Putting computer in a frigerator?

[Warshed]

I heard of this being done but does it have any down sides? I mean why mess with water cooling and all this stuff when you can buy a mini refridgerator and just stick all the components of the computer in there? I mean is this feasable or am I missing something?

[UnseenMenace]

It is feasable and has been done before however it is not as easy as you would first believe as fridges are not condensation free

[LkyOldSun]

pretty expensive way to get an OC (well at least in CA where Gov. Davis screwed us on electricity)

[Janissary]

Not every fridge can handle that much of heat, you would maybe fry the compressor. Don't try it for a long period, and if the fridge's compressor would not stop to work within an hour, stop it immediately, mom will certainly appreciate that :)

[robbiewilso]

I would worry about it wilting the lettuce....
:D

[Yodums]

As mentioned above, you still have to worry about condensation. Especially when you turn the computer on and off. The thing about watercooling when it's setup right is that you got nothing to worry about. The temperatures are low, there's no condensation as your water will be higher than ambient.

With a fridge you have to be certain that the air can't get inside so condensation isn't going to be a factor. You also have to worry about the strength of the fridge.

[arabarabian]

It is do able but it is difficult. Also componants like the hard drive may not run well at low temps. I would say that you would be better off using an air conditioner because it will dehumidfy the air and is good for continual operation.

Thank You,
Daniel

[Imacrzyprsn]

has anyone ever put a tiny dehumidifier modded into their case so that it sucks the condensation and water vapor from the computer to outside of the computer?

[Maxwell Murder]

lol, I can see having a fridge in your room and your friend opening it up for a drink but to there surprise a computer!

[timmyqwest]

much easier to duct air conditioner into the case, much safer too

[Gautam]

Neither of those options are going to get you the temps you'd expect or desire, since a heatsink is always going to be used for thermal interface. Furthermore, getting it all to fit in a minifrigde and work would be very difficult. Although ducting can work quite effectively, using water-cooling would still be preferable.

[timmyqwest]

Originally posted by Gautam
Neither of those options are going to get you the temps you'd expect or desire, since a heatsink is always going to be used for thermal interface. Furthermore, getting it all to fit in a minifrigde and work would be very difficult. Although ducting can work quite effectively, using water-cooling would still be preferable.

Neither being what two?

If your refering to the a/c thing just look at my temps...much cheaper then a water cooled rig

[Gautam]

I don't mean any offense, but your temps are way off. And when I say way, I mean by over 20°C. Don't forget that the NF7 has an in-socket thermistor, which is incredibly sensitive to ambient air. By doing a mod like you did, one is effectively reducing the ambient temperature to 11°C; by around 15°, considering normally case temps should be around 26°C. If you're lowering the ambient temperature by 15°C, you are decreasing the core temperature by the same 15°; the relation is always direct. Normally your temps would be in the low 50's; they'd be in the low 30's now. Not bad, but not beyond what straight water can offer.

[Warshed]

Thanks for all the important info. I think I will pass on the fridge then. I just want to go water cooling route with the water being actively cooled, but I am not sure how the insulation works. Thanks again though.

[timmyqwest]

Originally posted by Gautam
I don't mean any offense, but your temps are way off. And when I say way, I mean by over 20°C. Don't forget that the NF7 has an in-socket thermistor, which is incredibly sensitive to ambient air. By doing a mod like you did, one is effectively reducing the ambient temperature to 11°C; by around 15°, considering normally case temps should be around 26°C. If you're lowering the ambient temperature by 15°C, you are decreasing the core temperature by the same 15°; the relation is always direct. Normally your temps would be in the low 50's; they'd be in the low 30's now. Not bad, but not beyond what straight water can offer.

*sigh* belive what you want ;)

go here and copy/paste/enter that link...

http://www.geocities.com/canastaspeciale/index.html

[Gautam]

Yes... I see that it starts at 35.5°C, already too low to be logical. Let me explain to you with pure objective numbers rather than subjective notions why those reported temps are incorrect.

