Custom Laptop Cooler

Alright guys, I will soon be the proud owner of a Malibal Laptop ^ ^

Quite excited and I've been thinking about ways to keep this bad larry cool!

I'm a seasoned sheet-metal worker so I am considering building a laptop cooler out of 28 gauge sheet metal. While I've got the knowledge of metal behind me, and only partial electrical experience, there are still things I don't know, which is why I come to you now:

Is aluminum a good material to use? Or would I benefit from others? As far as heat dissipation? I know structurally it will hold no problem.

Would it be more effective having the fans supply the laptop with air, or exhaust? If it would be more effective pulling the heat from it, I could leave large openings around the base to properly expunge the excess heat.

I've seen laptop coolers run off USB power, how would I go about splicing the fans power to achieve this?

More questions to come, I figure I'll get this all out of the way and thank you!

 

i don't have comments on everything, but i do have some opinions about some:

i'd prefer an aluminum base material over steel, but honestly, i don't doubt it would make any difference since it is not in direct contact with the actual heat source. whatever can be had cheaper would be better if it's a custom project.

i think fans that shoot air into the laptop are more effective because that's how the laptop fans themselves are designed. they intake from the bottom and exhaust out the back or sides depending on the model. if a cooler is sucking air, it kind of disrupts the airflow as it's kind of competing with the laptop's internal fans to get air through the heatsinks. that's my reasoning anyways. definitely give credance to where the openings are located on your actual laptop and make sure a lot of airflow is directed and dedicated towards moving air through those vents on the bottom.

i'd love to see what you come up with! good luck.

 

Thanks for the reply cenix.

Your point about the material not mattering due to there being no contact to the heat source directly is a great one.

As well as your point about, exhaust versus supply. I agree it is logical, however I'd love for others to chime in here.

I will be starting construction when I get my new laptop in, so that way I can have the fans directly lining up with with one another.

Where I need the most assistance is wiring these fans up to a USB power source.

Thanks

 

Well, after a quick call to google I've discovered that most case fans are 12v and the USB source is 5v

I'll be purchasing a Zalman 2-fan controller, Newegg.com - ZALMAN FAN MATE 2 Fan Controller

Which in turn would normalize the voltage to a proper 5volts for the USB port.

Score!

 

As cenix said, material doesn't really matter. Some laptops actually intake air from the side and push it out somewhere else so that you can use it on your lap without it getting too hot. But in your case it probably pulls it in from the bottom.

(just curious)Are you using two small fans or one large fan? My Zalman cooler uses two small ones but I have seen others that use a single, larger fan.

Here's a custom cooler that somebody built into their desk, it may help you.
http://forum.notebookreview.com/alienware/486526-custom-made-laptop-cooler-joebarchuck.html

Good luck on the project!

 

If you want something more efficient, you can run desktop cooling fans in an aluminium case that will be powered from a desktop PSU. I know it will be heavy, but the casing can be done neatly since you know to handle aluminium

Two solid 120mm fans to use are the Noiseblockers:

http://www.mega-labs.com/fanroundup_page_2.html

Of course they are not silent, but they provide maximum CFM!

 

Thanks for the responses guys!

I will likely use two fans, but I will address that once I physically have the laptop.

The PSu idea is a good one, however, I'd like to keep this as portable as possible.

I'm still trying to figure out a way to wire this via USB without the possibility of frying my brand spankin' new laptop

 

Definitely power it from USB, the last thing you want to do is have to carry around a cord or power supply. Trust me, I used a custom one for 3 years before converting it to USB. I am using a Belkin slim USB powered fan and it is great, in fact, 2 of them would be plenty cooling. The material doesn't really matter. You can use a thinner stainless steel or a thicker aluminum for the same weight and strength.

The wiring isn't that difficult. USB ports can supply 500mA of current at 5V, so its 2.5W per port (although some ports on some computers are split, so it's 2.5W per pair of ports). USB3.0 ports offer more current as well, but I think it depends... see SuperSpeed USB 3.0 FAQ. Basically what you need to do is research 5V fans and their continuous use power consumption. You may need to wire two USB plugs in parallel (positive leads together and negative leads together) so you get more current supply at the same voltage. They sell Y-connected USB plugs for 2.5" HDDs pretty commonly. This might be useful http://image.pinout.net/pinout_USB_files/pc_usb_connectors_pinout.png

I would suggest blowing IN, at the bottom of the laptop. I think most of them work this way, and it helps to take cool air from outside/lower and blow it onto the case and into the vents.

One thing to consider is noise (volume noise, not electrical). If you place a fan too close to the table or bottom of the laptop, it creates a lot of wind turbulence and that creates wind noise. I remember powering up a fan and being amazed at how quiet it was, but its volume increased 10 times when placed next to the laptop case. When it's late at night and it's quiet, you learn to appreciate the quiet internal fan(s) on your laptop.

Here's a pic of my latest hack-job on my old computer. The internal heatsink died so I had to use a fan. This fan works great though. You could easily mount the fans to your cooler stand.
http://i106.photobucket.com/albums/m267/kuksul08/60ce3e62.jpg

 

Are those peperoni sticks you're using as legs on the laptop?

Haha I keed

Great post!! Thank you so much for your input, I'll have more questions in time, but that is a great start for me, I'll start researching 5v fans that really move air right now.

So, on to this noise issue. I had not even thought of the amount of noise the air being turbulent would make, great thing to consider. Maybe if I recess the fans down further in the cooler stand, that aide in the silencing of the air being moved?

I'd love your suggestions and thanks again!

 

I just realized the P150HM has two 3.0's and a 2.0

I'll have to email Malibal to confirm how much power is being pushed.

I also found a 5v fan that has decent CFM with a speed adjuster..which probably isn't completely necessary, but I could bump it down when I'm not gaming.

Newegg.com - Thermaltake Mobilefan II 80mm External USB Case Fan

I'd like to splice the two fans power in parallel and being able to control them with one speed control all via one USB 3.0 slot.

 

They are wine corks

A speed control pot would be nice. Looking back, I think I mostly had the unit on or off, so you may find that a simple rocker switch is all you need. You could get fancy and use an illuminated one to find the switch in the dark

 

Nice idea! The only thing I am not sure though is whether it is good that the fan is in touch with the laptop body. Shouldn't you provide spacings between the fan and the body?

 

The corks are a good idea? They were kind of a last resort before spending too much time coming up with some feet. I guess it does work

The fan is actually spaced about 1/4" from the bottom of the case using some plastic R/C spacers. I don't think it really matters that much, but it did help the airflow and noise a little.


OP, also consider adding special lips or grooves for the feet of your laptop. A big problem I had for a while was centering the laptop on the stand, or having it slide off. I simply added some cardboard bars that touched against the laptop feet and kept it from sliding anywhere.

 

Thats a great point about the feet, I'd definitely consider punching some indentations into the top-most platform, once I have the laptop and I can take specific measurements.

I'll probably be purchasing like a million washers and rubber spacers that way I can avoid all vibration caused from the fans.

One thing I'm still in the dark about is alleviating the air turbulence that is going to be caused. Hrm

 

You shouldn't have any trouble with vibration from the fans, the good ones with dual BB's are pretty smooth.

I'd just put the fans vertically or almost vertically in the back of the cooler. It will tilt up the computer greatly, which is actually kinda nice for ergonomics.