My name is Paz Hameiri.
I have built a motor oil cooled PC.
No, I do not have spare time.
No, I do not have cash to spare.
Why I did it ?
Curiosity and fun.
Background
Three years ago I bought a new computer. My old computer made a lot of noise, so I bought a quiet case and power supply.
The case and power supply cost me about 200$ more than a conventional case and power supply. It was worth it - the computer
area became quiet.
6 months later I decided to put my old computer back in use, as one computer wasn't enough for me, my wife and the
kids. It was noisy, but as the old computer wasn't used often, it was bearable.
Lately I noticed that our old computer is used more often, so I've decided to look for solutions to make
it quiet.
My criteria for a solution were:
a. It should be quiet.
b. It should cost up to 100$.
c. It should be safe for children.
d. It should be esthetic.
e. It should be interesting to work on.
Purchasing a new case and power supply was out of the question - It cost too much. Replacing the old fans with better
fans or with passive heat sinks wasn't good enough - It left me with my old power supply, which was noisy. The overall cost
of solutions of this kind was just too high and wasn't so quiet. Water cooling was too expensive, too loud and too scary (Mixing water and
electronics - What if something goes wrong ?).
I liked the idea, but sealing a case with lots of silicon seemed more appalling than appealing. Later on I saw some remarks
over the internet which pointed out that cooking oil get rancid pretty fast. That was literally appalling, so I forgot all
about it.
Lately, when I searched for new ideas, I encountered the work of Puget Systems (
http://www.pugetsystems.com/submerged.php). Their ideas seemed more realistic to me, as they didn't build their own case and they logged their work. The
second part was the most important part - It gave me the confidence that it won't blow up after two weeks.
I only had two problems with their design:
1. They used mineral oil that is given as a laxative to horses ?!
2. Their system cost around 150$ - Too expensive for my goal.
So, I built my own.
Motor Oil Cooled PC
My old computer contained:
a. Intel Pentium III Tualatin CPU 1266MHz.
b. Asus TUSL2-C motherboard.
c. 384MB SDRAM.
d. NVIDIA GeForce 6200 with 256MB RAM.
e. Intel PRO/100+ Network adapter.
f. 5 USB 2.0 ports card.
g. Western Digital 80GB hard drive WD800JB.
h. NEC ND-3500AG DVD Burner.
I started with Puget System's concept - find a case - don't build one.
I bought:
1. A plastic box (Curver's Optima box) - 17$.
2. 20 U.S Quarts (19 liters) of 10W-40 SJ Semi Synthetic motor oil - 60$.
3. A small plastic plate to cover the oil, so I won't get oil waves when I move the box - 5$.
4. Some switches, LEDs, screws and other hardware - 20$.
Total cost: 102$.
I took my old case, saw it at the right places, assembled everything and voilà: