Cooling cabinet for PC, comms, NAS, consoles, & sat receiver etc?

[dusf]

The workspace:

 

The space for the cabinet measures 45cm W x 75cm D x 2.5M H. As we live in a one storey bungalow, above the ceiling there is the attic, in case anyone wants to suggest I vent there, which is something I would consider. 4" trunking will be in the back left corner for all of the network, satellite, and speaker cable etc. There is also a small hole in the stud wall which provides access to a 2" pipe running to where the TV will be mounted on the stud wall, visible where the other hole is with the earth cable hanging out for fishing cable through later.

I picked up 12 of the following at IKEA which I think should serve well for shelves allowing airflow:



Three of these side by side measure slightly more than 45cm x 75cm so I am just going to cut them to size with a hacksaw. The carpenter is building the cabinet, supports for shelves on either wall, and leaving cut-outs for vents above and below the cabinet door.

Initially I had thought about having either the exhaust or exhaust and intake venting into the attic, ducting etc where required, but then I realised that I probably will not get this cabinet 100% air tight and I do not want to lose heat from our newly insulated living room into the attic. An advantage to using the attic is that the door of the cabinet would go from floor to ceiling without the vents (and possibly the fans behind them) visible, and it would also keep sound down, if that could be an issue. I figured with the intake and exhaust vents on the front of the cabinet facing the room this would negate that. Please let me know if this is something I should reconsider, in fact, if there is any part of this project you would do differently let me know, that is why I am posting here!

Although things would be much easier if I could buy from a local provider, as it would allow the carpenter build them into the cabinet, what is available does not seem to suit, and this is the same across different stores:



Considering I am planning to put in three 120mm fans side by side none of them are 360mm wide, and two of the vents would be too wide for the cabinet. Even if they were the right size, none of them look like they would let enough air through for a cabinet containing a future overlocking PC, along with everything else mentioned?

More info on local provider vents here: http://www.woodiesdiy.com/action/searchsite/vent

A local ventilation company have told me they can make the following vents within a week for any size for €16 each, and I was going to ask for two, 360mm x 120mm:



There is a stabilizer/dampener behind that vent that is apparently for when it is placed in a door, and mine will come without that.

http://www.irishvent.ie/docs/grilles-1/double-deflection-grilles-(dd).pdf?sfvrsn=2

For the fan system I was going to order the following:

Phobya - 230V to 12V Power Adapter - Molex 4-pin Socket
CG Thermal Fan Controller (Rev. 4)
Noctua NF-F12 PWM
3 pin Y connector

I was going to ask the carpenter to make the cutouts in the pieces of wood, above and below the the cabinet door, deep enough for not only the vent but also the fans themselves, or would I be better securing the fans to the wood (that the vent is in) with a plate that is meant for three fans? The only ones I can find are part of expensive kits like:

Coolerguys Cabcool1203 Three 120mm Fan Cooling Kit

For the shelves I was to use the very top one for a future overlocked tower case PC, and set it 75cm below the ceiling for that purpose. I actually have a beautiful Fractal Design Node 605 HTPC case which I had thought I could re-use in this cabinet, if I bought a new case for my main PC, but it is just not going to fit. The lowest shelf is going just above the height of the lower vent and fans. I was then going to split the remaining space for the last two middle shelves. It seems like 45cm around the width of a Cisco/HP 24P PoE managed switch, and with those venting out their sides, I will have to mount that to a wall on its side. There will be a future NAS going in somewhere, the modem, some consoles, satellite receiver etc.

Would having three 120mm fans behind both the upper and lower vents be overkill? I ask as someone from the ventilation company said I probably only need to put fans in the upper exhaust vent as air will come in from the lower naturally.

[d3sl91]

The workspace:

 

The space for the cabinet measures 45cm W x 75cm D x 2.5M H. As we live in a one storey bungalow, above the ceiling there is the attic, in case anyone wants to suggest I vent there, which is something I would consider. 4" trunking will be in the back left corner for all of the network, satellite, and speaker cable etc. There is also a small hole in the stud wall which provides access to a 2" pipe running to where the TV will be mounted on the stud wall, visible where the other hole is with the earth cable hanging out for fishing cable through later.

I picked up 12 of the following at IKEA which I think should serve well for shelves allowing airflow:

Three of these side by side measure slightly more than 45cm x 75cm so I am just going to cut them to size with a hacksaw. The carpenter is building the cabinet, supports for shelves on either wall, and leaving cut-outs for vents above and below the cabinet door.

