Beginners Guide to Pelts

[K404]

Peltiers then: make use of the Peltier effect. Also called thermo-electric coolers. A current is passed between 2 dissimilar metals, and one side gets very cold, and the other side gets very hot. The hot side needs to be well cooled, else the heat will kill the peltier. If the hot side is not cooled well enough, the cold side will not become as cold as it could be. A lot of people use them between CPU/GPU waterblocks and the core. The surrounding area (for a mid-high powered pelt) will need to be insulated- cold often means sub-zero.

Because of the nature of the peltier effect, a separate PSU is often needed to power the pelt and component life can be very random- if a pelt fails while you arent at the computer, bad things can happen.

Update: Power requirements. I`ll not bothered with sub-110W pelts because we are extreme (!). Assuming 12V peltiers, and no losses, the current requirements are:

110W: 9.16A

180W: 15A

226W: 18.83A

320W: 26.66A

All these currents are maximum. Peltiers will work on a lower voltage with a lower current requirement.

Yup...thats one hell of a power requirement at the top end! IMHO, its best to get a separate PSU to deal with a pelt- the Meanwell series has the plugs to connect more than one (depending on Wattage) but is expensive. Modular PSUs are a more versatile and, maybe more importantly, cheaper way to power a pelt. The extra cables can be removed, thus keeping the case looking reasonably tidy. I wont list good and bad PSUs for the job, but search by 12V rail. Split rail PSUs will only work with the lower powered TECs- and if going for a split-rail PSU, check how the power is split.

Once the 2nd PSU has been chosen, it needs to wired up to start at the same time as the primary PSU.

See here:



OR

Kenny

I`ll update this in the next day or two to include more info.

Thanks Mav for stickying this!

 

[maverik-sg1]

Brilliant

Nice one Kenny mate - informative and easy to understand, even for me.

Guys take the opportunity to post your pelt experiences here - The Good, The Bad, The very Ugly and the absolutely outrageous!!

Stickied for reference.

Mav

 

[equilibrium]

Hey Mav thanks for doing that only saw your note a moment ago Good idea as im sure theres alot of others like me whom have never experienced peltiers and would like the info! And thanks Kenny good info!

Dave

 

[stocky]

The bad things that can happen...

First off, the peltier units can draw A LOT of current, we are talking Amps. Your usual PSU cables aren't really up to it, especially the dodgey molex connections, hence things can get quite hot as they act as a resistor:

I smelt this one before it got too bad, but if not - you can only imagine the possible damage...

You will find that one side of the peltier gets cold, make sure you KNOW which one it is, I have heard that people have got it the wrong way up in the setup - thus cooling your water loop and toasting the CPU (which will all happen too quickly for you to realise)

Even when you do get the peltier the correct way up, you are relying on your water setup to cool it. I experienced a pump failure once, so the water in the loop stopped moving. I was unaware of this, until it was too late. The water above the Peltier (in the water block) must have exceeded boiling temperature and got so hot the water pipes melted and ripped apart, blasting water everywhere! Not a good experience.

Here is a photo of a nice couple together:

Anyway, when they do work, they can work very well. It is always worth using that maths equation to figure out the TEC you will need to use and what temperature you will achieve (Kenny that is really worth digging up ). I personally think stick them to graphics cards, then put the CPU under phase. You CAN run a 24hr system with that setup, just make sure you have a reliable water cooling setup, and/ or some kind of automatic fail-safe setup.

Just thought I should write a longish post, as my posts have been unusually short to recent...

 

[Phil Stanbridge]

Very helpful Stocky thanks very much - I think it would be good to add a few piccies to this thread as well - especially how to deal with the ant-condensation proofing.

 

[PHILIP1193]

Also be aogod to produce a guide maybe a seperate thresad on mounting pelts

phil

 

[K404]

Mainly@ Stocky: you have the experience with pelts- If you want to, i`d happily let you take over adding the extras the Boss and Philip have suggested. I dont know how much time I`m gonna have to find out operating temps, but I was gonna deal with current ratings for them, which I might do right now.

Up to you..let me/us know

K

 

[stocky]

That's sounds like a plan

I should be able to contribute a fair bit, especially regarding installation, setting up, and warnings etc...