My AC in Server Cabinet Project

[MountainDew]

Cut to the good stuff. Link is here for pics on the cabinet

I got a heck of a deal on an APC Netshelter on Craiglist ($100). This also included an APC 3000XL and a battery pack for it AND two ShareUPS units.

My cabinet will be in my garage (I can already hear the screams of disdain) and I didn't want an air conditioner outside the cabinet since the thermostat is on the unit itself; making it useless for my project. And even if I could MacGyver something to make it work while its outside, it would take up more space in the garage. And space in the garage is precious.

I found a TrippLite AC unit on CL for $350. Since it doesn't require a drain for condensation, this was the best solution for my project.

I realize I have limited my expansion capabilities. But frankly, with what little I do, it works for me. And the hardware is more than what I'll ever need so I'm good with my setup. I also have a Precision T5500 with 2 xeons and 72GB of ram so even if expansion was required, I'm ready for it.

I have a second thermostat that is about 5 degrees cooler than the Lux thermostat. They are both positioned on the computer (not at the time when I was taking pics). Maybe the Lux is abosrbing the heat coming off the case? I should try to suspend it and see if the variance is still there. 5 degrees isn't all that much to worry about though.

Hopefully this will help as I've seen others come up with cool AC like projects.

Update 5/19: I'm now using the external thermostat on the cabinet fans. The weather is low 70s and the AC won't kick on since the threshold won't be met. The cabinet fans pull 60 watts so now, they'll only kick on when the temp hits 85 in the cabinet. In the next month, I may buy a second thermostat to control the cabinet fans.

Hardware:

• Lenovo TD340 with 32GB ram, 2x 8-core/16Thread CPUs, 8x2TB drives, Nvidia GTX9xx (can't remember) running Windows 10. I have VMware Workstation on it and within a VM is ESXi. Yes, again, the screams can be heard. I did this since this is my Plex Server and Theater so I can watch whatever while I'm in the garage.
  • I did have to take the feet off the tower to fit inside the rails.
• Navepoint adjustable rack rails (2 pairs. 1 for the AC; the other for the tower).
• Lenovo SA120 with 12x2TB
• CISCO Gigabit Switch.
• Lux WIN100 external thermostat. This is rated for 15amps; the AC is maxed at 12. There were other thermostats that might have worked better but their amp rating was less than 12 amps. So maybe they aren't better after all!
• AcuRite 00613A1 Indoor Humidity Monitor (second thermostat. It's magnetic!)

 

[MountainDew]

Dang man! You are hardcore to the max! I like that!

Thanks. This equipment is either too loud or produces too much hit for the office. The TD340 will kick the fans to high rpms if you install aftermarket hardware since 'it can't detect the component's temperature so we'll ramp up all fans to make sure it doesn't overheat.' Great in theory but Lenovo won't give you any control on the fan speeds. And I didn't feel like buying an expensive pwm fan controller. the $30 one I bought helped moderately but it was still audible while I sat in the living room.

The DAS is ridiculous but you can control the fan speeds on it. Unfortunately, it doesn't remember the setting if power is lost so it'll ramp back up to full speed. But it doesn't matter too much now that it's in the cabinet.

I honestly don't know how often my AC will kick on during the summer but I wanted to make sure my systems won't overheat and I didn't have to deal with noise.

What would be nice is if I could find a big exhaust fan to replace the four small ones at the top of the cabinet. That way, more air is moved with less effort (and less power). I was in Tier 3 for my electric bill this past month.

 

[Awesomesauce]

AC use lots of electricity if your room temp is not controlled. Have you thought of building a ducting system first? This way the rack air is completely separated from the room air.

 

[MountainDew]

AC use lots of electricity if your room temp is not controlled. Have you thought of building a ducting system first? This way the rack air is completely separated from the room air.

The cabinet is pretty close to the exhaust tube for the dryer. Once I know the cabinet is staying at its location, I could connect it to the dryer exhaust.

 

[cesmith9999]

The cabinet is pretty close to the exhaust tube for the dryer. Once I know the cabinet is staying at its location, I could connect it to the dryer exhaust.

Doing this is against building codes, which requires a separate exaust for all dryer vents.

now if you want to punch a separate hole if your exterior wall... and make it look like a 2nd dryer vent. that would work.

Chris

 

[MountainDew]

Doing this is against building codes, which requires a separate exaust for all dryer vents.

now if you want to punch a separate hole if your exterior wall... and make it look like a 2nd dryer vent. that would work.

Chris

My garage has vents at the bottom of the walls so I could get the exhaust vented out that way. I'm just wondering if it's worth the effort; especially on the days where the ambient temperature is close to the temperature of the vented air. Since the weather has been moderately cool, the AC isn't plugged in at the moment; only the exhaust fans at the top of the cabinet. And those only turn on when it gets to 90 degrees F inside the cabinet.