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Question

My house is destroying all my computers.. help??

Dec 27, 2014 6:34PM PST

Hi there Happy Ok I am a computer noob, so; sorry.

Over the last 6 weeks or so I have had three computers stop working in almost the same way.
They were all second hand but it seems too unlikely that they all had almost exactly the same problem as they 'died'.

So I'll start off with the first one, it was a desktop "AMD Phenom 8650 Triple core". It seemed to work ok when I first turned it on, except that the sound wasn't working and at that point I didn't know to go to the website and simply re install the sound drivers.
Anyway, unrelated to the sound drivers the computer after a few boot ups seemed to have some issues, the computer would turn on but not load into windows properly as soon as it got to the windows screen in would return to the part of the boot up before that and continue in an endless cycle.
Eventually after hours of attempts I managed to get into windows and delete any personal information off the computer before it was to be returned to the seller. A few of the other times I tried to turn on the computer and it would die almost as soon as it had started powering up. So I gave up and returned the computer to the seller.

The next computer that came along was loaned to me by my father. It was another desktop computer. It was fairly old and slow but it worked well enough to listen to music. So I had it playing music on youtube for a night and happily went to sleep. The next morning I started up the computer, went to youtube and got a couple o f songs out of the computer and then out of nowhere there was a flash of the BSOD and the computer completely powered off. After that it had a similar problem to the first computer. It had trouble running through the startup and would get stuck on the windows loading window. It would also have trouble with staying powered on after startup. It would also shut off a few seconds after switching it on.

So my last computer I decided to spend a little bit more money on, yet it is also second hand. This one is a ASUS X5DAB.
The first time I turned it on it was ok. It seemed to be in fairly good condition and working relatively well. The only thing that I noticed was that there seemed to be some kind of problem with what I figured must be the power supply.
The backlight on the computer would go bright and then dim semi erratically and it seemed as if the computer was refreshing itself as the windows open would look like they were all trying to resize and they would quickly disappear and reappear as the screen would flicker to black and then back to the normal windows. Also the computer would at times not register that it was connected to the power supply or it would take a long time to realize it.

None the less I managed to work with it for a while and download a few free antiviruses, set up email accounts etc. Then I spent a night listening to music on youtube.

The next day I proceeded to listen to more music on youtube... After a few songs out of nowhere there was a sudden flash of BSOD and my computer was dead.

Since then I moved the computer into a different room and plugged in into a new power socket, then let the battery charge for a while and it worked for a few hours before once again powering off.

After that I was lucky if the computer remained working for two minutes.

However for some reason, I tried out the computer at another house and after plugging it in for half an hour it ran for around thirty minutes before dying again.

I repeated the procedure of charging in the same power socket to no avail and would be lucky to get ten seconds of the computer running.

The computer is back home now and I have attempted charging it and it will only run for 5 seconds or so if that...

Sorry for writing so much, does any one know what could be going on?

Any help would be much appreciated,

Cheers Happy

Discussion is locked

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Answer
Check outlets
Dec 27, 2014 8:17PM PST

If you're plugging in to the same AC outlet, then possible home circuits are wonky. Only a true electrician can really check that for you. It could be anything AC wise or wiring. You can try a simple AC surge(single) at the end of plug and then plug into a surge protected strip before connecting PC in. A simple meter on the AC line could show possible spikes or surges if that frequent. Also, if that AC line has other items connected on that "circuit", remove them or relocate the PC for testing purposes. Also, an AC line conditioner maybe required for your home that entirely different from a surge or UPS type setup. If you had all these working together they may protect your PC, too. That's surge protection, AC line conditioner and UPS all together.

It certainly helps to explain what PC model# and specs are involved. You say, "charging" heck desktops don't charge only laptops or networks, excluding any tablets.

If you add any s/w to the PC, YouTube has "iffy" freebies for doing this. Some are not to be trusted and can hose a PC up. It doesn't matter if you used it before, d/l'ing may introduce an issue.

Now, you're using 2nd hand PC's are they really that good? Check outside the home to see if they work well before trying at home. Also, if your location has "power issues" like brownouts or similar, then consider that as well. Alas, cheap is cheap if build from used parts, something maybe on its last days.

tada -----Willy Happy

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Faulty systems
Dec 28, 2014 12:14AM PST

It sounds to me as if the computers in question have/had issues from the get go. A VOM and a ground fault detector generally tell the tale when it comes to most basic line voltage/wiring and plug grounding issues. And as you said a good UPS might be in order. But I am thinking the computers in question...are in question.

