- last post: 01.01.0001 12:00 AM PDT
Okay, I’ve got a lot to say, so I’ll be kicking a big response to this one. My intention in writing this post was to clear up the (all too common) misconception that removing the cover on your case would not harm your PC. Obviously, from these initial responses, I failed. So I will try to kill two birds with one really big rock of a post; respond and reaffirm…a little more sternly this time. Folks, we need to stop doing this; it’s costing us money.
In response to oblivian323 (and all the other headshakers out there):
I take no offense, but I’d like to rebut. The original wording of this article gave no specific time frame for when a computer processor and its components would begin to fail (I didn’t think it needed one; I mean we’re talking about messing with the life of your computer here. That’s an expensive instrument!).
As I said in the original post, removing the cover is a TEMPORARY SOLUTION to a heat problem. Yeah. It’ll fix it…for a while.
But some people may believe that because their computer hasn’t burned out yet that this information…just doesn’t apply to them. To rebut: You computer will not fry today. It will not fry tomorrow. It will not fry next week or (hopefully) next year, but years down the road. Two. The designed/designated lifespan of most computer processors at the moment is five years; a person with his case open will burn it out in two IF the heatsinks don’t fail first in the middle of the night and let your computer processor melt itself like a grilled cheese sandwich while you’re sleeping.
This information came (almost verbatim but not close enough to have to put quotations into this post or risk copyright infringement) to me via an article in the August 2005 issue of Popular Mechanics (page 72 “When Bad Things Happen to Good Projects”) by Ben Hewitt who asked Stephen Miller, the ThinkCentre product manager at Lenovo.
Those are the guys who make IBM computers.
While his two year estimate may have been conservative, I’m pretty sure Mr. Miller trumps your father on PC knowledge. Regardless if he does or not, PM has yet to print a retraction on the hazards of leaving a PC case open and I won’t until they do. (And, well, I also asked MY DAD about this before that issue was released. To be fair, he’s not a computer geek. He’s an electrical engineer with over twenty years of experience in the field and his own internet consulting company. He told me if I ever removed the cover to cool my PC while it was running again, he’d beat me with sticks.)
Your father may just be mixing some of his information up. You see, computer processors (that’s the little chip you [or your parents] blow a couple hundred dollars for) DO get hot enough to burn your finger. If you’re reading this, your computer processor is probably that hot right now. In fact, they can get a lot hotter. Intel and AMD have spent a lot of money designing processors that DON’T MELT the silicon and rare metals they are comprised of (I think the limit processors can stand is around 60 degrees Celsius, but that’s from memory. Someone please post if you know the exact number.). When you consider the heat generated by the latest high speed Pentium and hyperthreading processors or the poor system protection of the older P4 and AMD chipsets it’s a minor miracle heatsinks can do what they do.
That’s why you have a heatsink in the first place. It isn’t to keep your computer from restarting when your PC gets too hot. That restart is a program designed into newer processors and motherboard BIOS to safeguard them from heat when they do (and they do) get too hot. Heatsinks keep the massive heat generated from this tiny chip below the melting point so it doesn’t become a 3 to 500 dollar paper weight (I have one of those if you need further evidence; lets just say I learned this information the hard way. My NEW PC is also a home built [I did it, not my dad] with hyperthreading, a massive heatsink, and one (uno) exhaust fan.
The cover is on at all times when I’m not fiddling with it and ADA only restarts due to heat when I’m running both my processors into the red (which rarely happens; I don’t skimp on PC components.).
If you’re running an older computer with the cover off, you probably don’t have to worry about restarts due to heat. You have to worry about your next upgrade when it dies.
For those of you still shaking your head, saying “no. Not my PC. My room is colder. More air is better,” you’ve forgotten about (or didn’t read) the second major hazard to an open case.
Dust.
As for dust buildup, I know your father didn’t intend to rebuke that. If he did…well, lets just assume he knows better until you say otherwise; then I’ll quote several of the (probably half a million) weblinks for hepa filter advertisers that have scientifically proven more dust exists in the air in your house than there is in the air outside. But I’m getting off track.
