We just got our first good taste of cooler weather in Dallas this morning, where I actually felt the need to put on a long sleeved shirt. That tells me that the office buildings will soon be turning up the heat, which may wreck havoc on your server room cooling.

There are a few things you can do to make sure that your server room doesn’t get over heated when the building turns up the heat this winter.

1. Close off vents to prevent warm air from entering the room from the building’s central AC system.
2. Keep doors closed that connect to other heated rooms.
3. Check the exhaust ducts on your spot cooler to be sure the air flow is not obstructed going into the ceiling.
4. If you added additional heat generating equipment to your server room, be sure the installed unit is large enough to meet your needs.

Now would also be a good time to clean the air filters on your portable AC unit, and clean your condensate pump if needed.

Supplemental spot cooling units may be needed if you are not able to maintain the desired temperature in your server room, so now is the time to start preparing for winter.

Spot cooling

With this summer being one of the hottest in Texas history, keeping company server room air conditioning at optimum temperatures is not an easy task. ServerCOOL provides MovinCool and AirPac portable AC units that put the chill back into server room cooling.

ServerCOOL.com is excited to announce the launch of a new website promoting the sales and rentals of the MovinCool and AirPac brands of portable AC units and spot coolers for server room cooling. Customers can find portable AC rentals, new portable ac units and portable air conditioning specifications.

The majority of our emergency response calls involve the failure of air conditioning equipment associated with critical temperature computer and server rooms. With this summer being one of the hottest in Texas history, keeping company server rooms at optimum temperatures is not an easy task. Servers and computers that run your network are all designed to function in a very specific temperature range, so even the smallest fluctuation can mean disaster if you do not have a good backup plan. This is where ServerCOOL comes into the picture.

If a company’s computer server crashes, millions of dollars can be lost. The servers can be replaced, but the possible data loss can ruin a company. One of the main causes of server failure is due to overheating, so keeping a server room at the optimum temperature is crucial for peak performance. Part of every company’s disaster recovery plan should include a plan for emergency cooling systems in the event of a shutdown to facility air conditioning. Having several portable AC systems and spot coolers on hand for backup purposes would alleviate some of the problem.

The majority of our emergency response calls involve the failure of air conditioning equipment associated with critical temperature computer and server rooms.. When that happens, getting the server room back to its optimum temperature becomes a top priority for the facility manager, network manager and their portable AC company. This usually involves strategically placing portable AC units or spot coolers into the overheated rooms to remove heat and bring the temperature down as quickly as possible.

ServerCOOL offers 10 ton portable air conditioners that can be rolled into place in minutes and will fit through a 32 inch doorway. This is a major feature not found in most portable AC systems of this size. Having the ability to place a portable cooler that produces 120,000 BTU’s of cold air into a server room can cool a server room down in minutes, which in most cases, saves the day.

ServerCOOL.com has also just implemented a new “live chat” system on their website to assist customers with portable AC sizing and application questions. We aim to give our customers a quick response. When their air conditioning goes down, customers need emergency cooling now, so having a system in place that allows them to chat with an expert speeds up the process of getting their server room back to its optimum temperature.

I’ll bet you weren’t thinking it was this kind of crud. This is an actual condensate pump we got back from a customer that was connected to a MovinCool Office Pro 12. I’m not really sure how old this pump is, or how long it has been on that particular unit, but I’m willing to bet that this one was NEVER cleaned. And as you can figure, the unit stopped running because the pump quit working.

We quickly pulled this pump out and replaced it with a brand new pump, as this one has pretty much seen it’s better days. Customer is happy!

How to Clean a Condensate Pump – for Spot Coolers

Cleaning a condensate pump on your portable AC unit or spot cooler should be done at least once a year, but probably every six months just to be on the safe side. Below are the steps to keeping your condensate pump clean.

1. Turn the power off on your spot cooler, then unplug the unit.
2. Remove the pump from the bottom of the unit. There should be one or two screws holding the pump to the condensate tank housing. Remove the pump and drain all of the water from the pump and housing.
3. Thoroughly wash the pump and tank housing with warm soapy water, including the float.
4. Make a solution of 1/4 cup bleach to 1 gallon of warm water. Pour the solution into the pump and continue until you have run the whole gallon through the pump and the lines.
5. Repeat this process one more time, using clean water without the bleach.
6. Reassemble the pump to the housing and install into your spot cooler.

Cleaning your condensate pump is easy, and takes very little time. This little bit of preventative maintenance can save you lots of headaches and downtime in your server room.

Leave us a comment if you’ve ever seen a pump this nasty, or if you have other condensate pump stories to share.

ServerCOOL provides spot cooler rentals and supplemental cooling for server rooms that require server rack cooling.

Planned Facility Shutdowns and Maintenance Cooling
ServerCOOL also specializes in providing temporary cooling for your facility while you perform necessary periodic maintenance on your existing water chillers or cooling towers.

Emergency Cooling & Portable AC Rentals
ServerCOOL can dispatch portable air conditioners for emergencies any time of the day or night, responding on a 24/7 basis. We provideportable AC rentals on a moments notice, and can have you back in business in a hurry. Portable AC rentals can be on a weekly, monthy or long-term basis.

Temporary Cooling
Whether your temporary cooling requirement is for a week or several months, we will provide equipment, accessories, and labor for your project.

After Hours Cooling
We can provide portable air conditioning systems for supplemental cooling in times when your office building shuts the cooling systems off after normal business hours. Having supplemental cooling systems in place will keep your servers cool and will keep after hour employess comfortable.