Computer room gets super hot

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GJSNeptune

[H]F Junkie
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Mar 31, 2004
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Do any of you have your computer in a 2nd-floor room that usually reflects the weather? That sounds a bit like an infomercial intro. In the summer it gets really hot, even with air conditioning on. I can't say the room receives all that much of it anyway. The room is hot even before I get home and turn on my computer. I've actually had it reboot due to heat while gaming. I have the blinds blocking 99% of sunlight. Most night I wait until it's dark and put a box fan in my window. That won't help for much longer.

I can't afford a window AC unit, nor would I want the eyesore or electric bill. I also can't afford a standalone unit. Are there any tricks to keeping the room cooler? Or something to help my case?
 
I posted/asked something similar about a month and a half ago. I have the same situation, 2nd story room with windows that receive direct sunlight. I have blinds closed, ceiling fan on, and upstairs AC set at 75 F, but my computer room is consistently 5-10 F hotter than the rest of the upstairs because of the thermonuclear reactor I have in it :)

I did not get any real good suggestions for how to solve this problem, but here are a few of the better suggestions I got (plus some of my own musings).

1. Water cool. The heat generated by the cpu and whatever else you water cool will be transferred to the water and not your room.

2. Run a vent from your exhaust fans to some other place, like outside a window, into a closed closet, somewhere other than directly to your room.

3. Reverse fans so that they suck hot air out of your case vs. blowing ambient air in. The main assumption here is that the ambient air is much cooler than inside your case. Maybe that's not a good assumption for you and it might make more sense to reverse *some* of the fans. Not all, but some. You do need air entering after all. Remember, the coolest air in your room is at the bottom, so maybe suck in from the bottom and blow out the top.

4. Several people suggested I get an Antec P180b. So I did. Haven't received all my components yet, but I did buy the Antec case. We'll see how hot things get.

5. Get an LCD, ditch the CRT (if you have one that is). Again, I have a CRT, I bought an LCD (not here yet), so we'll see how much this helps. But I do know that my CRT is a major heat source.

good luck
 
Replace all lights with high efficiency Daylight CFL's.

Put a small row of 4-5 yate loons running at 7v blowing out your room window... Close the window on top of them (assuming it closes down) and put your blinds down. Works really well.

Under clock that CPU

4000BTU in-window AC's are really cheap. I got a 5200BTU unit that cost me 72$ NIB at Home Depot. If you run it from when you get home, till the end of the day (when night sets in) it shouldn't increase your bill more than a few dollars a month... Switching to CFL's often negates the increased cost of the AC (I switched my entire place to CFL's and I actually SAVE money, even after adding the 5200btu AC). A 2500BTU AC would be enough for a 13x13 room, provided you don't hate the look (as we all do).

Close all the AC vents in your basement, and wherever else you don't really need cold air. My parents house has ALL the vents closed except the top, where the cool air proceeds to flow down to lower levels. It keeps the upper layer about 3c cooler than normal, and you feel a draft of cold air going down the staircase :D

And, no... watercooling won't help with this. The heat eventually hits the room temp anyways :p
 
Hmm. I have an LCD. Well two. And there's only one light. It's incandescent though, and I just put in a 100W bulb 'cause the room isn't really bright enough with a 60W. I suppose I could get a CFL, although it'll be hot even without the light on.

I'll look into closing unnecessary vents. Thanks for the responses.
 
Juardis said:
I did not get any real good suggestions for how to solve this problem, but here are a few of the better suggestions I got (plus some of my own musings).

1. Water cool. The heat generated by the cpu and whatever else you water cool will be transferred to the water and not your room.



5. Get an LCD, ditch the CRT (if you have one that is). Again, I have a CRT, I bought an LCD (not here yet), so we'll see how much this helps. But I do know that my CRT is a major heat source.

good luck
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Uhhhh, that one about water cooling is, well, wrong.:D The heat just goes from your cpu, into the water, and then the water gets cooled by yep, AIR, and thus the heat load STILL ends up in the room. It's simple laws of thermodynamics, you can't get around that without venting the warm air outside the room.


