Venting a PC through an exterior wall?

[shrike126]

I just had fans blowing out a window

At the end of the day, I suspect that's what this is about to look like.

Personally I'd just grab the tube from a portable AC unit (think flexible dryer vent pipe) since it usually comes with a window block (you'll know what I mean when you see it). If you want to go really slick drop a 120mm (or whatever fits) PC fan at either end to help with the out air pressure / backpressure / draft ... whatever it's called.

And definitely look into a heat pump and/or A/C unit. The world is just going to get hotter and having one really helps with the resale value of the property. FYI the portables aren't as good, but they are useful and fairly cheap since you don't need to install anything. Just watch your BTUs vs your breaker box. 14k+ can cause issues with older (read 1970s and before) boxes since they have a decent draw spike when they 1st come on.

A central AC unit is in the plans. It's just not this year, or maybe next. Unless things get really bad. We bought this house in November and the furnace went out within the first weekend. So we had to replace that. And had them do the work at the time to make room for an AC later. But between the furnace, replacing ALL the windows, and maybe painting the exterior this year. There's just not enough free cash flow for an AC unit. Hence the "How can I get the heat out of the room quickly and easily?"

I would just do a window fan unless it gets super hot then window AC. More often enough this just running all the time will keep the room cool enough especially if its cool outside already but just hot in the room due to the PC.

I have a portable AC unit with a vent hose that can be put out the window, which I guess will work for now. I just have to rearrange things in the room next weekend to make that work. Which is fine, I was going to swap out this desktop anyways. Might as well get a window seal with 2 fan hose ports and do it that way all at the same time.

I had the same problem for years in my previous office space in this house. The previous office was in a finished attic room, and the central A/C just doesn't have the guts to push the air that high, very efficiently. It would easily exceed 80F in that room when gaming on the PC.

I thought of all the options you did as well, but in the end I just installed a window AC. The one I used was a cheaper unit and was loud as hell, but it cooled the room VERY fast and easily got the job done. I often had the room at 68F.

Since covid, I've been working from home and often on the phone with customers. I took a spare room in the house and made a new office, but was so fed up with how hot and loud the PC had been, that I didn't even want it in the same room as me any more. I actually ran the cables through the wall to the guest bedroom and the PC sits in there, with USB and HDMI cables passing through the wall via modified outlet covers. It's whisper quiet in here and comfortable, always.

Long story...but I wasn't sure if that was an option for you too. I feel your pain. It was annoying dealing with that.

I don't know if putting the PC in another room is an option in my situation but it's an interesting thought. Later this year, I have a downstairs area I'm going to turn into a home theater where I might do something similar.

For everyone who did the window unit thing: Out of curiosity was it a window unit that sat in the window permanently? Or a hose venting out of a window seal kit?

If you did the window seal kit, any tips on how to make that stay put so that you can open the windows the rest of the way if it's nice outside?

The sit-stand desk in front of the window is about to move to the right, up against the wall. The printer stand there is going in the closet behind me. With the portable AC sitting somewhere on the right with a hose running under the desk against the wall out the window.

 

[acroig]

Nice view out the window.

 

[Lazy8s]

You know Shrike, with a view like that I would be tempted to get a nice pair of double hung Anderson windows and swap that slider out. That’s what I thought you had, and yes it complicates it a bit.

If you’re handy and can find perfectly sized replacement (opposed to new construction) windows for $450 or so, spend an afternoon installing them and you wind up with a great view, 1 window for a window unit and one window completely free to open or close as you please.

I would do that before boring a hole in the side of the house.

 

[shrike126]

Nice view out the window.

Thank you. Though it's not the view that we bought the house for.

You know Shrike, with a view like that I would be tempted to get a nice pair of double hung Anderson windows and swap that slider out. That’s what I thought you had, and yes it complicates it a bit.

If you’re handy and can find perfectly sized replacement (opposed to new construction) windows for $450 or so, spend an afternoon installing them and you wind up with a great view, 1 window for a window unit and one window completely free to open or close as you please.

I would do that before boring a hole in the side of the house.

About that, the view out the office window is nice but not the biggest deal. If I can put in a seal/strip on the right for a couple vents, and still open the window from time-to-time, that'll be fine.

This view is okay for the house. The view from the south side of the house is an embarrassment of riches.



Living room window

Dining room window

And the Master bedroom window

Some of the window treatments have since been replaced.



So in a way the office window has maybe the worst view in the house.

 

[Lazy8s]

Thank you. Though it's not the view that we bought the house for.



About that, the view out the office window is nice but not the biggest deal. If I can put in a seal/strip on the right for a couple vents, and still open the window from time-to-time, that'll be fine.

