Think this would be solid as a server rack?

[hanoverphist]

Originally posted by: buck

Originally posted by: RedSquirrel

Originally posted by: dougp
Why not just buy a used rack system? All that wood will be heavy as f' and you'd have really bad ventilation ...

Server racks are upwards of 2k. This will be cheaper even considering I'll have to buy some tools that I don't own, such as a skill saw and maybe a mitre saw for the angle cuts. My first build so I might screw up and need to buy extra wood. Plywood is expensive though... but I may use cheaper stuff for the sides.

Ventilation wise, I'll have a blower on top. Probably a furnace blower, but I need to research that more. I don't want TOO much power or the air will just bypass the servers altogether.

Also shipping a server rack would be very expensive too, so even if I get a good deal.

We just sold one on craigslist for $50, took two weeks to sell the damn thing too.

i recycled 2 old racks, doors and sides on one of them. didnt sell in a month so we just junked em.

 

[InflatableBuddha]

Originally posted by: Crusty

Originally posted by: oogabooga

Originally posted by: InflatableBuddha
This

Originally posted by: rudder
You need a girlfriend.

plus this

Originally posted by: her209
Going for the all-natural rack, are we?

=win

Are you a member of the ATL&R stance on dominance alliance recommending he construct a girlfriend out of wood instead of a server rack? 😛

At least his wood can give his girlfriend with an all-natural rack some hard hammering :Q

Fixed.

Oh, and pics after you nail her 😉

 

[DisgruntledVirus]

Our company is expanding our data center (and built another brand new one), and we have some awesome racks (I've thought about ordering an extra one for myself and giving them the $ for it) that are $900 IIRC a rack. We custom designed them in house, and sent them our specs. Also there is no PDU, we got those from a different supplier and assemble on site ourselves. We also obviously did a bulk order of ~300 for our center and another ~500 for the new site.

Still though, I don't know where you get this $2k from (unless you're buying everything built in already and looking at the most expensive models).

Also, is this for a home I assume? How many racks are you going to have? You talk about the hot/cold aisle, but unless you're in a massive home or for a company I don't know why you would really use a hot/cold aisle. I'd imagine it would be better to either cool bottom>top (push bottom to create positive pressure and/or add a fan to the top), or side>side (although this can be difficult/expensive to do properly at home).

 

[vi edit]

Another question I have to ask is - do you really want all that crap in your house? The added noise, heat, and energy cost to feed a power hungry server & drive array just seems excessive unless you are hosting some major file sharing services from home.

 

[Red Squirrel]

Right now there will only be one rack but i want room for another just in case but I doubt I'd need it especially once I convert my tower servers to 2U, the cold isle will be my crawlspace and hot isle will actually be different then what youd see in a DC. Will be an enclosed back and the heat will get sucked up on the top by a blower fan.

This is also better then having servers all over the house. I want to organize everything nicely.

2K was for a standard 42U rack, was not really anything fancy. Saw prices vary from 1-2k from different companies.

 

[vi edit]

I ask more out of ignorance than anything else....but with the introduction of dirt cheap gigabit NAS devices and sub $100 TB drives, what value does a full rack of servers & drives get you that a little NAS device stuck in the corner can't?

 

[KentState]

You do realize that most local sellers on Craigslist will let you come look at the equipment before making a purchase. I found several in my area for under $300 USD with panels and both doors. That would is going to get brittle from the heat drying it out and I would expect a lot of flex.

 

[Crusty]

Originally posted by: KentState
You do realize that most local sellers on Craigslist will let you come look at the equipment before making a purchase. I found several in my area for under $300 USD with panels and both doors. That would is going to get brittle from the heat drying it out and I would expect a lot of flex.

Not to mention fire hazard

 

[JDMnAR1]

Just a couple of questions and random comments in no particular order:

Why build something that isn't suitable for 80% of your hardware?

I have something like this because I didn't invest in rack-mount equipment. I can easily fit as many servers on it as I can 2U servers in a standard rack once you allow for installation of PDU, console, patch panel, etc. And if I happen to pick up a rack mount server or two, they stack just fine on it.

Have you calculated the cost of the materials based upon your design?

Chances are you can pick up a used rack for not much more. As long as you can visually inspect a used rack prior to purchase, there isn't much else that can be wrong with them other than aesthetics.

Do you plan on this being a permanent installation, or is there a chance that you might have to move the rack?

