For home use cases, a even lower-budget option is to just give up full-depth server racks, and buy a bigger power/Internet box then throw the Pi(s) in instead.

For home use cases, a even lower-budget option is to just give up full-depth server racks, and buy a bigger power/Internet box then throw the Pi(s) in instead. That way you don't need a chassis or many other components listed in the article. And since usually most of these boxes are installed outside the range of "living space", the fan noises should not be a big concern. I have a super low-budget setup for my two SBCs (not Pi) in my parents place [0]. It's been there for more than 3 years now, running a Docker cluster. I'd say it's fairly stable for non-production use. Of course, the box in my case does not allow fan installations. So the cluster runs fairly hot sometimes during summer time. Currently it runs around 60°C (140.00°F) under light~medium load. In the winter, the temperature could drop to as low as around 20°C. [0]: https://imgur.com/a/bfBlUb4 https://imgur.com/a/bfBlUb4