This view is okay for the house. The view from the south side of the house is an embarrassment of riches.



Living room window

Dining room window

And the Master bedroom window

Some of the window treatments have since been replaced.



So in a way the office window has maybe the worst view in the house.

Oh you poor man, so ghetto Beautiful, very nice

 

[shrike126]

Oh you poor man, so ghetto Beautiful, very nice

Yeah, I don't even know how I manage to sleep at night in a ghetto like this.

 

[acroig]

Yeah, I don't even know how I manage to sleep at night in a ghetto like this.

Wow Rick, those mountains!

 

[Lazy8s]

Yeah, I don't even know how I manage to sleep at night in a ghetto like this.

I would be very uncomfortable that far from the police that chase down the shooters and thieves.

With a little creativity, some plexiglass, some screen, a couple of hinges and .25 or .33” weatherseal from Home Depot, you could build your own useable window to fit yours with a venting duct for your PC.

Think of the half doors that used to be pretty common. The top would be Plexiglass, approximately 85% of the height of your open window. The bottom 15% would have the vent duct, with screen covering the end to keep out the random flies etc. Make sure the entire assembly is the same, exact dimension as the open window. Apply weather seal so the seal overlaps the sides just a touch.

Seat the bottom into the window channel and with a slight flex and twist, it should pop into the upper window channel no problem. Slide your window towards closed to catch the edge of the new “Window assembly” to hold it in place.

Easy peasy > maybe 2 hours.

 

[Riptide]

Can you make a crawl space work if your house has one?

I've got a mining rig in the crawl space at this house. Does a great job of keeping the heat and noise out of the house and it actually stays surprisingly cool down there.

 

[andino]

Shrike, I was going to suggest a portable AC. Looks like you already went that route.

Nice setup BTW.

 

[KAC]

That black thing is not a dustbin?
I was wondering why is a dude showing a dustbin in a PC thread. But then again we have all seen weirder stuff on R3D.

 

[shrike126]

Wow Rick, those mountains!

The view is pretty much 100% of the reason we bought this place. I walked in, went upstairs, looked out the bedroom window and saw a storm with rain n’ **** rolling over Pike’s Peak and thought: “Okay yup, this is what I want.”

I would be very uncomfortable that far from the police that chase down the shooters and thieves.

With a little creativity, some plexiglass, some screen, a couple of hinges and .25 or .33” weatherseal from Home Depot, you could build your own useable window to fit yours with a venting duct for your PC.

Think of the half doors that used to be pretty common. The top would be Plexiglass, approximately 85% of the height of your open window. The bottom 15% would have the vent duct, with screen covering the end to keep out the random flies etc. Make sure the entire assembly is the same, exact dimension as the open window. Apply weather seal so the seal overlaps the sides just a touch.

Seat the bottom into the window channel and with a slight flex and twist, it should pop into the upper window channel no problem. Slide your window towards closed to catch the edge of the new “Window assembly” to hold it in place.

Easy peasy > maybe 2 hours.

I’m picking up what you’re putting down. I’m picking up some tubing and stuff to give this a try this weekend. I think I have an idea of what you’re describing. Imagine that but like turned 90 degrees so it’s sideways a bit. The vent panel will go on the right. I’m not as worried about not being able to lock the window because this is on the 3rd floor up. I’ll take pics when I’m done to show what I’ve got in mind and what I come up with. But for now, suffice to say, I think I’m abandoning the “put a hole in the wall” idea since I’ve been reminded that I can just do multiple hoses aimed at the window.

Can you make a crawl space work if your house has one?

I've got a mining rig in the crawl space at this house. Does a great job of keeping the heat and noise out of the house and it actually stays surprisingly cool down there.

Crawl space is a good idea but not very feasible with my current setup. This office room is on the 3rd floor. Directly below me is our kitchen, and below that is a finished basement that has a guest room. If anything I could look at a vent that goes up into the attic. We have an attic fan up there at least so maybe that’s worth looking into if the window stuff doesn’t pan out.

Shrike, I was going to suggest a portable AC. Looks like you already went that route.

Nice setup BTW.

Thank you.

I think it’ll end up being a full day project, I have ideas on redoing the desk setup and layout as well when I tackle getting the heat out of the room. But the portable AC is gonna be what I end up going with. So we’ll see how that goes.

That black thing is not a dustbin?
I was wondering why is a dude showing a dustbin in a PC thread. But then again we have all seen weirder stuff on R3D.

The black cylinder ish looking thing? Not a dustbin. It’s an in-room portable air conditioning unit from LG. You set it somewhere in the room, it has openings on the back for hooking up a flexible tube to vent the heat out a window. And the air comes out the top. When I get it up and running this weekend I’ll take pics to share.

