Ken's Korner

Cooling Tower Spring Time Start-Up Typically in the northern climates cold winters reduce the need for cooling capacity permitting many data centers to take cooling towers off-line.  If you performed an off season lay-up of a cooling tower to help prevent corrosion and bacterial growth, then you are well on your way to a spring start up. Even though you’ve...

Cooling Tower Off Season Layup “Chlorine is a deadly poison gas employed on European battlefields in World War I. Sodium is a corrosive metal which burns upon contact with water. Together they make a placid and un-poisonous material, table salt. Why each of these substances has the properties it does is a subject called chemistry.” ---Carl Sagan, Broca's Brain: The...

The Dangers of Bacteria in a Data Centers Cooling System – Part 2. Data Center Cooling Systems - Dangers of Bacteria In the first part of our discussion on bacteria in a data centers cooling system, we covered the health risk dangers of Legionella bacteria, the corrosive nature of slime forming microorganisms that contribute to microbiologically influenced corrosion (MIC), and...

The Dangers of Bacteria in a Data Center Cooling System When it comes to water treatment programs, one of the biggest concerns in a data center is dealing with microorganisms and the biological controls within your open cooling tower systems. Why you ask? Because of the dangers of bacteria! Legionella Pathogenic bacteria, like Legionella, thrive in open condenser/tower systems.  Legionella bacteria...

Data Center - Fire Protection - Fire Suppression Systems Data Center Fire Protection - Fire Suppression Systems Fire suppression systems are designed to contain and extinguish fires. Smoke detection system in a Mission Critical facility are designed to alert the operator before water or clean agent chemicals are released for fire suppression and in most cases act as the trigger...

Data Center Fire Prevention Tips As the equipment density in a data center rises, so does the demand for power and power cabling.  More equipment with increased power consumption combined into smaller spaces leads to an expanded opportunity for failure and fire risk. A fire within a data center can have catastrophic impact on a company’s operations and business.  Even...

Data Center Fire Detection - VESDA Uptime is paramount in mission critical facilities. Therefore the earliest detection and warning of a potential fire allows for investigation and intervention to prevent damage, downtime, or unwanted agent release. Fire risks in data centers are especially high due to electrical ignition sources and the abundance of combustible materials in an environment of cables and...

  Maximizing Data Center Cooling Efficiency An efficient cooling system minimizes the energy needed to generate cool air used to direct heat away from sensitive computer equipment.  The process of optimizing airflow management involves proper placement of Computer Room Air Conditioners (CRAC), hot and cold air delivery and returns, intelligent rack configurations and cable management. Cable Management Each data center...

Tips for Assessing and Addressing Airflow Problems Tips for retrofitting a legacy data center with airflow management techniques designed to reduce cooling energy costs and increase equipment density capacity. Types of airflow problems • Hot spots – an area, related to a rack or set of racks, where ambient air temperature is above acceptable levels. Typically caused by poor airflow...

Do You Trust Occam's Razor? Occam's (or Ockham's) razor is a scientific principle attributed to the 14th century logician and Franciscan friar William of Ockham. The principle states that "Entities should not be multiplied unnecessarily". Occam's razor claims that, "Simpler explanations (solutions) are, other things being equal, generally better than more complex ones". Apply Occam's razor to the problem below...