My computer tower sits under my desk. To prevent it overheating, I wanted to make sure it had plenty of air flow around it and wasn’t sitting directly on carpet. I decided to make a simple platform to lift it up off the floor, which also makes it easier for plugging in wires and accessing the power button without having to bend down so far.
My previous 8 year old laptop had been used for a large quantity of data analysis, an entire PhD thesis and a multitude of house moves, before it decided to overheat and refuse to turn on again. To prevent that happening to my replacement computer tower, I decided to make a simple platform for the tower to sit on, giving it clear air flow on all sides.
I started by milling up some thicker beams from a dismantled pallet, taking off the darker outer layer and cleaning off a load of the dirt and grime. I am always careful when using pallets to make sure I do not use any that have been chemically treated and have a couple of trusted sources for safe-to-use pallets.
Once I had ripped and cut those pieces to size, I cut down a piece of white melamine coated chipboard (an offcut from an old wardrobe) and then positioned that on top of the pallet pieces.
I drilled some pilot holes and used a countersink bit to recess the top of the screw heads into the chipboard. I then fixed the three pieces together using some woodscrews.
After a quick rough sand to prevent the wood snagging on the carpet, I installed the platform and replaced my computer tower on top. The platform is wider enough to allow an air gap on the right-hand side against the edge of the desk and gives me a surface in front for placing portable hard drives or other media I am connecting to the computer, rather than balancing them on top or simply lying them on the floor. The white melamine also provides an easy wipe-clean surface allowing for removing any dust accumulating, preventing it getting into the computer. Hopefully this should mean I am good to continue blogging for many more years to come! 🔨
The Woodworking Scientist 