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PC hardware forum: Interesting problem with my PC Power supply? (LONG/detailed)

by: hylianprincess7 March 19, 2012 4:13 AM PDT

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Interesting problem with my PC Power supply? (LONG/detailed)

by hylianprincess7 - 3/19/12 4:13 AM

Alright... This happened a few years ago, but the "case" has been unsolved, so it still bugs me, and I want to find out what the deal is.

I had a Dell computer with Windows XP. It ran great, with the exceptioon that the duel-core pentium could not stand up to my nearly full 200 Gig Samsung hard disk, and it would, on rare occasions (and I mean RARE), freeze.

I noticed one day it was getting pretty dusty inside, so I took it apart to clean it. And no, I'm not stupid (I'm certified in computer hardware). I know for a fact that every single wire was hooked up fully, and properly to their corresponding components. I checked before, during, and after the time span my air compressor was in use.

I got it spick and span, and once again, checked all cords and any connection I could spot, and made sure it was proprly placed.

I set up my computer, and I turned it on.


I waited,

...

And I waited....

Until I finally noticed that nothing had kicked on, but I could hear SOMETHING inside. There were no lights with the exception of the pilot light on the back of the power supply. I had just bought my power supply a month prior, so I'm pretty sure it was still in top condition.

I removed my side panel and inspected. My front fan was not on, my power supply fan was NOT running, despite the fact that the power supply pilot was green, and my motherboard light was out.

The ONLY thing that was running was the CPU fan.

I couldn't turn my power off by pressing the front switch either. I had no choice but to manually shut it down by unplugging it. There was no smoke, no flame, no spark. Just... well... nothing running.

I tried it a second time, and it did it again. I was definitely nervous that something had happened to my motherboard or power supply by now. Just to be safe, I removed my hard drive and RAM sticks, and tested them in another computer to make sure nothing was shorted. Everything worked fine, including the power supply after I removed/tested it.

So one last time, I pressed the switch. And voila.~ Everything booted up just fine.


This lasted a good half a year, and then the process repeated.

What's the deal? Would it be a faulty power supply?

I'd really like to know.

Thanks!


-Misty

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