THE PROBLEM

Okay, so it's probably no big surprise to anybody to hear that computers and other electronic equipment are very sensitive to heat.  The recent heat wave that we have been experiencing has generated a flurry of emergency calls, primarily due to equipment being kept in closets or small rooms with little or no circulation. In particular, DSL and cable modems can easily go bad if they are kept in environments that exceed 85 degrees for extended periods of time.  Wireless routers and firewalls are also very easily damaged by heat build-up - even the more expensive ones.

The bottom line is that those tiny circuit boards inside the devices generate heat as a byproduct of the electricity flowing through them, and that heat needs to have some way of dissipating; that's why you will almost always find ventilation holes on the side of them.  The better ones will usually have a small built-in fan that will force air across the circuit board, but even then, if the room gets too hot they will still overheat and in many cases, sustain permanent damage.

THE SOLUTION

The best solution is to make sure that any space where you have equipment running is properly cooled and ventilated along with the rest of the building; this is particularly true of small cabinets and closed spaces.  A good short-term fix is simply to leave a door open so that air can move through the space, but eventually you will probably either want to provide air vents at the top and bottom of the door or a side wall so that hot air can flow out of the top and cool air gets pulled in from the bottom.  Placing a small fan that keeps the air circulating around can also help tremendously.  For larger server rooms, installing a small air conditioner with its own thermostat is highly recommended; after all, you're protecting thousands and thousands of dollars worth of equipment!  Besides, when the network goes down, all work comes to a complete standstill for most companies, which can be very expensive.

THE GOOD NEWS

The good news is that electronic equipment works great in cold weather.  In most cases, the colder the better!  So, if you want to save on heating costs during the winter, feel free to close the heating vents to that server room or closet and let it get as cold as it wants. 

So, while we all endure this extended heat wave and do our best to keep ourselves, our families and our pets cool and comfy, take a few minutes and make sure that you didn't forget about your electronic friends that can so easily be taken for granted.

       -PJ