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A few questions about a TEC I want to buy.

J

joeyss

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Amazon.com: TEC1-12709 Thermoelectric Cooler Peltier 90W 138.6Wmax: Electronics


1. Is it a good deal for the price?
2. Will this be able to cool a 12 oz soda in can by 20 degrees or more?
3. I heard it gets to around 37 F on the other side at 12.5 volts on the 90w one
How much colder should this one get?
4. Do I just hook it to the positive and negative ends of a battery to power it?
5. As for heat sinking. If I place a bunch of pennies about 4-6 pennies thick and cover the whole button will that work? If Not what will I need?

Please answer all you can. I want to buy this, but I'll wait to see if there's not something better that another member posts for the same price or a bit more with it being more power.
 





ARG

ARG

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I have the same TEC and as for number 5, pennies will not work if you plan to cool a drink with the TEC. I have to use a CPU heatsink with a fan to cool the hot side (running at 3A 12V). It really depends on how fast you want your drink to be chilled.
 
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J

joeyss

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I wasn't intending to cool a drink with it as its primary use. It was more of a test to see if it can draw sifficent heat away. What about using the pennies and putting it in mineral oil and not letting it touch the tec, but most of the pennies? Also is there a way to hook it up to a 12 volt DC plug that gives like 8 amps? It says it uses up to 9 A is this correct? Should I just got with the 90 watt or the 77 one? I just need something that could get a laser cooled off faster ( I want to mess with WL shifts and I don't want the laser to run too hot, but I have other reasons for getting this thing too.)
 
ARG

ARG

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No idea about the mineral oil... But you could hook it up to a 12V @ 8A. If you just want to cool your laser off, you'll need very little current, maybe 750mA, these things get really cold really fast at 3A.
 
J

joeyss

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Do I just connect both points to the DC jack? I have some plugs that are 12V. Also thanks for the info about 3 Amps. I heard 7.2 volts from a battery is OK to cool with too.
 
ARG

ARG

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joeyss said:
Do I just connect both points to the DC jack? I have some plugs that are 12V. Also thanks for the info about 3 Amps. I heard 7.2 volts from a battery is OK to cool with too.
Click to expand...

Yup, it's plug and play :)

Edit: Just tried it with two li-ions, works great.
 
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J

joeyss

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Thanks you were very helpful. So could I use my ghetto heat sink for 1.5 amps to 3A for a few minutes to cool something or or these things heat sensitive? Also would this cool better at 3 A vs a smaller one at 3 or 4 A? Oh and where did you get yours from?
 
qumefox

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ARGLaser said:
these things get really cold really fast at 3A.
Click to expand...

Only with adequate heatsinking on the hot side. If you just let it hang in the air, the whole thing will get hot.

Basically these work at a delta T that's related to the input current. The more current, the higher the delta T. But the hot side has to be able to reject the heat that's absorbed from the cold side.
 
J

joeyss

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But can I get a combination of copper and mineral oil to work? I just need to get it cool to around 10 to 30F or more if the heat sink can handle more heat. Will condensation be a danger to this thing and can I just use WD-40 to protect it from that on the cold side?
 
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qumefox

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Why can't you use a proper heatsink? And if your dealing with a laser. I wouldn't really want to get it anywhere near that cold unless your in a VERY low humidity environment. I wouldn't try to cool a laser much past 50F for condensation reasons.
 
J

joeyss

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The room I'm working in is already around 66-68 when I turn the AC up. I'd imagine it would remove alot of the humidity if I turn it on high and close the door. I don't need to cool it past 45 or 50 F for any laser I have now, but I need it to be able to cool a bit colder if I need it. Is their anything that I could use for a sufficient heat sink in an old computer? I have a bunch of those in the attic. Isn't their a heatsink for the PSU?

Edit: Also I don't have any heat sinks and I'd like to DIY something.
 
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qumefox

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CPU heatsink should be sufficient if it's large enough.. P4 and up.

Also if you want to maintain a specific constant temperature, you'll need some type of active control for the TEC, which means buying or building an actual driver for it.
 
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J

joeyss

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I dunno what they are , but we have like 5 to ten, they're like 10 to 20 years old. I guess I'll see what I can make from it by drilling and stuff. If heatsinked right and in a room 68 F is it possible to get this to 0 F or colder?
 
qumefox

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With a large enough heatsink, yes. You WILL get ice on whatever your cooling though.
 
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