Does Arduino Need Cooling
No, Arduino does not need cooling unless the Arduino starts trapping heat inside it. Normally Arduino works fine under optimum conditions if it starts drawing more current than its prescribed limit. If any current hungry device is attached to Arduino it may lead to overall temperature rise.
Arduino can operate between temperature range of -40°C to 85°C. Exceeding this range will affect Arduino performance and may cause damage to board.
Why Arduino Gets Hot
Usually, Arduino gets hot when peripherals attached to Arduino start drinking excess amount of current from Arduino pins or there might be a short circuit on Arduino board. Let’s discuss common mistakes that leads to overheating:
- Excessive Voltage Supply
- Overcurrent Drawn
- Extreme Weather Condition
- Short Circuit
Excessive Voltage Supply
Unstable power supply might lead to heating up the Arduino board. If the Arduino is powered up using a poor external power supply with rippled and unstable voltages then it can easily damage the Arduino board. Arduino has two inbuilt voltage regulators one for 5V and second one for 3.3V. These regulators reduced incoming voltages to required voltage that is 5V, all the excessive voltages are dissipated in the form of heat. It’s recommended to use a 7V stable power supply with Arduino.
Overcurrent Drawn
Arduino pins are designed to take maximum 40mA current per I/O pins and 200mA for the whole microcontroller. Remember these are the absolute maximum ratings, it’s recommended to draw less current than these limits. If somehow any current sinking load or circuit is attached to the Arduino board it will heat up Arduino very easily. Overheat will turn off the Arduino board itself until Arduino comes back to its normal temperature.
Extreme Weather Condition
Arduino works fine until operated inside allowed temperature range that is -40°C to 85°C. Extreme conditions may lead to expansion of electronic components. Normally Arduino can withstand extreme conditions but going beyond limit will heat up Arduino.
Short Circuit
If the Arduino temperature is increasing as it is powered up, then there might be some wires messing up causing a short circuit. Most likely if Arduino has a short circuit in its soldering; voltage regulator will heat up resulting in overall temperature rise.
How to Keep Arduino Cool
While working on complex projects using Arduino temperature is one of the factors that needs to be checked. Following tips will help to keep Arduino cool:
- Instead of relying on an internal Arduino 5V regulator, use an external efficient voltage. regulator to overcome excess heat generated by the voltage regulator.
- Do not cross Arduino voltage and current limits.
- Use a proper ventilation case if the Arduino is enclosed inside the box.
- Use a stable power supply that can provide constant voltage instead of ripple input.
- Avoid powering external circuitry using Arduino pins.
Conclusion
Arduino works fine under normal conditions; it doesn’t need any external cooling. Some projects demand high computational power from Arduino. It’s better to take precautions before Arduino heats up. If somehow the Arduino board keeps getting hot, then it’s time to change the Arduino board and get a new one.