And that CRT is a big old space heater, especially a 19" or bigger....it's like having a 100 watt electric heat sitting in front of you.
 
I've noticed this as well. I have 4 computers in the same room all running 24/7. 2 of them are water cooled and the room is always a good 10 degrees warmer than any other room.
 
Juardis said:
1. Water cool. The heat generated by the cpu and whatever else you water cool will be transferred to the water and not your room.
Click to expand...
yeah, that's crap. do you think that the water just stays cool? it too gets hotter, then it goes through the radiator which transfers to the heat from the water to the air. Your room will probably be hotter because there is better efficiency with the water to air rather than just air.
 
Alright, WC is bad. Leave him be. Are there anymore suggestions?

By the way, if you're going to bold one line in a huge post, just crop the post to that one line.
 
If you want a cheaper version of AC, you can get a tank of water and then set a fan to blow over the surface of it to reduce temperatures a little. Remember to place the water out of direct sunlight though.

Also, don't close the blinds that traps heat within a small confined space and prevents it from circulating around the room. If you want to try and keep heat out, you'd have to apply a thermally reflective coating to the outside of the window.
 
That is about the most ghetto things I have ever heard.

I am in the same situation as the original poster. I have an upstairs office that I run my computer in. I turn it off during the day when I am not home, so the computer isn't causing the temps, its just the fact that its on the 2nd floor and its always about 5f hotter upstairs.

The house is only 6 years old and it has a very nice A/C, but the issue is that the thermometer is on the first floor. We can offset it by setting it about 5 degrees cooler, but then its at 60f and cold enough downstairs that you will need a sweater. I have an Antec 900 with all the fans on low, but the because of the way the case was designed (and, ahem... the big ass fan on top of it) it always matches the temp of the room. I have an enermax multi-point thermometer with lcd/fan controller on it so I always know how hot it is in my rig. I have 4 points on it.. one about 1" away from my cpu cooler, 1 in my hdd bays, one where my videocard is and one sensor that is outside my case (for room temp). 90% of the time, the room temp matches the internal temp. I am not worried about temps with the current system but I am a little worried about my overclocking system thats in the works (e6420 8x337 @ 2.7ghz).



**Cliffnotes**
Upstairs office hosts 2 computers, 2 laptops. All off during the day.
Temp in office is ~8 degrees hotter than downstairs.
Problem is.. if its 65 downstairs its about 73ish upstairs.
Not a problem now, but I worry about my new system (overclocking).
Its an OFFICE, please no ghetto-rig-ups.
 
lloose said:
Problem is.. if its 65 downstairs its about 73ish upstairs.
Not a problem now, but I worry about my new system (overclocking).
.
Click to expand...



73f ????????????? Dude, that's like, alaska, compared to the hot texas summers we have. My AC runs hard to keep my entire house at 75f during the 100f summer, and my computer room runs about 5f hotter than that. I have never had an overheating issue, yeah, it runs hotter than in the winter but man, as long as your temps are 10c under the max safe temp of the cpu, there is absolutely NOTHING to worry about.

IMO people are too anal about temps. Use a good cooler, seat it well with thermal paste, vent your case even half ass,a nd temps will be fine. I have never, ever, "burned" a cpu. Hell, I got a P4 2.4B overclocked to 3ghz in an old shuttle that runs kinda warm, and that thing has been running overclocked like that for 4 years. I sold it to a friend now that uses it in his business and it runs great still.
 
I guess I was just complaining about how warm it is in the room compared to the rest of the house :p
 
TheRapture said:
IMO people are too anal about temps.
Click to expand...

