# Other Aquarium Forums > Equipment and Accessories > DIY Projects >  USB powered drink cooler to chill nano tanks

## eviltrain

Good afternoon ladies and gentlemen, 
i came across some gadget website and saw this USB powered drink cooler/warmer. I will be getting the product and see how it goes to modify it for nano chilling. 
Wish me luck  :Grin:

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## vinz

Good luck... could you post the link, so other members can have a look at the gadget and maybe have a go at it?

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## eviltrain

Here's the link as requested. http://www.engadget.com/2007/01/04/u...verages-happy/

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## nickLee

Take a look at this, I'm quite sure its way more efficient  :Wink:  
http://arofanatics.com/forums/showthread.php?t=228620

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## Crystal Red Shrimp

basically i felt that it dont works as it has the same concept as the drink warmer.i have used the drink warmer before and it doesnt keep my drink warm let alone using it as a cooler to cool down the water.

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## eviltrain

If the material containing the drink is not a good heat conductor, the warmer may not be effective. More over, my idea is to have direct contact with the water ( maybe an aluminum foil to protect further ). Haha, don't pour cold water on me. Its just an idea, concept wise haha.

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## vinz

EvilTrain,

Just do it and let us know what results you get. I'm sure people would want to know. My initial concern is the power consumption.

I had thought you would put a metal cup on it and a small pump inside... basically make it like a mini-sump. Put a beer can insulator sleeve upside down on the cup, so that the bottom of the cup still contacts the cooler. At the bottom of the sleeve cut two holes for the pipes.

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## eviltrain

I got the mini fridge unit from cash converter at $15 last week but I have got no time to play with it yet. It comes with AC and DC input and for warming and cooling. Quite worth the buy. Will be taking out the TEM from the unit and transfer to a Lock Lock container look alike which i bought @ $2.05. Will be updating as soon as i start playing more into it.

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## vinz

What happened to the the USB powered drink cooler experiment?

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## eviltrain

I had done my research and feels that that way( using USB power ) is not sufficent enough to cool the amount of water i wanted to cool. So i went to search some other ways.

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## goody992828

Hey Eviltrain

Don't stop man, keep it up, anxious to know the result. Do keep us posted.

Cheers. Upzz for your experiment

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## felix_fx2

eviltrain bro.
the one at engaget site i had used it before back when i was working retail.
works well with can drinks, not mugs.

you bought the cash converters white color one?

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## eviltrain

this is the mini fridge i got from cash converter.

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## eviltrain

I bought another mini chiller from the cash converter last evening. Its rated 55W ie to say. 55W x 24 x 7 x 4 = 36.96kW. it will cost me $7.38 to run it 24/7. In the close environment ( door close ) the temperature can drop to 13 degree C. Now the problem is which kind of DIY shall i go with. 

1. TEM on a unused HOF.

for this DIY, i need to cut a hole behind the HOF just nice to fit in the TEM. Then silicon a cold fin ( aluminum heat sink ) on the inside of the HOF. Next, i will be addind some Thermal Take Thermal gel and spread evenly on to the back of the cold fin. The cold side of the TEM will be slot into the hole which i cut on the back of the HOF. Again, apply the thermal gel on the hot side of the TEM ( facing outside ) and add on a CPU heat sink with fan. 

Schematic : Cold Fin -> Thermal gel -> TEM -> Thermal Gel -> CPU Heat Sink With Fan.

something like this


( there is aready this design out there just that i added a cold fin for more surface area for the water to pass thru )
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...=STRK:MEWAX:IT

OR

2. Drill 2 holes ( inlet outlet ) onto the mini fridge itself.

get a container (just nice to fit into the mini firdge) and a long tube ( plastic / any metal beside copper, around 10 meters long ) to coil and place in the container. both ends of the tube out from the 2 hole i have drilled. Get a mini canister filter ( maybe a Eden 501 ) to push the filtered water into the chiller.

I might as well build both design and compare the results. 

Keep your comment / idea / suggestion comming.

Sponcers are welcome too  :Grin:

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## sheng

You bought the mini fridge from bedok cash converter ?
Is it brand new? 
Is there any more left?
Thanks



> I got the mini fridge unit from cash converter at $15 last week but I have got no time to play with it yet. It comes with AC and DC input and for warming and cooling. Quite worth the buy. Will be taking out the TEM from the unit and transfer to a Lock Lock container look alike which i bought @ $2.05. Will be updating as soon as i start playing more into it.

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## eviltrain

hi sheng, from what i know there's still 2 left. one is with radio another one normal. the one with radio is 25 and the normal one is 15

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## goody992828

Hi Eviltrain

Do you need to add in a thermometer as well? I presume you need one to ensure that it cut off the power if your water temperature reached the desire temperature.

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## sheng

Thanks for the information



> hi sheng, from what i know there's still 2 left. one is with radio another one normal. the one with radio is 25 and the normal one is 15

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## eviltrain

> Hi Eviltrain
> 
> Do you need to add in a thermometer as well? I presume you need one to ensure that it cut off the power if your water temperature reached the desire temperature.


yes. i need a device to monitor the temperature. will be going to SLT to do some shopping.  :Grin:

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## goody992828

Does this mini chiller has a compressor inside? By the way what is teh size of this mini fridge? Just curious and sorry for firing so many bullets....

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## eviltrain

> Does this mini chiller has a compressor inside? By the way what is teh size of this mini fridge? Just curious and sorry for firing so many bullets....


haha no problem, it just use TEM to cool things down. no compressor. size is like around 20cm x 30cm x 30cm.

