Computer inside a fridge...

[WinFlex]

I just had a great idea. Why not take my mobo, stick a decent air-cooled heat sink on it, mount it in a mini-fridge (or freezer, even better) and simply extend all cables to the outside of the fridge? Stick the GPU, PSU, and HDD's in there with it. Cool it all down to a nice chilly temperature without ever having to deal with condensation...
Why hell, I could just go out and spend $600 on a VapoChill case, or I could drop $100 on a kickass mini-freezer :)

Edit: I bet this has been done, I would appreciate soem links regarding cooling results, etc.

[RedDeathDrinker]

Well, the first reason is condensation....

Apart from that, it's not only been suggested before, it's been done.....:)

From "System in a Fridge" to "Watercooling - Coolant resevoir is a chest freezer".

I think that the Cooling topic was where you wanted to post this:)

[WinFlex]

Sorry, I always post my thoughts in the wrong places... I thought general would do.
Explain to me one thing: How does condensation occour in an environment where there is not delat T, that is temperature differencial? Most modern fridges are "ice free" fridges, meaning that they get rid of moisture in the air within the cooling unit and dispense of it externally... take, for example, an air-conditioner. It removes moisture from the air, condenses it, and only then transfers the air into the room. Most fridges work the same way, I think.

[aenigma]

Originally posted by WinFlex
Sorry, I always post my thoughts in the wrong places... I thought general would do.
Explain to me one thing: How does condensation occour in an environment where there is not delat T, that is temperature differencial? Most modern fridges are "ice free" fridges, meaning that they get rid of moisture in the air within the cooling unit and dispense of it externally... take, for example, an air-conditioner. It removes moisture from the air, condenses it, and only then transfers the air into the room. Most fridges work the same way, I think.

There wont be any condensation as long as the freezer is sealed.
They are ice free because they have a defrost cycle.Something you dont want with a computer inside :)

[Buzzdog]

If you read the thread "El Fridge" you will find some info on the subject. There are alot of sub $200 mini chest freezers on the market. As long as the inside of the freezer is sealed and not opened you should not have a condensation issue. The ambiant temperature surrounding the MB/CPU/Cards would be lower then the components. Where you would have troubles would be if you opened the freezer. To be safe you would have to make sure you power down the freezer and wait for the temperature to reach the outside ambiant temperature. So there would not be any quick upgrades :p But once you have your system set up and installed there is no real reason why you would have to touch the board again. I am going to be trying this as soon as the funds become available. Alot of the freezers I have seen have a manual defrost cycle. My setup is going to be a chest freezer with a door on the top. I plan on installing the MB on the top door. The bottom of the chest is going to be filled with anti-freeze. I will have either a coil set up or a raidiator submerged in the antifreeze. This will be to have maximum surface area to help disipate heat from the radiator. I plan on having water blocks for the CPU/GPU/NB. I will be running antifreeze through the closed system. I am going to pick up a desktop case to house my HDs/CD/PSU in. I think this is a viable option. I might forego the water system and try it just with the freezer to start. I will make a thread with pictures documenting my experience and results.

Buzzdog

[Lt. Max]

also the hdd doesnt like cold tempereatures.. so leave that out

[Buzzdog]

The hard drives will go in the desktop case on top of the freezer. The only computer components that will be in the freezer will be the motherboard, cpu, memory, video card, sound card. All other peripherals will be in a desktop case on top of the freezer


Buzzdog