Pc in a cupboard - stupid idea?

Luggs

Luggs

Luggs

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So... since the mobo in my previous pc melted and I upgraded to a new pc in a HAF X case to try and stop the melting thing happening again, the wife is not happy about the amount of space my pc is taking up on the desk.

To get a quiet life, I was thinking of putting it in a cupboard and fitting a sliding shelf for mouse and keyboard. The dimensions are approx. 88cm wide / 78cm high / 57cm deep. HAF X case is 23cm wide / 60cm high / 60cm deep (allowing for cabling).

Am I asking for trouble putting a pc in a cupboard in an already hot room? If I put the pc sideways against the back wall (fan intake on the outside) it will fit ok. Guess I will have about 15cm clearance for the rear exhaust fan and about 18cm for the top exhaust fan...

Ambient room temps are around 20/21 degrees, rising to mid 20's after pc has been on for a couple of hours. In summer time it can get even hotter.

Will the cupboard turn into an oven? Are there recommended minimum clearances for exhaust fans? Any suggestions on what I can do? Desk fan blowing cold air in / warm air out? Add extra fans / change airflow direction?

I would like a quiet like with the missus, but obviously not at the extent of damage to my gaming rig ;)
 
Luggs said:
So... since the mobo in my previous pc melted and I upgraded to a new pc in a HAF X case to try and stop the melting thing happening again, the wife is not happy about the amount of space my pc is taking up on the desk.

To get a quiet life, I was thinking of putting it in a cupboard and fitting a sliding shelf for mouse and keyboard. The dimensions are approx. 88cm wide / 78cm high / 57cm deep. HAF X case is 23cm wide / 60cm high / 60cm deep (allowing for cabling).

Am I asking for trouble putting a pc in a cupboard in an already hot room? If I put the pc sideways against the back wall (fan intake on the outside) it will fit ok. Guess I will have about 15cm clearance for the rear exhaust fan and about 18cm for the top exhaust fan...

Ambient room temps are around 20/21 degrees, rising to mid 20's after pc has been on for a couple of hours. In summer time it can get even hotter.

Will the cupboard turn into an oven? Are there recommended minimum clearances for exhaust fans? Any suggestions on what I can do? Desk fan blowing cold air in / warm air out? Add extra fans / change airflow direction?

I would like a quiet like with the missus, but obviously not at the extent of damage to my gaming rig ;)
Click to expand...

That is quite a tricky position.

Assuming your cupboard is made of wood or worse, plastic, you will need really good ventilation to cool down your PC.

Will you have any ventilation holes on the cupboard?

And also, seems like you will need some fairly high flow fans like Corsair AF or Noctua S series (not sure about this one) to keep your cupboard nicely ventilated
 
It's a bit odd that she is complaining that a PC is "taking up too much space" especially with it being on a desk. Where is the desk, and what else is on it, and what does she need to put there that she can't because the PC is taking up too much space?

Additionally, it seems a bit odd that she'd happily see you using your PC out of a cupboard, and not at a comfortable desk.
 
LOL @ vanandjuanunited - it would cost more than the PC is worth...

deFiniLoGy - It is wood, no ventilation at the moment. Guess I could cut holes and stick fans in but not ideal from a cosmetic perspective. I'll probably get moaned at more for cutting holes in cupboard...

spoffle - Well wife works from home during day time and I get office evenings & weekend for gaming, so guess its a time-share desk. It isn't huge to start with and is part of the built in furniture that includes the cupboard too, so cant even buy a bigger desk...

Just looking at options really and wondered if it could work.

Thanks for replies though!
 
You will need to ventilate the cabinet as good or better than your computer case.. because in effect that is what it is.. a case within a case. :D
 
Just explain that you will be at high risk of a house fire if you put it in the cupboard! Particuartly as your last MB melted (assuming it was heat related?) and you needed the bigger case as a result, putting it in the cupboard will negate the benefits of the larger (and better ventilated case), putting you back where you started - ie. with the risk of melting another motherboard... and of course if that were to catch fire, having it housed in a wooden box is probably going to increase the risk of a house fire!
 
Get a micro atx case etc because im right in assuming you will still have the desk but want to limit the space the pc takes up on it
The silverstone ft03 although tall it as a small foot print so takes up no more space then say a larger mouse mat
Or even coolermaster elite 120 etc
 
dholdi - no, internal wall :(

doyll - ok, this is starting to sound too much trouble then. I will need to have both the double doors fully open to pull the sliding keyboard shelf out - so it will be fully open to the full dimensions of the cupboard.

Kieran - I'll see if I can grab a quick pic later and upload.

Steviepunk - that's one option I guess lol I do have noise cancelling headphones, so it maybe easier just to put them on ;) But yes, we built new house and went mad on insulation. I had a cr@ppy old case with bad cooling and during the hot summer last year it just melted... Do not want a repeat of that.

andy_taximan - yup, wc could well be an option as well, but total novice at it...

Well thanks for confirming it probably is a stupid idea. I can put it on the floor next to desk if the complaining continues but am worried about it getting battered by the kids and also picking up lots of dust (new houses are incredibly dusty for a while).

Thanks for your time in replying!
 
dacads - great minds think alike :) just mentioned that above whilst you were posting :)

abbotsmike - super insulated new house + the hot summer last year (30+ degrees) + poor cooling performance case (themaltake shark) = cooked mobo... at least that was what a more technically savvy friend of mine informed me.

shatpank81 - I really love some of the smaller cases and would have gone with one instead of the giant HAF X if not for previous experience of overheating PC. I just picked case with best air cooling performance (bit-tech ratings). Sadly I am not confident enough to do wc myself so had to stick with air...
 
you could build a vent in the cupboard to the pc. if you can dispel the hot air from the graphics card externally of the cupboard then there should not be an issue.

I had a PC in cupboard once and it litterly was an oven so I cut a vent hole in the cupboard and fed a tube ( like the ones on the back of a tumble dryer ) from the outside of my case at the graphic card and fed it to the vent hole I create. Put a nice fan grill on there so that it was too noticeable and everything was fine. The cpu was about 3oC hotter than what it was outside the cupboard which was acceptable.
 
Thanks IceWind, I think that will be the easiest option if I do need to move it. A single 120mm hole with a nice fan grill wouldn't be too noticeable. That is still quite a jump in temps though... Another hot summer and I could be in trouble again...

Cheers for the suggestion!
 
I suspect your burnt motherboard was more to do with a fault than temperatures. PC's are pretty good at shutting down before they do any damage to themselves. I'd also say you want two holes in an enclosed cupboard, one in, one out. Intake nice and low (preferably near the front intake of the case) and outlet nice and high (again near the hot outlet of the case)

You might even find that you don't need to put a fan in and simple convection will keep enough air moving.
 
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