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## Shadow

if it is end up $7.38 per month, better using compressor. Mine cost only $8-$10 a month for cooling 3ft tank.

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## eviltrain

Its correct Shadow.
But my main concern is for fellow nano/mini tank owners who don't really have the space to have a 3 feet tank at home ( in my case in my room ) or just wants a table top tank.

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## Shadow

use Fan  :Smile: , Unless your room is really-really hot otherwise 27-28 degree is ok. Also for small tank it is pretty easy to top up water loss dues to evaporation.

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## eviltrain

Toping up of water is the reason why i'm doing this. regular top up of water will mess up the water parameters. Most people wants to get nano tank to rear shrimps only. Frequent top up of water will stress the live stocks.

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## Shadow

It is just like Estimate Index as long as you change water once a week should be ok. o... sorry I was thinking more on the Flora then the fauna  :Razz:   :Laughing:

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## stormhawk

Well you don't have to rip apart the mini fridge just for the TEM piece. I think you can buy them from Sim Lim Tower, from what I remember. Alternatively, just get the Dolphin mini-chiller. Same effect based on TEM, but it's ready-made and no need for DIY.

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## felix_fx2

> Well you don't have to rip apart the mini fridge just for the TEM piece. I think you can buy them from Sim Lim Tower, from what I remember. Alternatively, just get the Dolphin mini-chiller. Same effect based on TEM, but it's ready-made and no need for DIY.


You are right bro, TEM can be purchased from SLT.
Think its effictive for bros who use on nano setups where their using HOF like in my nano. No place to squeeze a canister.

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## eviltrain

From what i know, a TEM alone will cost around 10 dollar ( depends on wattage ). If you buy the mini fridge, its cost only 15 dollar with heatsink and fan, and the power for it. If you buy from SLT, all parts will add up to more than 15 dollar + cost of the trip.

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## eviltrain

Its more fun doing DIY also :Smile:

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## goody992828

I do agreed if you DIY yourself will have more fun than buy any off the shell item, provided you must be a very handy man... maybe later you can patent your method and mass produce your product... haha, and if happen you need someone to design the casing I might be able to help.... hahaha.

cheers.

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## eviltrain

thanks brother goody, but i would rather share it with the fellow peoples in the forum. got things must share  :Smile:

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## goody992828

Agreed! Just keep us update with picture will be best, if you succeed I might consider to DIY one myself as well... as I like to keep budget intact.

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## eviltrain

something that i have drawn.

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## goody992828

Hey thank for sharing, but one question, how would you be able to get the mini fridge to stop when your temp in the reaches the require temp setting?

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## eviltrain

Well there's always cheaper alternetives, like using timer. First let the chiller work out to its maximun. Then use a timer to set it 1/2 hour run 1/2 hour stop( Using trial and error method to suit the result or desire temperature you wants to achive). i believe its more than enough to keep the tank water temperature constant at your desire temperature

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## Shadow

you can add sensor to cut off power once desire temp reached

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## eviltrain

Brother shadow, 
i wants to keep the project within the price of 50 dollar to make it attractive to let those who like DIY and keep it cheap.  :Grin:

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## vinz

A thermostat might be more efficient as in it will only switch on the chiller when required and switch it off when not required. It responds accordingly as temperature vary through the day and in general through the year.

The timer will switch on/off the chiller regardless of the water temperature.

Both a timer and thermostat will required money to buy. Since you are DIYing, I assume you could get a cheaper normal water thermostat from places like Sim Lim Tower instead of a more expensive one that is specifically packaged and branded for aquarium.

I'm not aware of the price differences but, in the long run the thermostat might be better value for money.




> Well there's always cheaper alternetives, like using timer. First let the chiller work out to its maximun. Then use a timer to set it 1/2 hour run 1/2 hour stop( Using trial and error method to suit the result or desire temperature you wants to achive). i believe its more than enough to keep the tank water temperature constant at your desire temperature


You'll probably need to have different intervals for the cooler and warmer parts of the day. Not forgetting the average temperature varies through the year. Also weater may vary day to day... may not be good for the tank inhabitants if the temperature differs too much between days.

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## Shadow

you can make simple thermostat.

Dismantle the digital thermometer, take out the sensor. Get some sample of PIC controller (not sure if you still can get free sample now a days  :Razz: ). Get the one with ADC. You need a bit of coding. you can hardcode the temperature setting for example 24, 25, 26, 27, 28 and use dip switch to set which temperature. You also need relay to switch off the TEM. It should be quite cheap.

Just an idea  :Wink:

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## eviltrain

Mr Dear Shadow. Can make one for me?  :Grin: 
just joking. haha. I don't have that kind of digital knowledge to code it. hee hee 
Any kind soul can make one for me? * hint hint*

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## eviltrain

Mr Vinz, 
I did consider that before. the timing can be like 1/2 hour on 1/4 hour off for day time and 1/2 hour on and 1/2 hour off in the night. Well this way is for Digital Noob like me.  :Grin:

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## eviltrain

I will close this thread in order not to confuse others about the topic

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## reviewcart

wort is cooled almost instantaneously (seconds, at most) as it passes through the HX while the wort that hasn't passed through it yet is over 180 degrees.


overall, you want a HX that can accommodate all your wort pass through (total batch) in a half hour, given those parameters.


we can do that in the winter. summer gets closer to 45.

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