At A Glance: Liquid Immersion Cooling

This method, in particular, is one of the more expensive and experimental ones out there. It uses a low boiling point to evaporate liquid. The liquid heats up and evaporates, and then cools down and condenses.

Instead of water, this system can also work with oil. The circuit boards are put in oil, which is circulated through a heat exchanger using a pump. It moves from there to watery pipes and then to an offsite cooling tower, which releases the heat.

Why Liquid Immersion Cooling?

This specific fit isn’t right for every bitcoin farm cooling system as a solution to overheating. The use of this method is based on:

• Being in a tight space
• Not having prior cooling methods
• Having a high power bill

The system cuts monthly power costs and provides an impressive economic solution to heating problems. It’s still not a standard air conditioning method among bitcoin miners as its initial price can be pretty steep. It does, however, help some companies find an economical solution.

Bitcoin is Becoming Containerized

Another big solution in the industry to skyrocketing power bills is the container solution. Major cooling companies build their immersion cooling systems inside of huge shipping containers. There is no need to rig your tiny room when you can get everything you need containerized. This also means you can work from anywhere. These containerized mining rigs can be customized and tailored to each client’s needs. They can be outfitted with:

• Shelving
• Electrical Distribution
• Base Filtration
• Cooling
• Cold and Hot Isle Separation

You set your needs as the client, and these companies meet you where you are.

Calculating Your A/C Needs

Computers and computing systems convert power into heat. This is why the harder you work, the hotter it gets in a busy bitcoin mining room. Large open mining rooms are a luxury that many don’t have, which is why cooling systems can provide such relief.

To calculate the amount of A/C you need to cool the room, convert BTU to kW cooling. Take the kW of the computer and look at how many units of heat (BTU) it will generate. Then convert this back to kW to see the amount of energy your A/C will need to have to cool the room.

BTU is the basic measure of heat, and kW is a unit of electric power. The BTU to kW formula involves 3412.142 BTU/hr for every kW of power.

Why Ductless Air Is A Winner

Contrary to the widespread cost benefits of liquid immersion cooling, air cooling is still the most popular in bitcoin mining cooling. This is because the initial cost of liquid immersion systems is so high. Even though it saves money over time, that initial cost is still too steep for many data centers.

While it’s not on every corner yet, the liquid systems are rising in popularity. Each year there are more and more bitcoin mining farms starting to use the intricate network of cooling.

Bitcoin Mining’s Many Cooling Solutions

From liquid immersion cooling to standard A/C, there are tons of ways to customize your cooling to your bitcoin mining business model and budget. Opt for the price point that works for you.

You can spend big upfront by pulling from your hardware budget. This leads to intense monthly savings on power bills. The other option is to forego this huge upfront charge and decide to use a more standard cooling system. This will be more expensive each month but has a low initial cost and smooth operation.

The rise in popularity of bitcoin mining makes the use of these cooling methods more and more necessary, leading to innovations every year. Liquid immersion, containerized solutions, and classic A/C units are all on the rise.