by Chip Chapman, President of Conway Center for Family Business member Integrated Building Systems
Summer weather can overheat technology systems. Prevent costly repairs by following these 5 easy tips to keep your office technology systems cool this summer:
- Control the temperature. From small equipment rooms to large data centers, work cubicles to private offices, a cool environment will help technology hardware operate at its peak. Do all you can to moderate room temperatures: service your HVAC system, add spot cooling where needed, caulk leaky windows and doors, add room-darkening blinds if sunny windows heat up your space, switch to LED lighting.
- Retire idle equipment. Even if you’re not using them, old servers and computers are generating heat if they’re still plugged in. At least unplug unnecessary equipment, and consider recycling it. IBS collects old electronics for recycling—just call 614-240-5999 to arrange a drop-off time.
- Tidy the cabling. Tangled cabling can trap the heat released from servers and other equipment. Proper cable management will make moves-adds-changes easier and faster—and aid air flow, too.
- Clean your equipment. When was the last time you dusted behind your computer? Remove the grime and dust that accumulates on fan blades and slotted covers. If you have a raised floor, clean that space, too.
- Use a quality UPS. Summer thunderstorms often zap the power, which can in turn fry the fans that cool IT equipment. Spend the money to buy a quality uninterrupted power supply (UPS) and protect all your hardware investments.
Bonus tip: Remove abandoned cabling. Low-voltage voice and data cabling does not lack high-voltage fire power. For example, if the wrong type of cabling is used in an open-air-return HVAC system, it can burn like wildfire. More fuel for the fire? Installing cable through a fire break and not resealing the hole with an approved fire-stopping material is another no-no. Be safe and follow the National Electric Code requirement to label, reuse, or remove abandoned cabling.
Do you have questions about keeping your IT cool this summer? Maybe it’s time to tidy hot, messy data closets? Call IBS at 614-240-5999 or schedule an on-site evaluation with one of our technology experts.
Sources: The Cabling Guide by IBS, CIO.com, Blog.shi.com, Superheroyou.com
(used by permission of the author)