Keeping your game room cool (temperature)

Living in Southern California, my gaming room can get quite hot during the summer. Take the already scorching temperatures outside, and combine that with a room full of heaters... er computers, and you have one hell of an oven. I have been considering installing a swamp cooler in or near my gaming room, but I am concerned about the effects the humidity may have on all of this expensive technology.

My questions to everyone are:

Can a swamp cooler do damage to my equipment?

What are your room ambient cooling solutions?

Thank you for sharing your experiences and solutions! :cool:

Just as an opinion, I would be concerned about using an evaporative cooler in my room full of electronics. Those swamp coolers, from personal experience, do increase the humidity noticeably.

My game room is zoned to stay between 67-73 (mostly because my parrot stays in there and he can't handle too cold/ too hot) if it was just me... I'd take it as cold as I could afford.

Have you considered a portable air conditioner? I'm not talking about a window unit either. I have seen them work well and have a far less noticeable impact on a rooms humidity. Just my .02 cents.

I have 2 computers running all day, flat screen tv, my Computer room faces west so the damn sun is on my room most the day esp when its hottest. I have a window Kenmoore ac unit set for 72 degrees 24/7 no humidity in Wa State till june really.

I think Humidity may play a huge part of using a swamp cooler, depending where in Southern Cali you are. I would for example, hesitate, if I was say, near Camp Penelton, due to the Water coming right off the ocean. That being said, If the equipment was located opposite of said cooler, you would notice a difference. I used them way back in the mid 90's, when My Family lived in Kingman , Az, and they did the trick.

dfwfire suggested a portable Air conditioner, and that is worth a look at. in the crazy college years, I had an old Pentium 2, that I built into a mini fridge LOL. Worked like a charm, as long as I kept the door open, as it would get a lot of moisture in their otherwise. I wouldn't even think of doing it today.

another option, for the PC stuff, is liquid cooling. Never done it myself, But I've heard great things. Heck even seen a rig using vegetable oil to cool.

A long time ago, And I believe it was here, someone had taken an old bunkbed, and put the PC's up top, and these huge fans to blow right across them. one of the neatest setups I ever saw. Sadly, I forget who did that, so I couldn't even know what to look for.

I know my own office had problems in the morning getting supper hot, But I went and bought these super heavy curtains, the kind that you would use if you had a personal Theater in your home, and it blocked out not only the light, but a lot of the heat. seems like it was almost 7-8 degrees difference with the curtains drawn during the summer.

Stephen

Dont swamp coolers make the temperature feel cooler to people, but not actually reduce the temperature like a regular AC unit????

A couple of illegal kids waving palm trees does the trick for me.

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Originally Posted by JohnGabriel

Dont swamp coolers make the temperature feel cooler to people, but not actually reduce the temperature like a regular AC unit????

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I don't think so. My thermostat shows a lower temperature once I start running the swamp cooler. I prefer the swamp cooler because it is cheaper to run :)

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Originally Posted by zenga

A couple of illegal kids waving palm trees does the trick for me.

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I'm sold!

But in seriousness, I ended up using the swamp cooler I already have to generate airflow on the opposite side of the house, and opened the windows in the man cave. Cooled everything quite nicely.

i figured i would be the third oklahoman to post and say...just keep your whole house at 72.

and al you need to kill your bird.

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Originally Posted by candlebox

...just keep your whole house at 72.

and al you need to kill your bird.

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Even at 72 it shouldn't get too warm if you get decent air flow in the room.

And my bird says Mana.... That is win. He stays Chris.

Get a Daikin split system aircon

I put my game room in the basement.

-1 to heat
+10 to spiders

It was a tough decision, to say the least...

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Originally Posted by Peli

I put my game room in the basement.

-1 to heat
+10 to spiders

It was a tough decision, to say the least...

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Hahaha

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Originally Posted by Peli

-1 to heat
+10 to spiders

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Was this a noticible dps increase?

It's kinda like having Army of the Dead i would imagine.

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Originally Posted by candlebox

Was this a noticible dps increase?

It's kinda like having Army of the Dead i would imagine.

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Normally its great, but only 9 of the spiders help, the other 1 is always tieing his boot laces together and putting vaseline on his +1 mace.