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Laptop tray - for your lap [Recommendations?]

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tomos:
App needs to start a blog with all here crazy life hacks.
-mouser (July 04, 2015, 07:47 PM)
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This!  +1
-wraith808 (July 04, 2015, 09:11 PM)
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The problem with that is I don't even know what is or is not a life hack until someone has a problem that needs solving and I look at how I solved a similar problem or how I would solve it. It just comes so naturally to me that I don't really give it much of a thought. And apparently, it's something that runs in my family, and none of us consider it to be much of a special skill. We are all just natural problem solvers and will use whatever we have access to, to do it.-app103 (July 05, 2015, 01:28 AM)
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I've been wanting to start a thread titled something like "Does this exist" - which could probably give you a few ideas. I have two requests along hackable lines at the moment, so will try and get that thread going later today.

app103:
I was thinking I could lay one above the other, with something in-between so they stay separate - that way I'd be kept cool as well as the laptop. (It's been over 100°F / 38°C for the last few days now - and it's still not air-conditioning country...)
-tomos (July 06, 2015, 05:39 AM)
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They do make ones that are meant to stack, too:

http://www.amazon.com/Bakers-Secret-Tier-Cooling-Rack/dp/B00BDSHCPE/

I don't know how stable that would be on your lap, though, since it was designed to sit on a counter that stays still.

Also, if the exhaust fans on your laptop is blowing hot air out of the bottom, it will likely cause you to be even more uncomfortable, blowing the hot air right through the racks and directly onto your lap. At least the cutting board I suggested would shield you from that and therefore could make you feel cooler.

You could also place an icepack or 2 on your lap, under the cutting board, without any worries about the coldness of it causing a condensation issue that could damage your laptop. The cutting board would be thick enough to protect the laptop from that. And while you might end up with a wet lap if it is humid, you'll be sufficiently chilled enough to not care how hot the weather is. In fact, you might need to take a periodic break to warm up and prevent frostbite.  :D

One of these rolling pins, filled with water and frozen, then placed on my lap while I am working or doing whatever (seated in a chair) is one of my summer survival tools. I have also been known to fall asleep hugging it during especially hot weather. 

A 1.5 liter soda bottle recycled for this purpose would work, too, and you could keep a couple in your freezer, so you can swap them out periodically. That way you always have a frozen one ready to use while the other is refreezing.  It could also adjust the angle of the cutting board to make typing more comfortable, by raising the front of the cutting board, rather than the rear of it. ;)

And you might want to keep those frozen bottles in your freezer year round, if you have the room for it. Filling up the empty space in your freezer with bottles of water will save you money on your electric bill by preventing the compressor from needlessly kicking on so so frequently, as it tries to keep all the empty space cold. And in the event of a power failure, the frozen bottles will help keep your freezer cold and your food from spoiling.

app103:
I've been wanting to start a thread titled something like "Does this exist" - which could probably give you a few ideas. I have two requests along hackable lines at the moment, so will try and get that thread going later today.
-tomos (July 06, 2015, 05:44 AM)
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I'll be sure to subscribe to it. :)

tomos:
[...][20 tips in one post][...]-app103 (July 06, 2015, 02:07 PM)
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 :D

PS do the 'soda bottles' have to be strong plastic in order to hold the expanding water/ice?

app103:
[...][20 tips in one post][...]-app103 (July 06, 2015, 02:07 PM)
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 :D
-tomos (July 06, 2015, 04:07 PM)
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I told you this just comes naturally. It's like breathing to me.

PS do the 'soda bottles' have to be strong plastic in order to hold the expanding water/ice?

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Thanks for reminding me about that. Forgot to mention what you need to do to prevent the bottles from splitting...

Fill them about 90% and give them a good squeeze to remove the air, as you tightly cap them, so they will be partially collapsed, looking more oblong than round. That way when they expand, they won't burst. This is more important to keep them from bursting when you have it on your lap than when it's in the freezer, since shortly after your body heat hits it, there is the potential for a very sudden, loud, visible, ice shattering expansion. It's similar to the sudden shattering that occurs when dropping an ice cube in a room temperature drink, but on a much larger scale.

Soda bottles also have a funny shaped bottom to keep them from exploding under pressure from the carbonated beverage they were designed for, which also helps when they are full of ice. But if that is the only direction it can expand, you will never be able to stand the bottle up again, and there is still the potential for the side of the bottle to split.

Oh, and I hope I don't have to say this, but don't rest the frozen bottle on bare skin unless you like pain & frostbite. Always keep a layer of cloth of at least t-shirt thickness between you and the bottle.

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