Initially I had thought about having either the exhaust or exhaust and intake venting into the attic, ducting etc where required, but then I realised that I probably will not get this cabinet 100% air tight and I do not want to lose heat from our newly insulated living room into the attic. An advantage to using the attic is that the door of the cabinet would go from floor to ceiling without the vents (and possibly the fans behind them) visible, and it would also keep sound down, if that could be an issue. I figured with the intake and exhaust vents on the front of the cabinet facing the room this would negate that. Please let me know if this is something I should reconsider, in fact, if there is any part of this project you would do differently let me know, that is why I am posting here!

Although things would be much easier if I could buy from a local provider, as it would allow the carpenter build them into the cabinet, what is available does not seem to suit, and this is the same across different stores:

Considering I am planning to put in three 120mm fans side by side none of them are 360mm wide, and two of the vents would be too wide for the cabinet. Even if they were the right size, none of them look like they would let enough air through for a cabinet containing a future overlocking PC, along with everything else mentioned?

More info on local provider vents here: http://www.woodiesdiy.com/action/searchsite/vent

A local ventilation company have told me they can make the following vents within a week for any size for €16 each, and I was going to ask for two, 360mm x 120mm:

There is a stabilizer/dampener behind that vent that is apparently for when it is placed in a door, and mine will come without that.

http://www.irishvent.ie/docs/grilles-1/double-deflection-grilles-(dd).pdf?sfvrsn=2

For the fan system I was going to order the following:

Phobya - 230V to 12V Power Adapter - Molex 4-pin Socket

CG Thermal Fan Controller (Rev. 4)

Noctua NF-F12 PWM

3 pin Y connector

I was going to ask the carpenter to make the cutouts in the pieces of wood, above and below the the cabinet door, deep enough for not only the vent but also the fans themselves, or would I be better securing the fans to the wood (that the vent is in) with a plate that is meant for three fans? The only ones I can find are part of expensive kits like:

Coolerguys Cabcool1203 Three 120mm Fan Cooling Kit

For the shelves I was to use the very top one for a future overlocked tower case PC, and set it 75cm below the ceiling for that purpose. I actually have a beautiful Fractal Design Node 605 HTPC case which I had thought I could re-use in this cabinet, if I bought a new case for my main PC, but it is just not going to fit. The lowest shelf is going just above the height of the lower vent and fans. I was then going to split the remaining space for the last two middle shelves. It seems like 45cm around the width of a Cisco/HP 24P PoE managed switch, and with those venting out their sides, I will have to mount that to a wall on its side. There will be a future NAS going in somewhere, the modem, some consoles, satellite receiver etc.

Would having three 120mm fans behind both the upper and lower vents be overkill? I ask as someone from the ventilation company said I probably only need to put fans in the upper exhaust vent as air will come in from the lower naturally.

Eh not overkill, but you could try for exhaist for now up top. 

 

Possibly take a look at what is common for actual component racks in server envorunments. 

 

Followed, because this looks like a cool project, please post more as you continue!

[W-L]

-SNIP-

 

One thing for sure is I would place a removable filter on any intake vents or fans to prevent dust infiltration. It could be possible to have the fans as intakes with dust filters and make vents as exhaust whereby it has positive pressure to help slightly with dust.

 

We have that exact metal rack from Ikea for pots and pans

[rjfaber91]

As a student of architecture I can't say I'm entirely impressed with a house that combines an insulated sitting room with an uninsulated attic, but that's not really relevant...

 

Personally I'd go for three intake fans and three exhaust fans, because throwing away heat by sending it to the attic does indeed seem a terrible waste. I'd go with the intake near the floor and the exhaust near the ceiling to prevent unintentional recirculation, bearing in mind to stick some dust filters on the intake fans, and I suppose you could always take a leaf out of the book of computer case manufacturers and adapt something like this for your cabinet:

 

 

That entire square thing at the bottom is an air intake, but they've stuck a big chunk of plastic in the middle, leaving only the edges to actually be visible, and I reckon you could do something similar in wood. If you're willing to play with depth you could even theoretically cover the entire air intake with wood and lead the air around the sides, but you'd have to ask your carpenter what he'd make of such a solution.

 

Anyway, I'm quite interested in this little project, and I'd like to see some pictures once it's done.

[X_Rated_Box]

going to be interesting subbed

[dusf]

The guy from the vent company got back to me and confirmed he was recommending the double deflection grille:

 

 

rather than the eggcrate grill:

 

 

He said that although the eggcrate has allows for slightly more air through, he thinks in a living room the double deflection would look much better. The cutout depth required for both is 28mm, and with fans on the back I think 60mm is a safe depth - whether or not I get exactly this from the carpenter is a different story, they are due to finish all of their work tomorrow.

 

So I am hoping you guys can give me your thoughts on the following. I have asked the carpenter to call me before building the cabinet, that should come tomorrow but I know he is coming back briefly next week to fit a floor so he might do it then also. Basically I would appreciate quick advice! I am in Ireland so it is 23:24 now and we could get a call as early as 08:00 :

 

1. Initially the plan was to put a wooden panel above the skirting, or in place of that skirting, and then putting the intake vent in that panel. The cabinet door would then begin above that, with a wooden panel above the door just below the ceiling for the exhaust vent.

