Post #64,817
11/24/02 10:31:12 PM
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Cooling problem
My new 1.8 Ghz system seems to have suddenly developed a cooling problem.
It was fine until Saturday, when it suddenly crashed a few times. I chalked it up to unstable game at first, but the same thing happened in other programs that I knew where stable.
I also noticed that it only happened when the system was heavily loaded, I could web browse and other light activities freely. And it was fine for the first half hour after turing it on.
After trying a few things, I installed a system monitor that lets me see how hot the system is running. The CPU is spiking well over the rated 85-90C when pushed. I opened the case and turned a fan to blow cold air into the case, and it seems to run fine that way, but that isn't going to cut it for a long term solution.
I didn't have this problem up until this point, so I'm at a loss for possible solutions other then buying a new heat sink and replacing the one that on there. Considering that it is a new heat sink / fan combo that came in the box set from AMD, I think it's unlikly that could be the problem.
The only other thing I can think of is that the power supply might be going. Do anybody have any ideas / suggestions?
Jay
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Post #64,819
11/24/02 10:35:01 PM
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PS fans OK? Can you add a case fan or two?
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Post #64,827
11/24/02 10:44:51 PM
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Re: Cooling problem
Is the power supply fan working OK? Your monitor may also give you power supply voltage readings to check. (I get those on my Asus mobo and software).
Do you have an additional chassis fan in your system? Usually sucking in air near the front of the box. That helps. Or, on the back of the box blowing air out. I think this is less preferable since it is fighting with the power supply cooling fan.
Any chance the CPU coolong fan assembly clamp has loosened up?
Alex
"Let others praise ancient times; I am glad I was born in these."\t-- Ovid (43 B.C.-A.D. 18)
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Post #64,838
11/24/02 11:21:56 PM
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Re: Cooling problem
This is almost certainly the CPU fan. Just buy another one and forget it.
For some reason there are a lot of cheap CPU fans out there. Sometimes you can hear a bad CPU fan, if the power supply fan is very quiet. Trust me, there is no way to oil it, jumpstart it, clean it..dust is evil.
I had a computer start beeping for no apparent reason, and thought at first it was an old boot sector virus :)
-drl
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Post #64,844
11/24/02 11:53:37 PM
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It must be the season for cooling problems
My CPU has behaved itself, but my video card (old GeForce 256 DDR) hit 91 degrees C last night whilst I was playing a game.
I've stuck with the 'taking side panel off and appyling an external fan' route for the time being. That kept it hovering around a more normal 70 degress C.
John. Busy lad.
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Post #64,936
11/25/02 1:48:50 PM
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Put in one of these ....
[link|http://www.gideontech.com/guides/ccooler/ccooler01.shtml|Poorman's Card Cooler]
Hope that help for you Jay and for Jon
[link|mailto:curley95@attbi.com|greg] - Grand-Master Artist in IT
[link|http://www.iwethey.org/ed_curry/|REMEMBER ED CURRY!!!]
Your friendly Homeland Security Officer reminds:
Hold Thumbprint to Screen for 5 seconds, we'll take the imprint, or
Just continue to type on your keyboard, and we'll just sample your DNA.
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Post #65,298
11/26/02 10:41:53 PM
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Heh. That's cool! (no pun intended...)
"Ah. One of the difficult questions."
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Post #65,232
11/26/02 6:20:13 PM
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Power supply was going
The power supply went dead. I swapped it out with another one and now the system works.
That doesn't directly solve the heating problem, because it is still overheating. Apparently, as long as it gets enough juice it can work over heated, but get unstable if it's overheated and the power supply is marginal.
Jay
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Post #65,426
11/27/02 10:43:04 AM
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Re: Power supply was going
A digital system has two states - alive and dead. If you run hot, you will enter the second realm eventually. Get it cooled down some way.
-drl
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Post #65,532
11/27/02 5:44:09 PM
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Horrors
Turns out it wasn't the power supply after all, about 2 hours after I put the good power supply in it up and died again. And this time I could see that it was neither heat nor power that where the problem. Nor would it boot even after cooling down.
So today, I pulled everything apart piece by piece to find the problem. And at the core I found a horror. Some thermal paste had leaked down from the top of the CPU into the CPU socket. Apparently some had worked it's way dowm from the top before it had set up into a thick enough state, no telling what kind of damage this did to the processor or the motherboard but they both seem not to work properly.
I rebuilt the system with my old motherboard and 1.1 Ghz processor that I had been planning to use for my second machine. Which is how I am posting now.
I tried using the 1.8 Ghz processor in the old motherboard and the old 1.1 Ghz processor in the new motherboard, neither combination would work. The motherboard seems to be fried, unable to even try and boot correctly.
Putting the new chip in the old motherboard worked a little but was very unstable. I think I may be able to salvage the old processor if I can clean it off properly, though how I am going to get thermal paste of the pins I don't know.
Jay
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Post #65,540
11/27/02 6:35:21 PM
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Paste
If it's Si-based (and maybe some other too) - vinegar + toothbrush might do, followed by sprinkled bicarb to buffer back to neutral pH, rinse, maybe isopropyl to dry moisture around pins. Vinegar is EZ clean up from bathtub sealants too. (Don't think I'd try acetone for that last..) This might be a PITA to also try on the sockets, with board held upside down! but whatcha got to lose? Squeeze bottle with dist. H20 can ease the rinse.
Still and all - at the temps you were recording.. NO e- likes to run there - MTBF probably suffered some unknowable amount.
Lastly, for insurance and future intermittent-freedom: at local e- tech shop (not Radio Shack) you could look for Cramolin, or one of the Caig nostrums - or .. go to a high-end audio place and buy a sm. bottle of Tweek\ufffd (packaged by Sumiko in Berkeley CA). These do more than 'clean' - the molecule actually conducts under local hi-pressure.. ie It sounds as if your next worry would be that ALL these pins/sockets can conduct despite any residual goop you prolly can't get out of all the holes.
Luck,
Ashton
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Post #65,746
11/29/02 10:56:53 PM
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Re: Horrors
No doubt the processor overheated as the source of all this. The paste then liquefied and streamed out.
I've noticed that thermal paste is often glopped on as if more were better. All that is needed is a dab rubbed on like skin lotion.
You can't believe how hot a processor can get. I touched one once - exactly like touching a hot exhaust pipe (ssss).
-drl
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Post #65,747
11/29/02 11:06:27 PM
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Re: Horrors
For CPU chips that have enough real estate, we've always put a white paper date/source sticker on the underside. Had an AMD K6 system come in for upgrade that had a dead fan. The sticker was a dark chocolate brown, but it didn't actually catch on fire. CPU still worked fine.
[link|http://www.aaxnet.com|AAx]
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Post #68,418
12/12/02 3:25:46 PM
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Current status
After a carefull cleaning with a toothbrush and water the CPU has recovered. I ran it in the old motherboard for several days without problem.
I cleaned the motherboard and put it back in today, but I'm not 100% sure if it's OK yet or not. I've had one mysterious crash, but it seems to be running fine now.
All of that didn't fix the temperature problem though, it is still registering as too hot.
Jay
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Post #68,509
12/12/02 9:50:25 PM
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Good Luck
Be cool.
-drl
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