd battery pack. Lots of fun...Another fun thing to try is to make a funnel with paper, tape it over the end, direct it up, and float a ping pong ball in the air.