 

We have been toying with two other ideas:

 

2. Putting the lower vent, which is the intake, in the actual skirting itself although I have conern that there is a slight incline on the skirting - it is not a square straight line - this is not visible in the picture but would be if I took a picture of skirting in my hand from the side. If the vent goes in the skirting, is there some recommended sealant, for part of the vent which will not be as flush silicone maybe? Maybe something that looks like wood or could be painted...

 

OR

 

3. Leaving the skirting where it is and starting the door immediately above it, and having the door run all the way to the ceiling, no panel above or below door for vents. Then, the vents could be mounted in the door, top and bottom. I should be able to still power any fans with need cable management. My concern with this is that the vent and fans would not be as stable as they would in wooden panels, or one in the bottom skirting and one in the wooden panel top. Also, the double deflection grille vent above usually comes with a 'dampener' which I understand is for stabilising them if placed in doors. This would add depth.... but maybe the egg crate grill looks better anyway!

 

Eh not overkill, but you could try for exhaist for now up top. 

 

Possibly take a look at what is common for actual component racks in server envorunments. 

 

Followed, because this looks like a cool project, please post more as you continue!

 

Cool, good suggestion. The way I am planning to set it up if I just put fans on the exhaust on top I will later be able to retrofit fans for intake. I am hoping it works out a cool project in the end! We are back to the house on Saturday to move back in so I will upload some more pics then, hopefully more will have been done - a lot of things up in the air at the moment. Whether or not the carpenter gets it finished before they finish tomorrow afternoon, that space is going to be the media comms cabinet, even if we have to employ another carpenter later or if I have to do it myself!

 

One thing for sure is I would place a removable filter on any intake vents or fans to prevent dust infiltration. It could be possible to have the fans as intakes with dust filters and make vents as exhaust whereby it has positive pressure to help slightly with dust.

 

We have that exact metal rack from Ikea for pots and pans

 

Thanks for the suggestion, something I was considering already. I should be able to fit filters to the fans just like in a PC case.

 

Putting the fans as intakes is the opposite of what I was considering, if going with just fans in one of the two vents. Is there any best practice if just using fans on one or the other, or do I just experiment and see what works best? What about fans on top exhaust without dust filters, and just filters over the vent on the bottom?

 

I was so pleased when I found them in Ikea! I had been to seveal different hardware stores, finding things like BBQ grills that would be perfect but the wrong size, much too much the wrong size, as above three of these side by side don't quite fit, but they almost do so not too much modding, and they are much, much stronger than BBQ/oven grills!

 

As a student of architecture I can't say I'm entirely impressed with a house that combines an insulated sitting room with an uninsulated attic, but that's not really relevant...

 

Personally I'd go for three intake fans and three exhaust fans, because throwing away heat by sending it to the attic does indeed seem a terrible waste. I'd go with the intake near the floor and the exhaust near the ceiling to prevent unintentional recirculation, bearing in mind to stick some dust filters on the intake fans, and I suppose you could always take a leaf out of the book of computer case manufacturers and adapt something like this for your cabinet:

 

 

That entire square thing at the bottom is an air intake, but they've stuck a big chunk of plastic in the middle, leaving only the edges to actually be visible, and I reckon you could do something similar in wood. If you're willing to play with depth you could even theoretically cover the entire air intake with wood and lead the air around the sides, but you'd have to ask your carpenter what he'd make of such a solution.

 

Anyway, I'm quite interested in this little project, and I'd like to see some pictures once it's done.

 

Archiutecture student, rest assured the entire exterior of the house is insulated, all of the walls, and all of the attic, new part of house and the old I would just not let that put me off enting into the attic, is there some reason I have not thought of why I should, dust maybe?

 

I like your PC case inspired suggestion, it would look well, but I am really just not going to get this from the carpenter we have, we are 3 months into the build and trying to wrap things up. I could always hire another carpenter in future, but to be honest I think the vents I have posted above look kind of cool, no?

 

going to be interesting subbed

 

Hopefully in a good way!

[dusf]

Work not started on cabinet yet so still very much open to input!

[W-L]

Work not started on cabinet yet so still very much open to input!

 

Just an idea but you could design the cabinet in a way where the vents are hidden or unseen by making use of the space between the toe kick or baseboard and the slight overhang of the cabinet to bring in fresh air. With that method the baseboard would need to be recessed a bit so the cabinet sits flush with the wall on the right.

 

http://homeunik.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/good-building-outdoor-kitchen-cabinets-with-can-be-customized-to-any-width-standard-height-is-34-1-2.jpg