You're right. I shouldn't be so concerned that the hot computer room is making the computer reboot. If only I were you in Texas, I'd be okay it seems. Very glad your temps are good.
 
jcll2002 said:
yeah, that's crap. do you think that the water just stays cool? it too gets hotter, then it goes through the radiator which transfers to the heat from the water to the air. Your room will probably be hotter because there is better efficiency with the water to air rather than just air.
Click to expand...
that wasn't my suggestion, that was someone else's suggestion (to me, couple of months ago, when I asked a similar question). I have no idea the specifics of watercooling, I've never done it. But if you guys say it's crap, then I'll believe you. However, IF the reservoir of water is large enough, then you won't need a radiator because the system won't run long enough to heat it all up. Now that I think of it, the suggestion was to run the water tubes through a tub of water (external pump) and skip the radiator. But again, I have no idea if that's even feasible. Sounds feasible, but I don't know.
 
My room is always the hottest, and even still my computer is off during the day when I'm not home.

I have central AC, and even that doesn't cool my room down right quick.

I just open up a window and put a fan on my desk to blow in the cooler air. Usually that helps.

And for those thinking that LCD screens are not as hot as CRTs, the LCD does get a bit hot. I just felt the back of my Acer 19" and its fairly warm.

As for water-cooling, what about draining a bit of water and putting ice cubes in the reservoir (if so applicable)?
 
JSClark said:
As for water-cooling, what about draining a bit of water and putting ice cubes in the reservoir (if so applicable)?
Click to expand...

MMmm, condensation.

A fan in the window during the day only pushes around the hot air. Airflow might feel a little nicer, but it isn't significant enough for a computer. Most nights it cools down a fair amount and I can put a fan in the window then. Right now I've got the room somewhat cool.

Watercooling can get pretty pricey, and I'd rather save what money I can spare for a new rig someday.

Gonna see about maybe putting an exhaust fan in the attic. Thinking it might at least keep hot air from settling so much. If it helps by even a degree or two, it'll be nice. Haven't checked for useless vents yet. Will do that soon.
 
You either have to reduce the amount of heat the components of the system produce, or remove the heat from the room itself.

You could watercool, and mount the radiator outside the room, that would work. Or underclock the system. Or put a fan in the window.
 
I'd underclock if the computer were the problem, but the room is simply naturally hot due to the house and heat rising.

Plus it's a 3000+ AthlonXP and I need all the speed I can get. :p
 
Heheh, create one GIANT duct from your PC to your window. Flow the fans from the room to outside.

I'd love to see you do that.
 
put a fan at the door pulling air into the room (its on the floor, coolest air is here) as pressure increases in the room from forced airflow air near the ceiling will move out (warmest air) this circulation will spread the heat over the rest of the house and hopefully even out the temperatures. I know you can find quiet floor fans these days, just look around for one.
 
even though your blinds are closed sunlight is hitting them and heating up the room. get some of that stick on vinal window tint stuff, i found it at lowes. it comes on a roll about 2 feet wide, just roll it on the OUTSIDE of the window (if its double paned glass, if its single it doesnt matter much), making sure to clean the window very well first. this cut sunlight entering my room by just under half. best thing is; if you want more light just open the window. you can also get different shades of tint too.
 
there are also tints that reflect infared rays so that there is minmal heat entering through the wondow.
 
I have the same problem, but its not my computer thats getting hot, it's me. =| My normal climate is about 68F, thats what I'm used to anything higher than 70F and I'm burning the f*** up.
 
BrandonB said:
I have the same problem, but its not my computer thats getting hot, it's me. =| My normal climate is about 68F, thats what I'm used to anything higher than 70F and I'm burning the f*** up.
Click to expand...

Well yeah. I get hot as well. More concerned for the computer though. At least I can put on shorts or go downstairs or something.


I'll consider tinting the windows, but I like my blinds down for privacy. Plus sunlight glare reveals dust and I can't stand dust. :D
 
fix the main source of the problem.. you siad your computer is off during the day + yet the room is still hot.. that tells me something else is your problem.

