[Bong Cooler] Power supply heat catcher

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About this blog: Computers hate me. They really do. Every time I try to do something unusual like add new hardware, something is guaranteed to go wrong. I decided to start writing about my constant problems so that someone else might benefit from my experiences - or at least laugh at them!

[Bong Cooler] Power supply heat catcher

09 January 2009, 10:21am

Copper coils attached to PSU.

Water piping.

I've created a crude heat catcher (a radiator in reverse?) using 1/4" copper tubing attached to the power supply fan outlet. Air is drawn through the copper coil by another fan. Water is piped through the coil where it is cooled by a bong cooler located outside and recirculated back in.

I don't have anything to measure temperatures but so far it does seem to be working: there's less "rising" heat around the PSU area (which could also just be the additional fan dispersing it better), and the intake pipe feels cooler than the outlet.

The only problem is the pump: it's pushing through the water very slowly, compared to when I was just using a simple 1/2" copper loop. Head height doesn't seem to make much difference so presumably it's a pressure issue: water moves more slowly and painfully through approximately 4 metres of 1/4" tubing versus 15 metres of 1/2" tubing... there's not much more than a dribble coming out of the top fountain head, rather than a shower. I'm considering using two separate fluid loops: one for the evaporative portion (circulating water from the reservoir, up, then showering down) and one for the indoors cooling loop. The latter can be a sealed system which should be cleaner as it can use distilled water and/or suitable additives. The former loop still needs to use tap water since it will need frequent topping up.