 

[Lazy8s]

Looking forward to seeing your design Shrike - basically a replacement window that just fits in the opening of the existing window, configured how you like. I bet it comes out looking pretty sweet

 

[shrike126]

Looking forward to seeing your design Shrike - basically a replacement window that just fits in the opening of the existing window, configured how you like. I bet it comes out looking pretty sweet

I’ve been thinking about what you’re describing. I don’t know that I’m handy enough to tackle a project like that. But I think get what you’re describing.

I think if I make something like that, I don’t gain the ability to slide the window open and have the screened in space for airflow on days where it’s nice. The plexiglass panel would have to basically just be a few inches wide, and 55” ish tall, to align on the right side and plug the gap when the window is in its “closed” position. (As closed as it can be with the gap being where the hoses are semi-permanently attached and venting through the screen to keep out bugs)

I think where I’m going to end up is something 55 inches tall, a few inches wide, with 2 hose vents stacked vertically so that I can have the bottom one for the PC vent output, and the top one for the in room portable AC unit to vent heat out when it’s running.

When the window part is “closed” it’ll just go up to this long tall strip of plastic. When it’s opened I just need a way for that piece to stay put and not fall out or sideways in the window.

As for the rest of the office, I have some work I’ll be doing to replace the white IKEA cheap and flimsy desktop I’m using now (I tried to mount the PC case underneath with screws but then I bumped it with my knee and it tore holes in the particle board or whatever that is so I’m replacing that). But I think, once it’s done, I’ll have something I’m very happy about considering it’s been a looooong time since I’ve lived anywhere long enough to do projects like this.

 

[Lazy8s]

I’ve been thinking about what you’re describing. I don’t know that I’m handy enough to tackle a project like that. But I think get what you’re describing.

I think if I make something like that, I don’t gain the ability to slide the window open and have the screened in space for airflow on days where it’s nice. The plexiglass panel would have to basically just be a few inches wide, and 55” ish tall, to align on the right side and plug the gap when the window is in its “closed” position. (As closed as it can be with the gap being where the hoses are semi-permanently attached and venting through the screen to keep out bugs)

I think where I’m going to end up is something 55 inches tall, a few inches wide, with 2 hose vents stacked vertically so that I can have the bottom one for the PC vent output, and the top one for the in room portable AC unit to vent heat out when it’s running.

When the window part is “closed” it’ll just go up to this long tall strip of plastic. When it’s opened I just need a way for that piece to stay put and not fall out or sideways in the window.

As for the rest of the office, I have some work I’ll be doing to replace the white IKEA cheap and flimsy desktop I’m using now (I tried to mount the PC case underneath with screws but then I bumped it with my knee and it tore holes in the particle board or whatever that is so I’m replacing that). But I think, once it’s done, I’ll have something I’m very happy about considering it’s been a looooong time since I’ve lived anywhere long enough to do projects like this.

Yeah you have the idea of what I’m thinking I had a full window pane made of plexiglass with the holes you need, but your idea of a few inches wide would probably work better. Easier to fit and hold, and easier to store when you’re not using it.

 

[KAC]

Curious to see what this saga will culminate into.

 

[Lazy8s]

Hey Rick, check it out.

https://youtu.be/NcMb_u0Oqrk

I’m not suggesting buying from this guy, but his products are basically exactly what I did, with some minor differences.

 

[shrike126]

Hey Rick, check it out.

https://youtu.be/NcMb_u0Oqrk

I’m not suggesting buying from this guy, but his products are basically exactly what I did, with some minor differences.

I watched his video and yeah it looks like just a pretty standard piece of acrylic with a couple holes punched in it and vents installed. I have a pretty big window, his site doesn't go longer than 48" lengths (I'd need closer to 56" length) and I'd need 2 vents instead of his usual 1.

I did send him an email though just to see if custom orders are a thing he can handle.

 

[Lazy8s]

I watched his video and yeah it looks like just a pretty standard piece of acrylic with a couple holes punched in it and vents installed. I have a pretty big window, his site doesn't go longer than 48" lengths (I'd need closer to 56" length) and I'd need 2 vents instead of his usual 1.

I did send him an email though just to see if custom orders are a thing he can handle.

Yep, it’s not a complex project at all.

 

[acroig]

The view is pretty much 100% of the reason we bought this place. I walked in, went upstairs, looked out the bedroom window and saw a storm with rain n’ **** rolling over Pike’s Peak and thought: “Okay yup, this is what I want.”

Ya man, I can definitely see that, great buy!