PCs on top of one another....good/bad idea?

[tomstevens26]

OK, this is probably a stoopid question, but I'm going to ask anyway. I currently have two PCs beside my desk. They are hooked to one keyboard, mouse and monitor using that IOGEAR 2 port KVM switch. They both sit on the floor, but on different sides of the desk. I'd like to reconfig the room layout a little, but to do that, I need to reclaim the space on one side of the desk. Will it hurt anything to put one PC on top of the other? My only concern is that one of the PCs is old and seems to have a little problem with the PSU not being magnetically shielded! If I place it too close to the monitor then the monitor starts to discolor...therefore, it has remained on the far side of the desk away from everything else Other than that being a problem, would it hurt to stack two modern PCs that hopefully are shielded, on top of each other?

Thanks!
Tom

 

[nick1985]

my only concern is a heat issue...

 

[Jeff7181]

Physically and electronically it won't hurt anything, but like nick said, heat could be an issue with 2 PC's creating heat in the "same area."

 

[dnuggett]

Will you be stacking them so that there is adequate ventiliation? In other words not with their rears to the wall....

 

[Sheriff]

Not at all as long as everything is set up properly and the bottom case will hold the weight.

 

[tomstevens26]

Originally posted by: dnuggett
Will you be stacking them so that there is adequate ventiliation? In other words not with their rears to the wall....

Heat was really my primary concern. No, they are not against the wall...in fact, the rears are about 18 inches from the wall, and the sides about 2 inches from the side wall and desk.

 

[jackschmittusa]

Should work fine with that space.

 

[dnuggett]

Originally posted by: tomstevens26

Originally posted by: dnuggett
Will you be stacking them so that there is adequate ventiliation? In other words not with their rears to the wall....

Heat was really my primary concern. No, they are not against the wall...in fact, the rears are about 18 inches from the wall, and the sides about 2 inches from the side wall and desk.

I don't see a problem with it then, but I don't have an idea on the electromagnetic radiation.

 

[JBT]

I think that would be fine I was going to do it once but then decided to givemy parents my old computer... so I never tried it as long as ther eis a bit of space back there all should be well.

 

[EeyoreX]

I seriously doubt heat would have been an issue even if they were close to the wall. Why would it? My two computers sit within 6-8 inches of each other (not for heat concerns, but because I like the window on each case). Both about 2 inches from the wall. Granted, they aren't stacked, but I doubt that makes that big a difference. Even when stacked, cool air would be drawn in from the front. Warm air exhausted from the rear. Since the rear fans should be exhaust I really don't see how heat is an issue, since the warm air would be warm back there anyhow and it's not being drawn into a proerly configured PC. I mean, really. It's two PCs. Stacked on or under a desk. Not two dozen.

\Dan

 

[drag]

Well just as long as air can circulate around them heat isn't a issue.

The magnetic radiation is a bit weird. Make sure that the bad PSU is far away from either computer's harddrive, I guess. Mangets and HD's don't play well together.


The only real issue is the weight. Computer cases are usually not structurally sound, the spot weilds they use are usually just barely able to hold the cases together, even on nice cases they are not designed to hold any weight. So as long as the top case isn't like 30 pounds and the bottom case is 10 pounds and you don't lean on it or wiggle them around to much then you'll be safe.


I see no problems.

 

[Jeff7181]

A friend of mine has 4 cases on their sides on top of eachother... kinda like a hillbilly's rackmount system =) No heat problems there.

 

[arsbanned]

Originally posted by: Jeff7181
A friend of mine has 4 cases on their sides on top of eachother... kinda like a hillbilly's rackmount system =) No heat problems there.

Heh. I like that.

I'm with the consensus here, you shouldn't have any problems stacking those units. I do it pretty frequently when I'm troubleshooting somebodys machine. Throw it on top of another tower I have and hook it up to the KVM switch.

 

[Bleep]

I have 3 stacked and they have run 24 hrs a day for over 2 years with no problems.
No worries mate.
Bleep

 

[MedicBob]

I don't see a problem with stacking them either. About the PS, can you just change it to a newer one?

 

[EeyoreX]

[qThe magnetic radiation is a bit weird. Make sure that the bad PSU is far away from either computer's harddrive, I guess. Mangets and HD's don't play well together.[/quote]You need a very powerful magnet to affect a hard drive. Any magnetic field from a power supply isn't going to do jack to a hard drive. The hard drive has more powerful magnets within it's own mechanisms. Don't go degaussing your hard drive, the PSU won't be an issue.

The only real issue is the weight. Computer cases are usually not structurally sound, the spot weilds they use are usually just barely able to hold the cases together, even on nice cases they are not designed to hold any weight. So as long as the top case isn't like 30 pounds and the bottom case is 10 pounds and you don't lean on it or wiggle them around to much then you'll be safe.

This depends on the case. And even the cheapest desktop (which, I admit he is probably using towers of some flavor) are able to hold a 30-40 lb monitor without a problem. Even cheapish aluminum cases are still made with heavier steel frames. I don't forsee weight being an issue either.

\Dan

 

[GonzoDaGr8]

As long as the bottom case is strong enough, Then you will have no problem at all. I had my Blue &whiteG3 stacked on top of my Cheiftech case for quite a while with no problem. Macs ain't light folks(Read: sturdy/well built). Just make sure that they are safe from tipping over.