You have an SK7 with an 80mm Vantec. This is, macroscopically, your thermal interface between CPU and ambient. According to BillA's test on the front page, this setup will yield .25 C/W of thermal resistance. This is not a variable amount. You do not state what voltage you are using. I will assume that you're using 1.8v; if that's incorrect, please inform me.

Supposing 1.8v, your processor will be dissipating

1.8^2/1.5^2*2400/1467*49.4=117.79W of heat

Given that your heatsink's thermal resistance is always 0.25 C/W regardless of the conditions, the delta in temperature between the ambient and core temperature will be:

0.25 C/W * 117.8 W =29.45°C

Meaning that the difference between the ambient air and the core temperature will always be 29.45°C. The core will always be 29.45°C higher than the ambient temperature.

You state that your case temperature is 11°C, and supposing this, it is your ambient temperature. Adding the delta T:

29.45°C + 11°C=40.45°

This may be a shockingly high temperature for you. However, this is most likely what it is. Understand that in order for your core temperature to truly be 15°C, your ambient temperature would have to be:

15°C-29.45°C= -14.45°C

Maybe now you can see why 15°C is such an outlandish value. I have long told people not to put any faith into motherboard thermistors. In-socket ones especially; here we see that yours is off presumably by over 30°C, which is in fact to be expected when the ambient temperature is lowered as drastically as you have accomplished with your ducting. But temps are nothing to worry about, or care about. What's important is that you got a great overclock. However, don't assume that your temps in reality are even remotely in line with what your motherboard reports.

[timmyqwest]

i'm currently at 1.95volts, but that doesnt matter to me.

I have never said that the temps reported by my motherboard are correct. There is nothing to base it on, it can however be used as a refrence to my own hardware.


The fact is that the temps based on "stock" vs the temps based on after the mod are largely differnt.

The important thing to know here is that this isnt just cold air blowing into the case, it's blowing directly into the fan for my h/s (for the most part)

My heatsink is cold to the touch...that has to mean something

[sanford1]

Originally posted by LkyOldSun
pretty expensive way to get an OC (well at least in CA where Gov. Davis screwed us on electricity)

Not true. Do some research.

[UselesKnoledge]

Originally posted by Warshed
Thanks for all the important info. I think I will pass on the fridge then. I just want to go water cooling route with the water being actively cooled, but I am not sure how the insulation works. Thanks again though.

Do you mean the insulation in the minifridge? It is kind of like a rubber foam. If you want to know about cutting, it should be alright. It's also pretty clean when you cut it, there isn't as much mess as other types of insulation.

[LkyOldSun]

Originally posted by sanford1


Not true. Do some research.
What's not true, the Davis part, or a fridge being an expensive way to cool?

[JusDenny]

Has anyone considered the BTU rating of a refrigerator? It may sound like a good idea at first but most refridgerators won't keep up with a CPU that's producing as much heat as a 200 watt light bulb. A good test for the refridgerator candidate would be to put such a bulb in it and monitor temps for a while. I think you'll find that the fridge runs nonstop 'til it burns it's motor out. While the light bulb manages to keep things toasty warm in there.

However, I found a little used window mount air conditioner at a local thrift store for $10.00. Barely big enough to keep a closet cool. It looks like hell but still works ok. So a little duct tape, some dryer vent hose, I moved the AC's thermostat sensor inside the comps case. It looks funky. But now the computer runs almost too cool. And the fridge is keeping the beer cold. Which is what it does best anyway.

[L337 M33P]

I would like to put a PC in a fridge (maybe not mine right away) to see what would happen and how high my overclock will go. I think condensation will not be an issue because components in a PC are ALWAYS warmer than the ambient air (excluding extreme cooling the CPU/NB/GPU). Therefore the only thing with condensation on will be the evaporator and this will in turn dehumidify the air. The only problem is when someone opens the fridge and lots of warm humid air gets sucked into the insides of your PC :eek: crispage

I think that minifridges are pushing it in terms of compressor power, so would a big ish family fridge do the job? Also, to aid the cooling my dad has an old radiator fan that I could put in front of the condenser to aid heat removal, and reduce the stress on the compressor. I can't wait until my parents go on holiday and I can eat the fridge clean :D :D and then put the PC in lol.