Venting heat from a network closet to a chimney

C

Cyberrad

Limp Gawd
Joined
Sep 12, 2008
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I am in the process of turning an old boiler room into a network closet. I have a chimney port that I want to use to vent out the heat from the switches and servers.
Has anyone done this?
Do I need to worry about chimney pressure? There is nothing else using this chimney.
What about heat from the outside? Will it soak in?

I am going to have it cleaned and capped with a wire mesh style cap.
 
I don't have any experience to help. But it's an interesting idea. You should do a follow up post with results for whatever you do.
 
You generally want your server or network room to be at a higher pressure than the rooms around it. With the scenario you have described, all the dust and bad air around this room are going to be sucked into it. You'll be turning your equipment into very expensive air filters.
 
I try to seal server rooms the best they can be, didicated AC unit that can monitor humidity.

If you wanted, you could use the old vent duct as a fresh air inlet for a AC unit
 
I was planning to have a filtered intake on the door and exhaust the heat out of the chimney. Not as optimal as having a data center but it should do the trick. As soon as everything is done I will definitely let you guys know.
 
I'd also a good filter mesh or something to keep bugs, insects, etc from getting in from the exaust side.
 
Panasonic makes some nice HVAC fan units that are quiet and push a nice amount of air. I set one of these up in my boss's new home entertainment center to help keep everything cool.
 
DON'T EVER USE THE CHIMNEY AS AN INTAKE, unless it's 100% clean (ie. never used). Take a sniff in there just for fun, and see if you want to use it as an air intake.

Outdoor pressure can cause problems, if there's enough wind, it might push against the output fan, unless you use a back-pressure trap, in which case, the air output will be blocked. Also check for rain, it can come in.

You should use a good bathroom fan with a wall exhaust to pull out the air. Since you can't really rely on convection, the fan power required to push the air out of there effectively would be too high IMO.
 
DragonMaster said:
DON'T EVER USE THE CHIMNEY AS AN INTAKE, unless it's 100% clean (ie. never used). Take a sniff in there just for fun, and see if you want to use it as an air intake.

Outdoor pressure can cause problems, if there's enough wind, it might push against the output fan, unless you use a back-pressure trap, in which case, the air output will be blocked. Also check for rain, it can come in.

You should use a good bathroom fan with a wall exhaust to pull out the air. Since you can't really rely on convection, the fan power required to push the air out of there effectively would be too high IMO.
Click to expand...

he said exaust. I said to use a filter to keep critters out.
 
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