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I agree
Dec 28, 2014 12:25AM PST

If it was the house you would be losing other than PCs in the home.

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ups
Dec 28, 2014 4:13AM PST

I feel it might be something with the power supply also, three computers down just seems too many.. but hey.. maybe I just have terrible luck :/

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must check outlets :)
Dec 28, 2014 4:10AM PST

Hi, thank you for the reply. By 'circuit' are you meaning the type of multi box that various devices can be plugged into? I'm thinking that the issues might have to do with power surges. I've listed most of the details I know about the computers. I could add that the motherboard on the first computer was a Asus M3A78-EM. But I find it strange that each computer has 'died' in almost the same way. The third computer was a laptop.... hence the refference to charging... Downloading what sorry? I'm not sure the PC's came from sellers with very good feedback, so I'm suprised that both of the oens purchased died so similarily. I've just moved into my house not sure if it has power issues or not. Cheers for the help an apologies for the bad grammar, Am currently using my flatmates computer on which the on screen keyboard and regular enter button do not work... The purchased laptop.. well that doesn't work for more than a few seconds Happy

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lightning lately?
Dec 28, 2014 5:59AM PST

by circuit could be on the same breaker in the breaker box. has there been any lightning in your area lately? any power outages? The best thing to plug into is a backup power supply. It will prevent most power issues.

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No lightning
Dec 28, 2014 7:27AM PST

Hello Happy No there hasn't been any lightning lately, but I will definately try using a backup power supply in the future, cheers for the advice

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New move-in
Dec 28, 2014 10:44AM PST

You say, you just moved in and now you've noticed PCs dying. A PC is prone to any power issues more readily because it needs its PSU providing various output within its operations. The AC outlet in a typical home is 2 but a circuit is usually 2x2 outlets. So, if a printer, A/C unit or maybe a refrigerator, etc., some heavy power user can cause AC problems, especially for a PC. I wouldn't hesitate to get at least the surge protector and maybe a simple brick type UPS. It certainly appears you need them as PCs are dying too quickly. If a std. light bulb glows oddly now and then is a sure sign of power surges. A laser printer can dim a light if too much current is being drawn during initial use, then settles. Also, if this is an old home maybe the wiring could be an issue. You have such bad luck going here, you need to sort this out and checking the home wiring and circuits, etc. if you continue to want a PC used there.

tada -----Willy Happy

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Robust
Dec 29, 2014 1:24PM PST

Computers are some of the most robust devices in a house. Incandescent bulbs can dim to 40% intensity due to a voltage drop. Even that is perfectly good power for any computer. AC power can drop that low and not one internal DC voltage must flinch.

A meter is a useful tool to obtain better answers from the fewer who know this stuff. But in this case, even an incandescent bulb reports sufficient information. If a major appliance causes light bulbs to change intensity, then a house wiring problem has been identified.

A surge does not cause a light bulb to change intensity. Surges occur typically once every seven years. And typically occur only for microseconds. A microsecond surge would never cause a bulb to change intensity. And cannot be measured by a meter.

Other parameters further define how robust a computer must be. Any discussion of risk or damage is defined with numbers.

Well, this 120 volts UPS in battery backup mode outputs 200 volt square waves with a spike of up to 270 volts. Because electronics are so robust, even that 'dirtier' power is perfectly good power.

What does a surge protector do for low voltage? Nothing. Learn from specification numbers before considering recommendations. A number is on each protector's box. 120 volts must well exceed 330 volts before a protector might do anything. A protector does nothing useful for any low voltage.

Meanwhile, low voltage also does not damage electronics.

None of this answers the OP's concerns. But it explains how a solution is obtained. Ignore speculation and urban myths. Those are made obvious by suggestions without numbers. Incandescent bulb behavior may provide additional useful information.

Of course, best evidence is always the dead body. Fewer who know this stuff can provided useful answers only if hard facts are provided. Such as which part inside each PSU failed. Computer techs who actually know how electricity work can provide that fact. Unfortunately, most computer techs have no idea how electricity works. Cannot identify a failed part. And may recommend a protector or UPS to do what even its manufacturer does not say it will do.

Do any light bulbs change intensity? What part inside the dead body failed? How do you know a power supply is even damaged? And finally, numbers are essential for getting help from the better informed. That BSOD had critically important numbers. Those numbers would have made possible useful answers from the fewer who really know this sfuff. Always get and record numbers.