Ok I just got this cool idea what if i where to take one of those Bar friges (like you see in hotels) stripped it to its minimum and built a computer inside it? (by the way that is MY IDEA not yours so if you steal it GRRRR ) jk
It's been done I'm sure... but not a good idea. For one the compressor on it's going 24/7 from the heat load and you risk condensation damage. That's if the compressor is able to cope with the heat load and not turn your minifridge into a toaster oven.
you really think a computer systems gona put out that much that itll be on 24/7? Hmmm if i got it to work it would be that much more interesting . Anyways must get project Uvlaptop done first.
1) it has been done, a few times 2) usually used mini freezers as its colder 3) its not very effecient, as your: a) trying to cool air b) having the air try to cool the pc c) parts of the pc throw off lots of heat that don't need extra cooling 4) its not all tha bad for the condenser as those things already have life spans of a good 10years, and running a condenser 24/7 shoudln't burn it out (think of a grocery store) 5)much more effecient to watercool, and put a large rad in the freezer (what I'm doing) 6) good luck
thanks for the info metarinka. I didn't really think about the complications to much i was looking at someones mod and saw a small fridge and a light popped over my head unfortunatly its not as original as i Though hmmmmmmmm....... (me stares at oven maniacly ) *cough cough* any one got a new mobo?
those things work by lowering the temperature pretty slowly.. its only because they are insulated from heat getting in that they get cold/freeze at all.. I think
nah smildon they don't really have any fundemental differences then any fridge built now adays. The starting and stopping is what eventually kills the motor. If those things run constant like the ones at the grocery store I work at, they have a life expectancy of about 10-20 year admittedly they use a bigger condenser for the relative amount of volume they cool, but they don't even have doors. Also if you were to do it, the freezer would need to have the capability of removing more heat than the pc produces or it would never get cold.
This may be a silly question, but has anybody considered tossing the box (freezer) and just using the condenser/coils to cool the actuall refrigerant, then using that to cool the PC instead of liquid... I know it would take hardlines instead of flexible tubing. Why do this: cpu>water>air>cold coils in freezer>hot coils in freezer>air when you could do this: CPU>refigerant (instead of cold coils)>hot coils>air did that make sense? -TZ
Basically you're talking about a Direct-Die cooling system, which bascially entails making an evaporator that attaches directly to the CPU. The system works like this (it is a closed loop): Compressor ----> Condensor ----> Filter/Drier ----> Capillary Tube ----> Evaporator (heatsink) ----> Compressor. If you want to check it out in depth, Phase Change is a place you should check out. Many people on that site have created their own Direct Die or chiller (cooling liquid rather than the CPU core) systems. I'm currently working on one myself, but haven't had too much time to do uch as of late. If you want to look at my project log, it's in my sig. Hope this helped a little bit!
i have done a plaan for it allredy not have had the mony to build itt so don't speek about stealing. i have a tred i this forum and im nott the only one hwo has had that ide'. Sory for the bad spelling. here are som pic's pic's moahahaaa
ive made one, but it fried itself. put the whole pc inside the fridge and watercooled the processor. i built a res in the freezer part and it worked pretty well. the problem i had was condensation because i built a custom door outta 2 panes of plexi and cut a I/O plate into. the air leaked in and it ended up frying the puter i had put in there to test it. i was getting temps of about 10 degrees farenheit on the processor (mobo sensor), and that was with a cheap homemade pipe cap waterblock. however it was an old pentium processor that had originally had passive cooling so i dunno how much heat the thing was putting out. frost formed on the waterblock and connection hoses and the inside of the whole thing started sweating. it was downhill from there. however better executed it might work alot better. watercool your processor and gpu and then the cool air left inside can cool your ram and such. at the very least having the whole thing sealed inside atleast should help with condensation. few words of advice keep the orig. door intact for the most part, it needs to be pretty airtight. and dont drill holes thru the sides, there are coolant lines. if you cut one, like i did, you will need a new fridge. btw, i once knew a fella that took the cooling part outta a drinking fountain and put it in his watercooling rig. he said it worked better than a radiator but it didnt get subzero.
fridge mods dont work. as fridges are nto always on. the coolign element of a fridge only works when it rises above the set temprature (2-5c) then it cools it back to that temp. with a computer inside the fridge would be working all the time, and no doubt burn out in under a week.
yeah I thought of this ages ago!! Then I decided to read up on refrigeration basics, and see what would be required to turn the case I have now into a fridge. The process is COMPLEX which is made worse by the fact there's no way you'd be able to hide all the pipes to make it look pretty.
saw that in popsci a couple weeks ago... they gave instructions for it, but i never tried it... probably still have the magazine somewhere.
