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| Thread ID: 47566 | 2004-07-30 04:52:00 | Too cold for a computer??? | kewefella (2092) | Press F1 |
| Post ID | Timestamp | Content | User | ||
| 1357110 | 2004-07-30 04:52:00 | I have having problems with a computer I built, its an Asrock GE Pro-M2 with a celeron 2.4GHz 256MB Ram and win xp home. Basically it doesn't boot first time. When turned on all the fans ( cpu and power supply) would go it would seem to start a system check but nothing shows on screen and the harddrive doesn't spin up. You then have to reset it via front button, keyboard inputs don't work. When it does start, usually several tries later, it post a message saying the system tried unsuccessfully to start several times, check bios settings. This is a BIOS message before windows starts. When it operates normally there is never a problem. The only way I have had it start first time is to get out a hairdryer and blow warm air over the motherboard for a few minutes first. It then starts without a hitch first time. I found the room temp to be about 5-8 degrees. Is this possibly a factor that the mobo or cpu or some part just doesn't work at this low temp or is it possibly a fault in something. I have other computers which don't seem to be affected like this. If it is just cause the temp is lower than operating temp can you get round it with say an internal heater that would take the chill off, say to 10-15 degrees. I can't find anything on the net to help out. |
kewefella (2092) | ||
| 1357111 | 2004-07-30 05:06:00 | Gheez mate dont know the answer to that one but you could be right about the temp. At that temp I'd crawl back into the cave and wait until the sun came up. :D cheers merlin-nz ;-) |
merlin-nz (275) | ||
| 1357112 | 2004-07-30 05:06:00 | check to see if any of the capacitors on the board are not flat on top or otherwise bulging.....if that's the case that will probably be the cause of the problem and yes they can be replaced with new ones but unless you gonna do it yourself it may not be cost effective..... | drcspy (146) | ||
| 1357113 | 2004-07-30 05:09:00 | I would be looking at the psu. Untill quite recently my comp was in a room off my shed where it got so cold i lost feeling in my feet and it ran with no issues. |
metla (154) | ||
| 1357114 | 2004-07-30 05:32:00 | Seeing as with phase change units such as a vaporchill etc have had CPU's run @ -40c then i doubt your problem is being caused by low temps. I wouldnt be blowing hot air from a hairdryer over a motherboard, hot air from a hairdryer has a high level of static electricity and we all know what happens with computer parts and static. Sent my old EPOX to the grave with a combination of a hairdryer and a can of compressed air :( |
Pete O'Neil (250) | ||
| 1357115 | 2004-07-30 05:41:00 | Cold isn't normally an issue with computers, the colder the better really . What the cold may do in a moist environment is cause water vapour to reach dew point, especially where it comes into contact with (say) metal which is colder than the surrounding air temperature and moisture . Condensation and electronics don't mix too well . 5-8 deg is easily within the dew point of water vapour but it will also depend on Relative Humidity (RH), the colder it is the less RH% is required to reach dew point so the air does not need to be very moist to cause a problem . Cheers Murray P |
Murray P (44) | ||
| 1357116 | 2004-07-30 05:57:00 | When we had a rather cold winter a couple of years ago I had similar problems with my computer starting up on extra cold mornings (like, minus seven degrees outside! :O) . It would take several goes before it would boot up and run properly and the only thing I could put it down to was the cold mornings . On warmer mornings or when the room had had time to heat up it was fine . My theory is that maybe the PSU wasn't quite up to the job even though it is 300W and ought to be a good brand . Hasn't been as cold as that particular year since (touchwood) and the problem has never occurred since either, so go figure . |
Susan B (19) | ||
| 1357117 | 2004-07-30 06:22:00 | This just may be a BIOS setting. Now some hard drives take a wee while to spin up. I remember inserting a maxtor drive into a persons' computer and having to have a delay before the computer would boot. It was only 3 - 5 seconds as I remember it. I may well be wrong but it may bear investigation. |
Elephant (599) | ||
| 1357118 | 2004-07-30 06:27:00 | Alternating hot and cold air is an age old trick to find intermittent contacts, like a crack in a circuit board track. The physical expansion/contraction can make/break the contact. Maybe your system has such a fault, maybe in a soldered joint. Temperature can never be too low, absolute zero would be ideal:) |
Terry Porritt (14) | ||
| 1357119 | 2004-07-30 06:29:00 | .........but not for hard drives and bearings..............and other moving mechanical thingies! | Terry Porritt (14) | ||
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