Computer Burning? Where? What To Do?

[Thanh-BKK]

Hello.

When i turned on my computer this morning, within less than a minute there was a smell coming from it, typical of "burning electronics". However the machine seemed to work normally. I waited for Linux to finish booting and shut it down again, then i brought my BF to work and had it off during that time (about half hour).

Upon my return i opened up the computer (it's a home build) and looked all over it - i could not find anything that looked like it had burned, also no damaged capacitors or similar.

The smell appears to be the strongest in the top of the machine, however it is NOT from the PSU itself. Apart from the PSU, there's both my ODD's there and the RAM (and the mainboard, of course).

Now i didn't take the RAM out, i just started the machine again and it worked normally. The smell did not seem to come from any particular place, there was no visible smoke or anything.

So i closed the case again and got to work, the smell still came out of the back but i don't know - is that now "fresh smell" or just wah thad accumulated inside the machine?

All fans, i have to add, are running fine, there is no dust (well almost none) inside and the CPU and HDD temperatures are normal as well.

Also i tested both ODD's and they both work fine, too. And judging by Ubuntu's system monitor, the RAM is also fine, all 2 GB of it working.

So where might that smell be from, and do i need to worry? What is worst case scenario - can computers burst into flames?

Every single part in the machine is still under warranty, so should i just keep it running and the smell either goes away or something blows up, and then i have that part exchanged, or..? What should i do? (Both HDD's are in the bottom of the machine, there was no smell detectable, so i am not overly worried about data loss, plus i have a rather current backup)

Best regards.....

Thanh

Edited May 21, 2008 by Thanh-BKK

[A_Traveller]

Frying ants? No not a joke, I know of this occurring upon occasion.

Regards

[Wolfie]

then i brought my BF to work and had it off during that time (about half hour).

No comment :D

The smell appears to be the strongest in the top of the machine, however it is NOT from the PSU itself. Apart from the PSU, there's both my ODD's there and the RAM (and the mainboard, of course).

Now i didn't take the RAM out, i just started the machine again and it worked normally. The smell did not seem to come from any particular place, there was no visible smoke or anything.

So i closed the case again and got to work, the smell still came out of the back but i don't know - is that now "fresh smell" or just wah thad accumulated inside the machine?

All fans, i have to add, are running fine, there is no dust (well almost none) inside and the CPU and HDD temperatures are normal as well.

Also i tested both ODD's and they both work fine, too. And judging by Ubuntu's system monitor, the RAM is also fine, all 2 GB of it working.

So where might that smell be from, and do i need to worry? What is worst case scenario - can computers burst into flames?

Every single part in the machine is still under warranty, so should i just keep it running and the smell either goes away or something blows up, and then i have that part exchanged, or..? What should i do? (Both HDD's are in the bottom of the machine, there was no smell detectable, so i am not overly worried about data loss, plus i have a rather current backup)

Best regards.....

Thanh

Could have been some dust/fluff that got caught up and burnt away, how 'clean' is your PC on the inside. Also could have been critters (Ants, geckos etc) - i know in phuket i had my PC open (side panel off all the time) and i was for-ever cleaning out gecko sh*t from inside, might be possible you had some burning sh*t inside your machine

Keep a close eye on it over the next day or so and if in doubt just power off your machine (not close down, rip the plug out of the wall if you need to) - its better to loose a bit of data and have to reinstall than it is to have to goto pantip and buy new parts

[Thanh-BKK]

Hello

Well, as i mentioned, while not clean as an operating room my computer is certainly not full of dust bunnies - in fact i only had it apart little over two weeks ago to change a HDD and in that time also put one additional fan inside (to cool the HDD's). Then i used canned air to blow all dust out, but there wasn't much to begin with.

I know the difference between dust burning off and something electronic smoldering - here it was definitely the latter, still i couldn't localize it as the smell seemed to sit in the top of the machine only, yet not from inside the PSU.

