David Lesher wrote:
Speaking on Deep Background, the Press Secretary whispered:
I wonder just how much power it takes to cool 450,000 servers.
.....
KwH = $111,000 /month in cooling.
I don't know the area; but gather it's hydro territory?
How about water-source heat pumps? It's lots easier to cool 25C air into say 10-15C water than into 30C outside air.
Open loop water source systems do have their issues [algae, etc] but can save a lot of power....
The Dalles, OR is on the Columbia River just upriver of Portland by 80 miles or so. It has a large dam spanning what used to be Celilo Falls in it's front yard. Hydro territory doesn't even begin to define it... :-) "Eco-freak" territory also doesn't begin to define it, so the idea of piping water off the Columbia and returning it even 1/2 degree warmer is a non-starter. I'm amazed they let them put up tall cooling towers in "the historic, scenic Columbia River Gorge...." (sorry, old political battle flashback)