1 - another source of heat - like a lava lamp or an electric baseboard heater that isn't working properly - if you have electric baseboard heat, you should turn it off at the breaker box during the times of year when you don't use it... the thermostats for electric baseboard are notourious for going bad + letting small amounts of electricity flow through the baseboard year round... if it doesn't feel cool when you touch it, that's probably your problem.
2 - room is REALLY well insulated + never lost heat from yesterday. Fix this by adding some airflow to another part of the house. Open the door, or put a vent in it... put in a ceiling fan + run it on low.
3 - Ceiling is poorly insulated or not insulated at all - the heat from the attic is coming down to your room. Add some insulation to the basement floor or add some ventallation to the attic so it doesn't stay so hot up there. This same story can happen with brick exterior and no insulation in the walls.
4 - if you're right at the top of the steps from the first floor - heat rises... it will come up from downstairs... close the door at the bottom of the steps, or if there isn't a door, close off the opening with a blanket for a few days and see if there is a diffrence... if their is, a door is cheap and fairly easy to install.
 
teststrips said:
1 - another source of heat - like a lava lamp or an electric baseboard heater that isn't working properly
Click to expand...

It's the summer, by the way. ;)

Everything is off, save for the ceiling fan set to Low. Furnace in the basement.

teststrips said:
2 - room is REALLY well insulated + never lost heat from yesterday. Fix this by adding some airflow to another part of the house. Open the door, or put a vent in it... put in a ceiling fan + run it on low.
Click to expand...

It isn't that good. It can get pretty cold in the winter. The room is at the front of the house, and one of the closet ends is also the outer wall. I suspect there's a leak in there, but I'm not sure.

teststrips said:
3 - Ceiling is poorly insulated or not insulated at all - the heat from the attic is coming down to your room. Add some insulation to the basement floor or add some ventallation to the attic so it doesn't stay so hot up there. This same story can happen with brick exterior and no insulation in the walls.
Click to expand...

Could be the case, but I've been in the attic (above the rooms) and there's plenty of insulation between the rafters. Of course, the attic is super hot as well. Might try putting a fan up there to help exhaust it.

teststrips said:
4 - if you're right at the top of the steps from the first floor - heat rises... it will come up from downstairs... close the door at the bottom of the steps, or if there isn't a door, close off the opening with a blanket for a few days and see if there is a diffrence... if their is, a door is cheap and fairly easy to install.
Click to expand...

Not a bad idea, although it would have to be a big blanket. The top of the stairs has a banister on one side, so it's more open than just a standard doorway. But yes, the room is right by the stairs. The closet's back wall is the stairway wall. Right now the room is a mess, and there's lots of junk in the closet that's spilling out of it. I don't think I've had the closet doors closed in a long time. Do you think the heat could be coming up the stairs and leaking into the closet, and if it would be better with the doors open or closed? Or does it make no difference?
 
BrandonB said:
I have the same problem, but its not my computer thats getting hot, it's me. =| My normal climate is about 68F, thats what I'm used to anything higher than 70F and I'm burning the f*** up.
Click to expand...

2 degree difference = burning the f*** up?
 
I think for now I'm gonna use the box fan in the window to exhaust during the day, and turn it around if it cools down at night. A major eyesore, but I care more about being comfortable.
 
GJSNeptune said:
I think for now I'm gonna use the box fan in the window to exhaust during the day, and turn it around if it cools down at night. A major eyesore, but I care more about being comfortable.
Click to expand...

The one BIG problem with that is allergies. Though, if you don't have them then you're good as rain.
 
I'm having this same problem. I was thinking of placing the case just below a window on a small platform. Then replacing one of the small panes on the window with a small square of plexi. Cutting a hole in said plexi and connecting one of these, http://www.xoxide.com/logisys-thermal-venting-kit-blue.html, to the plexi on one end, and the CPU vent at the back on the other end making a closed system that would blow the air outside.

Is this impractical? Simply wouldn't work? I actually need the pane replaced as it was shot out with a bouncing bb, so I thought, why not try this.
 
Doing laundry today, I saw something even better than my window idea. A clothes dryer type vent. I put in one for the dryer pretty easily. No reason I couldn't do this again. Same principle as the ducting idea but through the wall instead of window, plus parts are easy to find at any appliance store.
 
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