Computer temperature, overheating

Hmm. I''m not sure, but see if you can''t get a cheap dehumidifier somewhere.

Overheating and humidity problems can be an issue, so it''s a good idea to make sure your system is protected against those really hot days.

-Open up your case, clean out all the dust (It will keep heat inside your case).

-Make sure you have at least 1 80mm case fan for intake or exaust.(I have to 80mm intakes and one 80mm outtake.)

-Check all your fan connections and wires, and make sure all your fans are working.

-Also if your running an athlon XP, it would probably be a good idea to invest in a quality CPU fan, like the Volcano 9, or a Delta fan and heatsink (Be advised that Delta''s are really loud).

-Keep the back of your case as far away from the wall as possible, that way the hot air can actually escape, instead of lingering around the back of your case making everything warm.

-If it''s REALLY hot out, it would be advisable to shut off your pc whenever your are not using it. If your case is still getting hot, you could also trying running as few CPU intensive applications as possible at any one time. (If at all)

Most motherboards are equipped with onboard detection systems to detect when your CPU is going to/has overheated. The system will warn you (Msg box, beeping, alarm, etc) and then it should shut itself down automatically. However don''t take this functionality for granted, keep an eye on the system temperature yourself.

CPU overheats can seriously damage your machine, regardless of whether you shut it off really fast or not. You can destroy the CPU, motherboard, and internal peripherals devices if it''s serious. It''s very rare that a fire will actually start unless you are overclocking.

If your system overheats, it''s unlikely that your HDD will suffer any damage, unless the HDD itself actually overheats, in which case, you''ll probably need a new HDD.


Does that cover everything?

What CPU temperatures are dangerous? What is the highest temperature that is acceptable?

For Athlon XP palamino(.18µ) cpu's I would say keep it below 60c defintely. For the newer Thoroughbred cpus (.13µ) keep it below 50c.

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You fight like a dairy farmer.

[edited by - Greatwolf on June 24, 2003 11:24:31 PM]

If you are really concerned, you might want to look into a water cool system. It''d keep your system cool in the warmest of climes, and plus its really nifty too :-D

Actually, you'll find that the hotter the surrounding climate, the less effective your water cooling system is, just like a forced air system, except it's hot water *and* hot air, not just hot air.


It still kicks the shit out of forced air though.

[edited by - raymondo on June 24, 2003 11:34:18 PM]

yeah, just remember not to spill anything on the components. Remember, water and electricity don't mix

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You fight like a dairy farmer.

[edited by - Greatwolf on June 24, 2003 11:36:51 PM]

My Thoroughbred gets up to 56C max when I'm gaming, and it hasn't had a problem yet.

All of the advice in here is good... Also, make sure your power supply isn't super-dusty. I've had components fry in the power supply and I had really bad problems until I replaced it.

With the water cooling... if you use distilled water and make sure your case doesn't have any dust/salt in it, leaks won't be a serious problem since distilled water doesn't conduct electricity at ALL. You'll have more time to find the leak before the water mixes with some kind of dust or other stuff to allow it to conduct.

Corrosion *might* be a problem if you seriously don't notice the leak, but at that point you'll probably be out of water and your CPU will fry.

[edited by - Nypyren on June 24, 2003 12:50:09 AM]

Thanks for the advice everyone. At work, our 8-processor super-computer collapsed under the temperature two weeks ago, so I began worrying about my own PC.

The super-computer has now been renamed "Mephisto"

Thanks!

Cédric

the main problem with a water coolant system is condesation, not leaks.

you may want to look into solid state coolers called peltiers. The utilize a unique property of semi conductors. They are very thin, have no moving parts, make no noise, and are very efficient. And you can get a good one at around CAN$70 instead of the CAN$300 for a good water cooling system.

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Pain is the fire that tempers the soul. It is the feeling of fear leaving the body.
The Cutter Project|My Junk|Association of Computing Machinery

[edited by - capn_midnight on June 25, 2003 10:43:56 AM]

Where can I find info on these "peltiers". Who makes them, where can I get them?

ummm my Athlon 2000+ has run up to 80c before Is that like....really bad?

Peltiers still have very high power requirements, don''t they?

quote:

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Original post by Samith
ummm my Athlon 2000+ has run up to 80c before Is that like....really bad?

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From what I''ve read, they can operate up to about 90C, but running that hot for any extended amount of time greatly shortens their lifespan. You definitely don''t want to keep it running that hot for any longer than absolutely needed.

quote:

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Original post by capn_midnight
the main problem with a water coolant system is condesation, not leaks.

you may want to look into solid state coolers called peltiers. The utilize a unique property of semi conductors. They are very thin, have no moving parts, make no noise, and are very efficient. And you can get a good one at around CAN$70 instead of the CAN$300 for a good water cooling system.

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Pain is the fire that tempers the soul. It is the feeling of fear leaving the body.
The Cutter Project|My Junk|Association of Computing Machinery

[edited by - capn_midnight on June 25, 2003 10:43:56 AM]

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Actually as far as I know, energy wise, Peltier's aren't really all that efficient (although it doesn't really matter). I think a lot of people use them in conjunction with a water cooling system.

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Then, when you do criticize them, you will be a mile away and have their shoes." -- Deep Thoughts
"If you have any trouble sounding condescending, find a Unix user to show you how it's done." - Scott Adams
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[edited by - The Senshi on September 1, 2003 5:49:59 PM]

quote:

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Original post by Samith
ummm my Athlon 2000+ has run up to 80c before Is that like....really bad?

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Yes. Make sure your heatsink is attached properly, and you might want to get a good heat conducting compound like arctic silver to place inbetween the proccessor and the heatsink.

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"Before criticizing someone, walk a mile in their shoes.
Then, when you do criticize them, you will be a mile away and have their shoes." -- Deep Thoughts
"If you have any trouble sounding condescending, find a Unix user to show you how it''s done." - Scott Adams
FaceHat Software -- Wear the hat.

Well, I don''t think it is having heating problems, it''s only happened once on a REALLY hot day where it had been running all day long.

If you are scared, you can get some stuff. For about $200 USD you can get a water cooling kit. You can buy memory heatsinks for about $10 USD. You can get hard drive cooling kits for $15 USD. Make sure you have a decent heatsink/fan combo. A mirror heatsink/compound works better than a copper one. As mentioned before, get a good compound. I used the generic stuff that came with my heatsink. You can get some fans for your chipset, but as long as you have thermal compound, a heatsink/fan combo, and a case fan, you are good. I got an 80mm case fan for $10.

Scott Simontis
e-mail:ageofscott@comcast.net
AIM:ssimontis

Hi

I have read on the internet that someone cooled his Pentium III with liquid N2 (I don''t know the word in english) because the cpu was running at 3.1 GHZ. I don''t know if that could be true but it would be COOL