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Forum: Hardware Chat Room
Thread: Rack for 10 laptops? |
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Thread Status: Active Total posts in this thread: 17
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ericinboston
Senior Cruncher Joined: Jan 12, 2010 Post Count: 258 Status: Offline Project Badges: 
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Hi all. I have 10 laptops running in my basement...each using 50 watts of power.
----------------------------------------Can you recommend an inexpensive rack to hold these laptops (vertically is probably best) so they are not just stacked 5 on top of each other on the floor and/or give better air/heat dispersion? A really cheap way would be for me to buy a slab of cement, stack all 10 on it vertically with the air vents pointing up, and putting some kind of metal or cement dividers to keep them from toppling over. Thanks!  |
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Sgt.Joe
Ace Cruncher USA Joined: Jul 4, 2006 Post Count: 7668 Status: Offline Project Badges: 
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I would look in the bakery items for a cookie sheet rack or pie rack. There are several different styles available. Or check a local restaurant supply company.
----------------------------------------I was thinking about something along the lines of:this Cheers
Sgt. Joe
----------------------------------------*Minnesota Crunchers* [Edit 1 times, last edit by Sgt.Joe at Dec 23, 2017 9:48:54 PM] |
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flynryan
Senior Cruncher United States Joined: Aug 15, 2006 Post Count: 235 Status: Offline Project Badges:
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KLiK
Master Cruncher Croatia Joined: Nov 13, 2006 Post Count: 3108 Status: Offline Project Badges: 
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Hi all. I have 10 laptops running in my basement...each using 50 watts of power. Can you recommend an inexpensive rack to hold these laptops (vertically is probably best) so they are not just stacked 5 on top of each other on the floor and/or give better air/heat dispersion? A really cheap way would be for me to buy a slab of cement, stack all 10 on it vertically with the air vents pointing up, and putting some kind of metal or cement dividers to keep them from toppling over. Thanks! There are laptops:  & there are laptops: & there are their weight. So which one do you use? & how much room you can occupy in basement?  |
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Former Member
Cruncher Joined: May 22, 2018 Post Count: 0 Status: Offline |
I thought something like this:
https://smile.amazon.com/Seville-Classics-Kit...id=1514115054&sr=8-11 but on a larger size. More details would be needed though, such as the size and thickness of the laptops with the lids closed. Another thing to look into for cooling them, is some laptops have removable pieces on the bottom for access to changing out (hdd, ram, etc.) I have a laptop that has one large bottom cover that allows for more airflow to the ram, hdd,and even the cpu heatsink. Keeps the cpu fan from having to do as much work. |
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ericinboston
Senior Cruncher Joined: Jan 12, 2010 Post Count: 258 Status: Offline Project Badges:
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Yes I forgot to include the basic specs of my laptops...they are all Lenovo t450 machines which are quite light and use only 50 watts each. He vents are only on one side so I could stack them vertically. I like the Walmart rack but it seems a bit large. I didn't think about the cooking sheet idea which is great.
----------------------------------------I will probably come up with a combo idea of a smaller Walmart rack and a bunch of cookie sheets. Hopefully the rack can be no taller than 5 feet. Happy holidays to all! |
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ericinboston
Senior Cruncher Joined: Jan 12, 2010 Post Count: 258 Status: Offline Project Badges:
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Yes that ebay rack is exactly what I had in mind...except laid on its side. I will try one of these too as I could use the Walmart rack for future desktops which are the Lenovo m710 small form factor
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KLiK
Master Cruncher Croatia Joined: Nov 13, 2006 Post Count: 3108 Status: Offline Project Badges:
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Yes I forgot to include the basic specs of my laptops...they are all Lenovo t450 machines which are quite light and use only 50 watts each. He vents are only on one side so I could stack them vertically. I like the Walmart rack but it seems a bit large. I didn't think about the cooking sheet idea which is great. I will probably come up with a combo idea of a smaller Walmart rack and a bunch of cookie sheets. Hopefully the rack can be no taller than 5 feet. Happy holidays to all! So, when you do something in 10 pieces, it's never light. As each laptop is 1,6kg, so total of all laptops is 16kg. Not including the chargers. You roughly need a stand that will hold at least 25kg. Also, when you connect your laptops of 50Wh, they'll consume 500Wh. As you have 110V in USA. So you'll likely need at least 6A of current. To be safe, put them on 10A with wires design to have that amount of amperage. Also, will they be opened? How much square meters you have? How high can you get in basement?  |
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ericinboston
Senior Cruncher Joined: Jan 12, 2010 Post Count: 258 Status: Offline Project Badges:
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well, a few answers Klik:
----------------------------------------1)We have a 1400 sq ft basement...but it was finished a few years ago...so I keep these in 10x12 ft. rooms that are on the outside wall (and hence colder) and do not have duct work. Basement ceiling is 8 feet. Typical temp on any given winter day is 63F. Typical summer is 69F. We never utilize the heat or A/C because it's just so perfect (at least for me!). Even with the 10 laptops going in the 10x12 room, the room temp doesn't budge. 2)Each room in the basement is on its own circuit...the 2 rooms I am using are 20amps each...so 20amps x 110volts=2200watts. Typically you plan for 80% power utilization so .8 x 2200=1760watts I can run on a single 20amp circuit. Each laptop is 50 watts so that would be 35.2 laptops max, but I would run far less...probably 20 laptops at most...probably 5-10 per wall outlet...all laptops plugged into a decent power strip/surge suppressor (not UPS). The laptop power adapters are quite long...about 8 feet I think. 3)I actually just started leaving the 10 laptops on their sides, opened...far better than stacking them 4-5 per stack. Each laptop is about 4 pounds max. 4)The laptop batteries are quite good...I can run BOINC 100% for 1.5 hours...or have BOINC stop crunching when on battery and the battery will last 4.5+ hours. Our power can sometimes go out for 3 hours 1-2 days a year so I just let BOINC run 24x7 even on battery. [Edit 2 times, last edit by ericinboston at Dec 26, 2017 2:26:56 AM] |
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flynryan
Senior Cruncher United States Joined: Aug 15, 2006 Post Count: 235 Status: Offline Project Badges:
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Eric,
What is your opinion on having to manage 10-20 operating systems and boinc installations at the same time? Keep in mind if you need to upgrade or install something, you have to do it times 10 or 20. As a reason I personally try to get systems with the highest core counts, such as multi processor systems, each processor having 10-20 cores, all with just one operating system to manage. As for backup power, you can always get a UPS. Also be aware that the batteries on laptops that are running 24/7 at load will degrade quickly due to being charged to 100% most of the time, as well as the heat generated. These 2 factors kill batteries the fastest. Not trying to discourage, just running it by you. If you are getting the laptops for cheap or free then I suppose its worth it. |
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