I can safely rule out the following components as the source:

PSU

either HDD

modem card

graphics card

PCI-USB card

any of the fans

As all these components (apart from the PSU) are in the lower half of the case and there was no smell at all detectable.

That leaves the CPU, mainboard, RAM, either ODD and the front panel which has an LCD display to monitor temperatures etc. Yet - the entire computer was still working perfectly, i believe if something is burning away it should crash or otherwise behave funny? I mean, once i had the floppy power plug the wrong way round and it wouldn't even boot because that was a short and the PSU (an Enermax 450 watts) protects from such.

Regarding the ants, i always have ants in and around the computer but how would they start frying less then a minute after a cold boot? Something must have gotten seriously hot in that short time. And again - judging by the smell it was definitely something electronic, not something biological that was burning.

My problem is that i am only active on the machine for a couple of hours in the morning and then another couple of hours in the evening, the rest of the day it runs unattended. By the time i left home today there was still smell coming out from the back, but not strong, which is why i think probably only what had accumulated in the case before (burnt electronics smell tends to stick around quite long!) so i left it running. I hope it'll still be running when i return home tonight

What i will check tomorrow is all power cable connectors - maybe there's something lose somewhere around the ODD's (some of the extra fans are connected with these molex-"adaptors").

Best regards.....

Thanh

[sensei]

With regards to the ants, see this http://www.twit.tv/143

As for the burning smell, keep an eye on that unit. You don't want to have a fire hazard in the house. Better safe than sorry.

Good luck on your hunt for that smoldering clue and please keep us posted if you find any hot info.

[Thanh-BKK]

Hi

Thanks for that. By now i have a very stupid feeling in the belly area...... i went to the private torrent site where i am active and could not see anything active in my account - could be the internet, could be the software crashed - or could be the computer up in smoke.

And i still have to sit another 4 hours here at the office!!

Aaaaargh.

Also just spent my last available $$ this morning on a f***ing rain suit. These things cost a <deleted>' FORTUNE here.

Anyway will keep you posted.

Best regards.....

Thanh

[Crossy]

Hope it's not gone fizz and taken the house with it

Since you got the smell when it seemed to be working OK, I'd put money on it being a failed Tantalum capacitor, they tend to fail short-circuit and if it was a decoupler across the 5V your PSU would have more than enough ooph to blow the short away and normal operation would resume. Look for small damaged areas with a pair of leads sticking out into nowhere.

If it was a tant. and things seem to be ok now, leave it be

[Thanh-BKK]

Hello.

Things are NOT ok. I got confirmation from my boyfriend, who is at home already, that the rig is DEAD. Won't turn on.

GREAT!!!

The SECOND <deleted> system meltdown in 1 1/2 years. Why does this sh!t always happen to me? How come those cheap chicken computers in my office keep running for 10 years and never have a hiccup? Why every machine i build for anyone lasts a lifetime? But why my OWN can't even make it 18 months?????????

I feel SO like robbing a bank and buying a Mac!

Regards......

Thanh

[Crossy]

If it's dead, time for an autopsy (photos please ref http://www.phobe.com/furby/).

Take it apart, you're bound to find the source of the smell, even if you don't suspect the PSU I'd have the lid off it first, remember all technology is powered by smoke, when the smoke comes out it stops working

If you're losing technology on a regular basis invest in an AVR and UPS, it's amazing how long this stuff lasts if it's not being bombarded by brownouts, surges etc etc.

By the way, it's not just you. Over the years I've lost count of the iffy solutions I've implemented that are still going strong aeons later, meanwhile my own carefully engineered stuff dies on a daily basis (usually whilst I'm still on the way to the airport).

Edited May 21, 2008 by Crossy

[Thanh-BKK]

Hi

Hmm your provided link is a "404 - not found"...... and i know about the smoke, it is infect a very expensive special type of smoke they fill into those components, if you break one all the smoke comes out and it has to be sent to the shop to be refilled with new smoke...... VERY expensive, that.