An average 2x4 weighs roughly 1.5lbs per linear foot. Just your 4 posts are going to weight about 40lbs, so your unloaded rack is probably going to be pushing 100lbs before you add any servers to it. My rack is on casters so I can move it easily if needed.

 

[Red Squirrel]

Originally posted by: KentState
You do realize that most local sellers on Craigslist will let you come look at the equipment before making a purchase. I found several in my area for under $300 USD with panels and both doors. That would is going to get brittle from the heat drying it out and I would expect a lot of flex.

I can guarantee nobody in this city would be selling a rack, most people here have a compaq preserio or a packard bell with windows 98 on it. Geeks/IT people will have maybe 1-2 PC but nobody actually has a rack, and if they do, they aren't selling it. Craigslist does not even list my city. Don't think anyone here knows about it. We do have a local classifieds site which does not have much tech equipment.

I've also been debating on if I just want a shelving unit as I can most likely find one for cheap or even build one for cheap, and it will be easier. The only reason I want to build a rack is for ventilation. My goal is to put a blower on top and suck the hot air out and push it somewhere in my house that can use the heat (probably under my garage which the home inspector said needs constant heat).

I might just end up doing that. Can always make the whole unit enclosed anyway.

Though back to the original question, would the existing design be solid?


I have not checked at the costs yet, my main fear is the plywood, as that stuff can be expensive but I'd probably only need 1-2 sheets. This will most likely be a permanent installation.

Also some valid issues have been described such as the wood expanding/shrinking and possibly getting brittle. Is there some kind of finish I can give to it to reduce/avoid those issues? I will be painting it with several coats. Also should I get pressure treated lumber or is that overkill?

I have not calculated the costs yet though so maybe this whole thing will be a no go if I price all the wood and it ends up being several hundred. I do have to buy tools but that's a non issue as at least I'll have them for future projects. I want to get into wood working.

 

[Squisher]

Originally posted by: RedSquirrel

Originally posted by: KentState
You do realize that most local sellers on Craigslist will let you come look at the equipment before making a purchase. I found several in my area for under $300 USD with panels and both doors. That would is going to get brittle from the heat drying it out and I would expect a lot of flex.

I can guarantee nobody in this city would be selling a rack, most people here have a compaq preserio or a packard bell with windows 98 on it. Geeks/IT people will have maybe 1-2 PC but nobody actually has a rack, and if they do, they aren't selling it. Craigslist does not even list my city. Don't think anyone here knows about it. We do have a local classifieds site which does not have much tech equipment.

I've also been debating on if I just want a shelving unit as I can most likely find one for cheap or even build one for cheap, and it will be easier. The only reason I want to build a rack is for ventilation. My goal is to put a blower on top and suck the hot air out and push it somewhere in my house that can use the heat (probably under my garage which the home inspector said needs constant heat).

I might just end up doing that. Can always make the whole unit enclosed anyway.

Though back to the original question, would the existing design be solid?

I would think a $500 savings would justify an entire wasted day of travel. I'm sure you can find someone in the great white north within 4 hours of your present location to satisfy your needs.

 

[Gothgar]

dont do wood

Maybe if you have a hard on for making your own, you can find a place that does steel studs


/shrug

 

[TheKub]

Originally posted by: RedSquirrel
Though back to the original question, would the existing design be solid?

I don't know if anyone is going to be able to answer that with much certainty as it is very likely that you are the first (and only) person to come up with this. If you build it and its not stable throw more bracing at it and it will hold. Of course you are also throwing more kindling on a potential firehazard.

Every person in this thread has told you that this is a bad idea and to look for a 2nd hand rack but you have the DIY spirit and want to trudge ahead. (for better or worse).

 

[wwswimming]

Originally posted by: RedSquirrel

Originally posted by: dougp
Why not just buy a used rack system? All that wood will be heavy as f' and you'd have really bad ventilation ...

Server racks are upwards of 2k. This will be cheaper even considering I'll have to buy some tools that I don't own, such as a skill saw and maybe a mitre saw for the angle cuts. My first build so I might screw up and need to buy extra wood. Plywood is expensive though... but I may use cheaper stuff for the sides.

Ventilation wise, I'll have a blower on top. Probably a furnace blower, but I need to research that more. I don't want TOO much power or the air will just bypass the servers altogether.