More air equals more dust equals more dust particles clogging your fans, heatsink, and any other moving parts.
Dust will accumulate faster. The fans will end up working overtime to compensate for the friction this “gooy sludge fur” creates. Those fans will fail…and fry. The processor will begin to overheat. Then it will fry. Not today. Not tomorrow. But sooner than they would have had the cover been left on.
If he meant that Peltier effect or coolant type heatsinks are less efficient…Google Google Google. The reason these heatsinks run into the thousands of dollars is not because of their novelty. They’re itty bitty little heat eating monsters that blow air coolant type heatsinks out of the water when it comes to efficiency and cooling ability (The Peltier effect “creates” cold using negative electrons…I’d run out of characters if I explained it here. But its freaky stuff *cough*Google*cough*. Peltier makes the surface of the module that touches the processor actually become colder than the ambient temperature of the area it’s situated in instead of just dispersing the processors heat over a wider area than the surface of the chip [what air coolant and liquid coolant heatsinks do.] If you find that hard to believe, Google for science project, Peltier air conditioner. That’s right; a couple of teenagers recently built an air conditioner that can cool a car interior using this technology. As for coolant types: liquid. This isn’t a bunch of metal fins and a fan guys. We’re talking about a miniaturized car radiator for your processor.).
These heatsinks are designed to work without airflow, designed to work in places you can’t even squeeze your little finger into, much less get a breeze. And they are very good at what they do. Well, when installed properly. Like I said, Peltier and coolant type heatsinks are more difficult to install than the air dispersion types so many PC CPUs come with and use. If not installed correctly then, yes, a Peltier or coolant type would not only be less efficient, it might damage your processor. The technology just hasn’t reached the plug and play mentality most PC components have…yet.
So…if circulation IS the problem, go ahead and buy a new fan now instead of having to buy two new fans and a heatsink later. If your processor is already overheating regularly, consider upgrading to a cheap Peltier or coolant heatsink or replacing the existing one (or turning off overclocking; more on the way). The processor will avoid paper weight status longer, and you’ll avoid a hefty check to Intel or AMD.
Question the second: Overclocking and heat.
Overclocking, by definition, is the forcing of computer components to run faster than their designed (default) specs. Nowadays it’s getting hard to find computer components that don’t have overclocking functions or drivers that allow older parts to use this ability. Overclocking components gives you more bang for the buck but at the expense of greater heat and instability. (um…if you’re PC is restarting often and you’re overclocking your video card a lot, instability might be the problem and not heat…hmmm. Try turning off overclocking for a while; the part may just be stretched beyond its limits. Further overclocking might damage the part. Either way, if you turn off overclocking, and your computer works without unexpected restarts, you know it’s probably a part problem or an instability problem…)
Is overclocking bad for the parts? Not really; they were designed to handle periods of overclocking, right? Is it bad for these parts if they are always overclocking? Yes, as far as heat. I’m not qualified to speak about overclocking (I haven’t found out “the hard way” yet) but pushing computer components is a little like sprinting in a marathon. You can’t win without running faster than your opposition, but if you run too fast too much, too often, you fall on your face with nothing left to get you to the finish line. The same goes for your PC. Constantly run overclocking and the parts will sputter, stumble, and give out sooner. Even with four fans in the box, everything might just be running so hot that no amount of heat dispersion can help.
Overclocking capable video cards have become so hot that many of them have their own heatsink preinstalled on them (mine does). There is a case mod that can be done to help assist air dispersion flow. This involves cutting out a new blow hole into your PC case (Commonly, a blow hole is an additional exhaust fan slot added to a case to increase the case's cooling capabilities over specs). Putting the blow hole and fan right next to the videocard would assist in dispersing heat. Google for DIY instructions on case mods or, if you plan to buy a new case soon, purchase one that has multiple fan slots where you want them to be. *cough*KNOW WHAT YOU'RE DOING*cough*
[Edited on 8/1/2005]