Styrofoam safe for a motherboard?

Nick Spolec

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I'm looking tp build a small/slim/lightweight computer that I can easily take with me anywhere, and after looking at different material's I could use to build a case (cardboard, sheet metal), probably the best material I could think of would be styrofoam (due to cheapness, extremely light, and easy to cut and shape).

But, would styrofoam be safe to use as a housing for PCBs? Does styrofoam attract more static? If so, could I do anything to alleviate the problem (maybe using a metal grounding plate)?
 
Nick Spolec said:
Does styrofoam attract more static? If so, could I do anything to alleviate the problem (maybe using a metal grounding plate)?
Sounds to me like you are going to end up building a giant capacitor... perfect for building up a nice big charge....

Seriously though, although you can get conductive foam (chips sometimes are shipped in it), wouldn't its thermal insulation properties be a concern?
 
Well, it's not like you might imagine.

I'm not talking about the huge, thick stryofoam. I was thinking of using styrofoam that is only about 1/2 inch thick, also put in multiple fans, and the system components wouldn't be big heat producers.
 
Nick Spolec said:
Well, it's not like you might imagine.

I'm not talking about the huge, thick stryofoam. I was thinking of using styrofoam that is only about 1/2 inch thick, also put in multiple fans, and the system components wouldn't be big heat producers.

Heat is not the problem, the problem is static electricity, moving a lot of air over Styrofoam can actually produce enough static electricity to generate sparks. If you want to use Styrofoam you need to cover the inside with some kind of anti static material.

Edit:
Another thing is that since Styrofoam tend to become negatively charged and human skin tends to become positively charged, you risk getting small shocks (perfectly safe but slightly painful).
 
Shocking oneself with the casing of a computer (and a styrofoam computer especially I would think) can have odd sideeffects, such as causing instant reboots etc. Even if the computer is grounded.

Doesn't sound like a very good idea to me. :)
 
Thanks all, especially..

Heat is not the problem, the problem is static electricity, moving a lot of air over Styrofoam can actually produce enough static electricity to generate sparks. If you want to use Styrofoam you need to cover the inside with some kind of anti static material.

Edit:
Another thing is that since Styrofoam tend to become negatively charged and human skin tends to become positively charged, you risk getting small shocks (perfectly safe but slightly painful).

Just what I wanted to know.

I don't know much about how electricity works, other then common knowledge (don't blow dry your hair in the 'tub).

So, What about card board (some heavy duty stuff)? Could that be used?
 
You might want to google "pizza box computer", there have been a number of PC's built out of pizza boxes.

If I were doing it I'd probably be a bit chickenshit and would line the cardboard with some cut open anti-static bags for luck.
 
it seems to me that it'd be simpler just to buy a cheapo laptop for $600 and not have to worry about X Y or Z exploding/shocking you/causing a fire/whatever. or hell, why not an SFF case? dunno, just seems to me that with building anything like this you're going to run the risk of overheating or static or a lack of durability...

this was what I thought of first, but like they say, there's absolutely no way to do it with modern parts because of the heat.
 
digitalwanderer said:
If I were doing it I'd probably be a bit chickenshit and would line the cardboard with some cut open anti-static bags for luck.

Antistatic bags are made of metallized plastic, ie, conductive. You could short out your mobo/add-in cards doing that...
 
How much interference can get through a non-metallic case? It's possible that it could interfere with a CRT if placed nearby.
 
What if he cut out the paneling, then lined it with a metal mesh? Perhaps wrapping every non-metalic panel in a metal covering could help ground the surfaces.

Aside from static, sytrofoam's attributes of easy cutting and shaping also mean that it's easy to break or dent it. Since it's going to be moved a lot, I don't think it'd take punishment very well.

I think he's already opted out of styrofoam already, though.
 
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