As to the PSU, i have another, crappy, MoBo to test that on - if it's really dead i'd be very surprised because it's an Enermax, just about 15 months old. And i DO have a UPS there, a Leonics. Rarely i get blackouts or brownouts...... very rarely in fact.

I wouldn't be so pissed, instead i would say "great, an excuse for finally getting one of these dual-core things for myself" but JUST TODAY i blew 9,000 Baht on rain clothes, the only stuff available for a tall guy like me........ it was about half my bank account's value, and i simply can't AFFORD buying a new computer, respectively the parts to build a new one. Ok, every part in that computer is still under warranty (PSU 3 years, CPU also 3, DVD drive just 3 weeks old, as is the graphics card, RAM lifetime..... the only thing i'm not sure about is the mainboard, that may have only one year (but i think it was 2 - it's an Asus).

Problem is - compatibility. Even if i get a warranty claim thru, i certainly won't get the same mainboard again as they stopped production and crushed every existing one two hours after i bought mine (as with every computer part i bought in my life - weeks later no spares available, "off market") and new mainboards won't take either my socket 754 CPU nor my DDR-1 RAM. So, no matter warranty or not on one or the other damaged part, i will still need to basically build a new rig from scratch.

And for THAT i just don't have the money.

Do you have an idea how long it will take from me bringing the damaged things to Panthip to claim warranty until i get something - either new, repaired, or money back?

Best regards.....

Thanh

[Crossy]

This link works (brain here managed to include the closing bracket in the URL), not really any particular interest though unless you want to see a naked Furby http://www.phobe.com/furby/

EDIT There's a few places lurking round the back of Pantip and Zeer (if you have a vehicle to get there) that sell new but discontinued bits, if it is the MB you'll probably be able to get a replacement that your other bits will fit

Edited May 21, 2008 by Crossy

[Thanh-BKK]

Hello

I am at home, posting from my beloved Linux machine.

guess what? The impossible has happened: Within less than 14 months i had the SECOND Enermax PSU go up in smoke! I bought this one on 11th February 2007, a day after my previous one died in similar fashion (lucky i keep the receipts for every computer bits i buy).

But this one i did NOT modify (on the previous one i cut one of the molex connectors off) so on Saturday i will be in Panthip to claim warranty. The PSU was powered by a UPS, the complete machine pulls maybe max. 350 watts and it's a 450 watts PSU so there should not be any such problem.

But definitely one thing has happened now: My belief in the quality of Enermax is utterly shattered. My next one won't be an Enermax, maybe i'll go for a Cooler Master or Thermaltake or something like that.

Luckily this time round the rest of the computer is completely undamaged! I hooked up my spare PSU (the one that came originally with this case) and everything worked fine again. I'll keep it this way till Saturday, then a new PSU is bought and when i get the Enermax replaced i'll use THAT as a spare.

Weird thing is: On my "sniffing session" in the morning i noticed the burning smell sitting in the PC case, yet NOT in the PSU! Even now, where i have taken it out, it doesn't smell at all. But with it in, there was no reaction to the power button and the green LED on the mainboard wasn't on either. Now, with the other one in, the machine works fine, and doesn't smell either.

Anyway - machine works again, i'm halfway happy (would be more happy if i would NOT have to buy another PSU! Waste of money....) and i wish to thank everyone who has replied

With kind regards......

your Thanh

[Thanh-BKK]

So, last update.......

I found where the problem is, and this is what it looks inside my Enermax. The standing part (white arrow pointing at it) is a resistor, it looks like it's completely glown out, it must have been red-hot.

Best regards.....

Thanh

[Gary A]

I upgraded to a hand built high performance machine and gave my old HP to a good friend of mine. That was about two years ago. My machine has fried a CPU and a video card along with having many other problems and the old HP is still running fine. I think my next new machine will be a new HP off the shelf.

[Phil Conners]

... all technology is powered by smoke, when the smoke comes out it stops working

:D

That's got to be the Quote Of The Day!

Edited May 22, 2008 by Phil Conners