PCMech Forums - View Single Post - Very Good Peltier Article/How-To!

mattg2k4 · 10-30-2003, 11:33 AM

A Peltier will cool your processor to sub-zero levels for significantly less money than a refrigerator unit. The type of fridge required for that has to run typically nonstop, as oppposed to the intermittent use most refridgerators see. They also have to be quite powerful to reach the temperature the cold side of a TEC reaches. And even if they did reach that temperature, to reach comparable CPU temps, the CPU would probably have to be water cooled, air cooling would not be able to absorb the heat produced as quickly, even with very low ambient case temps.

A TEC with a dedicated power supply canl run less than $100, then you have to spend an hour or so securing your motherboard and processor from condensation with foam and a dielectric grease (I think some people use varnish for this). Then you install a heatsink with a high power fan or a watercooled setup. You will need the heatsink or watercooling in both scenarios.

Tec's are more difficult to use than other setups, but they are extremely good at what they do and they don't cost very much money. You just have to be a bit more careful when installing and running it. They are ideal for people who are doing major overclocking, or simply want an extremely cool running processor.

10-30-2003, 11:33 AM	#4
mattg2k4 Member (10 bit) Join Date: Jul 2002 Location: University of California, Santa Barbara Posts: 800	A Peltier will cool your processor to sub-zero levels for significantly less money than a refrigerator unit. The type of fridge required for that has to run typically nonstop, as oppposed to the intermittent use most refridgerators see. They also have to be quite powerful to reach the temperature the cold side of a TEC reaches. And even if they did reach that temperature, to reach comparable CPU temps, the CPU would probably have to be water cooled, air cooling would not be able to absorb the heat produced as quickly, even with very low ambient case temps. A TEC with a dedicated power supply canl run less than $100, then you have to spend an hour or so securing your motherboard and processor from condensation with foam and a dielectric grease (I think some people use varnish for this). Then you install a heatsink with a high power fan or a watercooled setup. You will need the heatsink or watercooling in both scenarios. Tec's are more difficult to use than other setups, but they are extremely good at what they do and they don't cost very much money. You just have to be a bit more careful when installing and running it. They are ideal for people who are doing major overclocking, or simply want an extremely cool running processor.