Also shipping a server rack would be very expensive too, so even if I get a good deal.

i've seen aluminum tel com racks (full height, like 6 feet plus), the kind that have vertical screw spacing 1 1/4", 1/2", so that 1 U = 1 3/4", for $100 at Fry's or somewhere.

for bracing to make it more rugged side to side you can buy L-brackets pretty cheap at Home Depot.

how about wheels on the bottom ? might come in real handy.

 

[Juddog]

Wood for a server rack is a bad idea. As mentioned above, look through your local yellow pages for computer resellers / recyclers and see if they have one in stock you can buy. One place local to my area was selling them for $30. Our company was trying to get rid of them and couldn't find a single person to buy one, we offered to give them away and still nobody wanted them. As long as you buy a used one locally you won't have to pay the insane shipping costs, all you need is a pickup truck to get it.

 

[MrChad]

I'm convinced the OP always wants to do things the hard way. Between writing his own SQL string cleanser instead of just using parameterized queries, his desire to write his own MySQL connector by reverse engineering the protocol (instead of just using the MySQL libraries) and now his insistence on building his own server rack despite mounds of advice that a cheap used one is a much better idea, I'd say his behavior is almost masochistic.

 

[vi edit]

Originally posted by: MrChad
I'm convinced the OP always wants to do things the hard way. Between writing his own SQL string cleanser instead of just using parameterized queries, his desire to write his own MySQL connector by reverse engineering the protocol (instead of just using the MySQL libraries) and now his insistence on building his own server rack despite mounds of advice that a cheap used one is a much better idea, I'd say his behavior is almost masochistic.

Or he just has A LOT of extra time on his hands.

🙂

I'm a DIY guy. I redid my own kitchen and I'm replacing a 16x24 deck on my house. After that I'll be ripping out and tiling a shower. But I still leave plumbing, and major electricity to somebody who can do it in a fraction of the time, and better than me.

Choose your battles.

 

[tfinch2]

Originally posted by: MrChad
I'm convinced the OP always wants to do things the hard way. Between writing his own SQL string cleanser instead of just using parameterized queries, his desire to write his own MySQL connector by reverse engineering the protocol (instead of just using the MySQL libraries) and now his insistence on building his own server rack despite mounds of advice that a cheap used one is a much better idea, I'd say his behavior is almost masochistic.

I came here to post this.

And wood? Seriously? There is a reason racks are not made out of wood.

 

[bonkers325]

you can do it, but why? an aluminum or steel frame is much cheaper and lighter, and easier to work with.

also, judging from your rendering, your wood frame is inefficient and you're wasting material (and probably time and effort).

 

[zerocool1]

fire loading ftl.

 

[MrChad]

Originally posted by: vi edit
I'm a DIY guy. I redid my own kitchen and I'm replacing a 16x24 deck on my house. After that I'll be ripping out and tiling a shower. But I still leave plumbing, and major electricity to somebody who can do it in a fraction of the time, and better than me.

Choose your battles.

I can appreciate the DIY spirit, but there's a difference between "I'm going to tile my shower" and "I'm going to make my own ceramic tiles my shower." 🙂

 

[TheKub]

Originally posted by: MrChad
I can appreciate the DIY spirit, but there's a difference between "I'm going to tile my shower" and "I'm going to make my own ceramic tiles my shower." 🙂

... out of flour and pop-rocks.

 

[YOyoYOhowsDAjello]

Originally posted by: MrChad
I'm convinced the OP always wants to do things the hard way. Between writing his own SQL string cleanser instead of just using parameterized queries, his desire to write his own MySQL connector by reverse engineering the protocol (instead of just using the MySQL libraries) and now his insistence on building his own server rack despite mounds of advice that a cheap used one is a much better idea, I'd say his behavior is almost masochistic.

I knew it!

 

[vi edit]

Originally posted by: TheKub

Originally posted by: MrChad
I can appreciate the DIY spirit, but there's a difference between "I'm going to tile my shower" and "I'm going to make my own ceramic tiles my shower." 🙂

... out of flour and pop-rocks.

LOL! That's still probably better than some of the crap materials coming from China lately.

 

[edro]

Speaking from tons of experience in trying things the hard way... you really need to just buy a server rack.

Your lumber alone will be over $50.
Plus tools, fasteners, rack rails, etc., you will be over $100 for a shitty wooden server rack.

Search for a local used server rack. Every city has a used computer store that deals in refurbished corporate equipment.
You can get one for <$200 easily.