Apologies if this was already said, but those evga refurb prices aren't that great, if you're not picky about brand and are a little patient you can find the same or better at Amazon or Newegg...

I have two GPU rigs and two ASICS (an S3 and L3+). I have each of them pointed at Nicehash maybe 1/3-1/2 the time, and I always get paid out accurately by Nicehash. Maybe check your settings? Also note that if you set up a Nicehash wallet, you can save on payout fees if you're patient.

You can mine any SHA256 coin. Check whattomine.com.

I posted this in another thread, but we may be able to put together a large enough order to make shipping to the US worthwhile. PM me if interested.

EDIT TO ADD:

I made a thread in the marketplace section to discuss/plan if we get enough folks. Seems the consensus is that a 10 piece minimum will likely be required. Discussion here:

https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=2425582.msg24818692#msg24818692

They got back to me today to say they don't ship to the US currently and don't have a reseller here. If enough of us are interested we might be able to place a large enough order to make it worth their while, though. PM me if you're interested, I'd be good with coordinating (or buying in if someone wants a bunch and just needs a few people to jump in, either way).

Yes, correct. Any ASIC is specific to the algorithm, so a "bitcoin" miner can only mine SHA256 coins, a "litecoin" miner can only mine scrypt coins, a "dash" miner can only mine x11, etc. ASIC stands for Application Specific Integrated Circuit.

You CAN use USB ASICS, but most of them have the same limitations as their louder, more expensive brethren. If you want to mine obscure coins your best bet is to make a small build computer with one or two cheap GPUs on it, it will give you the widest range of coins to choose from. You can build a single card miner for probably around $300 or so, or less if you use parts you already have/pick up at a second hand store/etc.

Good luck. They don't seem to be set up for individual sales (based on numerous attempts to buy from them).

EDIT: heard back from them today. They are currently not shipping to the US. Europeans and Russians may have better luck though.

Honestly? I don't think there is any profit in buying USB miners. They're fun to mess with and learn about mining from, but their day, like CPU for most coins, is long past. But if you just want to tinker with obscure or brand new launch coins, go for it, that's what I use all my outdated gear for (during winter, when the heat is beneficial, anyway).

If you want to mess around with mining but not spend a fortune at first, the S5 is still a little bit profitable. You can get them on aliexpress for around $200 or so ($220 with a PSU included). I ordered one to play with and mod, but you CAN just use it to mine. I recommend replacing the fans on it though, the one that comes with it is ridiculously loud and if you get some quiet fans in a push/pull it's basically about as loud as an S3. Which is to say not very.

Or buy 80+ gold or titanium so you don't have to worry about them as much, they're designed to run constant at at least 80%. I have a gold 1050W that runs at around 850W constantly and barely even runs warm.

Nothing to add, just bookmarking.

What he/she said. Are you using the 6+2 pins for the risers? Use SATA converters for those, you can even double them up if needed, but don't skimp on the cards themselves. Or pick up a cheap 400W psu for those two cards, they're not very expensive.

Also: the 1070 will draw more than 100W, up to 150W actually. You can keep it low by underclocking or mining a cryptonight coin.

Yup. This. The discussion is "can", not "will", and in the can discussion metal will always be fire safer than wood.

Plastic, though? Depends. I have a 6gpu rig in a 4U rack case, but I also have a 4gpu rig in a milk crate. It's stupid thick, hard plastic. Is it flammable? Technically yes, but literally the whole rig would have to catch fire for it to be a concern (and I keep it on some sheet metal in a concrete basement).

Now the sound dampening box for my L3, however, is built from wood. I do plan to eventually line the interior with sheet metal for this exact reason, but I'm also not shutting it off in the meantime because the risk exists, but is rather low...

If you log into ethos and type "update" (no quotes), it will send the most current data to the web monitor page.

To give you an idea, I have a second gen 8-core i7, and in about 3 days I was able to mine 100 Bytecoin. Go ahead and look up what that's worth, I'll wait.

There are other SHA256 coins, for sure. Return rates aren't great, but if you solo/lottery mine, who knows? Or join a pool with them, it may take forever to get the tiniest bit but, again, it's a fun way to learn. I like Peercoin, personally, and BitcoinCash has done well for my old S3 (well, as well as 500gh/s is going to do, at any rate). Mazacoin in a pool might nab you some coin, and who knows? If it goes up in value, could make it worth your time.

You probably can, but I really don't suggest it. Part of GPU and CPU mining builds is a good amount of attention paid to cooling. Your laptop is designed to run hot likely, but there is a difference between running variably near max throughput while playing a game and running 24/7. It will severely cut the lifespan and could tank it while you still need it.

That said, playing around with miners isn't the worst idea. I've run CPU miners on my Macbook Pro for fun. But I wouldn't expect much in the way of income, so if you just want to learn about mining then go for it, if you actually want to mine I HIGHLY suggest building a rig specifically for it, or buying an ASICS machine.

Also don't expect every new coin to become bitcoin. Like the stock market, most of the low end, cheap and easy options won't go anywhere. Again, that said, it doesn't mean DON'T do it, pointing rigs at new coins is half the fun! Just don't bank on it being worth something later.

I use an old 4U rackmount server case for my 6gpu and a milk crate for my 4gpu. Milk crate is way more heat efficient, I may rebuild the rackmount one into a larger milk crate...

Plus the smaller one is almost portable. It's running ethos and if I can get the wifi working, it can be a mobile "space heater".

I heat my house with miners (also Pacific NW, so 9 months out of the year I don't vent any of them outside). My house thus far this year hasn't dropped below 65, and is usually above 70 (only drops below 70 when I switch the gpu miners to cryptonight coins). I have a 6gpu, a 4gpu, an L3+ and an S3. I have a S5 (for tinkering) and a D3 on the way (I know, I ordered it a while ago). I am building an office in my yard though, so the heat still won't go to waste.

My L3+, for noise, is in a sound dampening box I built in the basement, with insulated ducting pumping the warm air into the kitchen.

I replaced my water heater with a tankless a year or two ago, which sucks because I would LOVE to mod up a water heater (still may work something for beermaking and the like).

Overclocking may shorten the lifespan. It DEFINITELY voids your warranty. I only did it after I reached ROI and I monitor it staunchly. If you have a bunch of machines or have any concerns with temperatures, I don't suggest it (mine runs in a cold basement so I have more room to play).

That seems a little low. I make closer to $19-20/day on Nicehash for my L3+ I think (though it IS slightly overclocked; at stock I was closer to $16-18); Nicehash fluctuates significantly though, based on demand for scrypt mining and value of USD and Bitcoin...

If you want to mine other coins on pools, test it out. It only costs you the amount of time you test it. I've had good returns mining Litecoin directly on litecoinpool, as well as LinX on mylinx.io.

Insulate the ceiling and throw a couple vent fans in for hottest, sunniest days.

As for venting directly, you'd only need a 4" vent, similar to a dryer vent, and some ducting (I used 6" to futureproof it against anything I may want later, but I am also venting inside the house). Easy to cut through a garage wall, you can use a drill attachment.

Neither may be necessary, though. If you're set on the L3+, get it and figure out the rest later (that's what I did). It's cheaper and more fun that way anyway.