Big Tech data centers are not only being used to power the internet but also to heat people’s homes. But who’s really winning when Facebook keeps you warm at night?

Since 2020, Meta’s hyperscale data center — spanning 50,000 square meters on an industrial estate on the edge of the city — has been pushing warm air generated by its servers into the district heating network under Odense. That heat is then dispersed through 100,000 households hooked up to the system, with Meta providing enough heat to cover roughly 11,000.

  • bitwaba@lemmy.worldEnglish
    2·
    1 year ago

    During this exchange air is run over a compressed coolant which cools the air and reintroduces it back to the room

    That’s just an air conditioner. The difference between an air conditoner and a heat pump is that a heat pump has a reversal valve that allows the refrigerant to run backwards through the system.

    My point is someone is using a whole bunch of words to say “I’d air-condition my server room”. It’s not exactly a ground breaking idea.