external iMac cooling device needed

[w01fpack81]

I have an iMac that I use for work, from home. It seems to have been used quite a bit, on top of me using it about 12 hours/ day six days a week for a few months.
I need a cooling device that I can detach and won't leave any marks & that will be dry so it won't get moisture inside.
Any help would be beneficial, especially any web links to products I can order online. Thanks in advance.

Here are the specs:
iMac (21.5-inch, Late 2009)
3.06 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo
4GB 1067 MHz DDR3
NVIDIA GeForce 9400 256MB

 

[DeltaMac]

Generally, the best cooling strategy is to simply let the Mac take care of itself (it does a pretty good job, part of the design of the cooling system)

However -
Does your iMac actually get hot - to the point of shutting itself off (which will happen in the event of overheating)?
You can use one of several utilities to monitor the actual temps reported by the various temp sensors located all through the iMac.
iStat Menus is one.
Or, you can use smcFanControl to both monitor the temps, and control the fans manually, adjusting the speed if you feel the temps need attention.

 

[w01fpack81]

Generally, the best cooling strategy is to simply let the Mac take care of itself (it does a pretty good job, part of the design of the cooling system)

However -
Does your iMac actually get hot - to the point of shutting itself off (which will happen in the event of overheating)?
You can use one of several utilities to monitor the actual temps reported by the various temp sensors located all through the iMac.
iStat Menus is one.
Or, you can use smcFanControl to both monitor the temps, and control the fans manually, adjusting the speed if you feel the temps need attention.

Thanks for the reply. I can't install anything onto the computer, really. Anything I use would have to be something I can disconnect in a jiffy as if it was never there in the first place.

 

[DeltaMac]

The temp utilities are not hardware that would modify your computer, just a utility app that can tell you if, in fact, your computer is hot, and also to allow you to control the fans.
Actually pretty useful to monitor what's happening on your Mac, and doesn't change your Mac at all, other than giving you a useful tool to help you decide if your Mac needs help with cooling.

Why do you think that you need auxiliary cooling? (which would be pretty unusual)
Does your iMac actually get hot? (and this is where the utility to monitor your temps will be useful )

If it gets really hot where you use your Mac (over 90˚F room temp), why not just use a portable fan of some kind?
That would be something that doesn't even touch the iMac, yet you can effectively cool it by directing air flow where you think it has the most effect.
And, you can still use the same temp utility to see if your fan cooling is as effective as I think it would be.

(Just curious, Why can't you install any software? I guess the computer doesn't belong to you, and you don't know the admin password which you would need.... Then the portable fan would be your best choice, I suppose.)

 

[colodane]

You really haven't provided much detail as to the kind of applications/usage you have there or about how the iMac is responding. Are the fans running constantly at high speed? Is it too noisy for you? Is it actually shutting down due to high temps?

One easy way to reduce the heat load will cost you nothing. The power to the display is often the main source of heat unless you are running very CPU-intensive applications. Turning down the display brightness will help you with power dissipation. Also don't position the iMac in direct sunlight. This will cause the screen brightness to increase - either automatically or manually due to the high ambient light. Consider closing your blinds some during the say if you are getting direct outside light on the computer.

 

[cynics]

Is there a specific reason for this requirement?

I've been doing pure software decoding ~20-30 hours a week meanwhile running a Linux in a VM near constantly for years without any problem. External cooling (aside from lower ambients) wouldn't do too much to help aside from force more dust into the machine.

 

[roberthallin]

I would say that maybe the best thing you could do if you want the cooling system to run more efficiently is to open it up and go to town with a can of compressed air. I recently opened up my 2011 iMac and after six years of use it was dust city in there.

 

[havokalien]

might need new paste on processor and video card also.

 

[Steve121178]

I have an iMac that I use for work, from home. It seems to have been used quite a bit, on top of me using it about 12 hours/ day six days a week for a few months.
I need a cooling device that I can detach and won't leave any marks & that will be dry so it won't get moisture inside.
Any help would be beneficial, especially any web links to products I can order online. Thanks in advance.

Here are the specs:
iMac (21.5-inch, Late 2009)
3.06 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo
4GB 1067 MHz DDR3
NVIDIA GeForce 9400 256MB

You don't need such a thing. No one needs such a thing.

 

[Samuelsan2001]

I have an iMac that I use for work, from home. It seems to have been used quite a bit, on top of me using it about 12 hours/ day six days a week for a few months.
I need a cooling device that I can detach and won't leave any marks & that will be dry so it won't get moisture inside.
Any help would be beneficial, especially any web links to products I can order online. Thanks in advance.

Here are the specs:
iMac (21.5-inch, Late 2009)
3.06 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo
4GB 1067 MHz DDR3
NVIDIA GeForce 9400 256MB

If your Mac is not up to the job you want to use it for then you need a new computer it's that simple an 8 year old computer will be struggling with modern apps, browsers, graphics etc and the fans will spin up and it'll get hot, at that age a clean out of dust and a reapplication of thermal paste may help but it's reaching the end of its usable life.

if you use it to earn 12 hours a day (as you suggest) then it's probably time to use that computer replacement budget you have been paying into for 8 years, as it's time to reinvest in what is clearly your main tool for your job.