Need an opinion on a small problem.

Hellrazer

Ok situation is this.I switch on my PC first thing in the morning,starts up fine,but when I launch an application after 5mins or so the PC freezes with a loss of signal to the monitor.Reboot--PC runs for the day without any problems.

Now this has only started since I moved my pc to a different room(conservatory--which is freezing in thsi weather).The power supply in this room has been taken from the kitchen rather than directly from the main board.

Its like the damn thing doesnt want to get up in the morning.
Questions are:
1.Could it be too cold in the room and the pc needs to "heat" up a bit.Reason Im asking this is if I leave the pc on for 5 minutes or so before starting anything--Its fine 100% no lock ups.

2.Could it be a faulty power supply or a power surges/drops.Again the supply in the room is not what I would call a "good job"but Im not going to pull the thing down to change this.Bios beep codes gave me a "power" error but only once out of all the times its happened.Also clock is losing time so could something as simple as a bios battery cause this?

3.Just fitted a new stick of ddr3200 ram a week before I moved the PC.The problem was not happening for this week so I dont think its ram related.

4.Im wondering if its a Graphics card problem as its losing the signal to the monitor-The rest of the PC still seems to be running when this happens--Just the loss of signal-Obviously I cant check to see if the PC has crashed as Ive no monitor.


Now its definately NOT a cpu heat problem--P42.8 @ 3.15--Idle temps 28c and max at load no higher than 35c.

Any help greatly appreciated--Its an annoying problem but I cant seem to solve it.And even more wierd since its only since I moved the pc to another room.
Thanks
Richie

pickarooney

If possible, try:
a) using a different graphics card
b) moving the PC to a warmer room and rebooting it a few times

liamo

If it's very cold, might it be that different parts of the PC are heating up at different rates, perhaps causing loss of electrical contact?

Additionally, I seem to remember a warning from a number of years ago about leaving a laptop in the car boot overnight as condensation might form when you bring it into a warmer environment. Although I don't think this is the case here, it's temperature related so I thought I'd throw it in.

Hellrazer

Thanks for all the replys---Moving it to another room is not an option--thats why it was moved in the first place.
It definately seems to be temperature related but a low temperature problem rather than an overheating one.

Could well be the components heating up at different rates.As I said it IS fine if I leave the PC for a few minutes before launching anything.
Then it will run all day without so much as any type of crash etc.

jor el

I had a similar problem with a 486 years ago. Had to use a hair dryer on the RAM and CPU sockets before turning it on. I think it was a problem with cold and damp as when I moved it (to another house as it happens) the problem went away. The old room was very cold and would get very damp too.

Canis Lupus

id say liamo might be right there if certain parts are particularly cold and warming at different speeds might cause that problem..... Essentially tho if leaving the pc running for 5 mins sorts the problem it has to be the heat.... why not try leaving the pc off over night and before booting it put a heater near it for a while then on boot up u get no lockups then its the cold thats causing the probs

deimos

jor el wrote:

I had a similar problem with a 486 years ago. Had to use a hair dryer on the RAM and CPU sockets before turning it on. I think it was a problem with cold and damp as when I moved it (to another house as it happens) the problem went away. The old room was very cold and would get very damp too.

Jesus talk about a machine needing a pick me up in the morning.... he he he

Hellrazer

Canis Lupus wrote:

why not try leaving the pc off over night and before booting it put a heater near it for a while then on boot up u get no lockups then its the cold thats causing the probs

Its not on boot up that its locking up--It boots into XP fine.Just the first time an app is run it locks up.But if I leave it on for 10 mins or so before using it I dont get the lock ups.

Canis Lupus

yeah... gotta admit thats weird

gobby

Hellrazer wrote:

Its not on boot up that its locking up--It boots into XP fine.Just the first time an app is run it locks up.But if I leave it on for 10 mins or so before using it I dont get the lock ups.

What he is suggesting is that where you would normally turn the pc on and then have that problem, before you turn it on try heating the pc first. Stick a rad near it or even use a hair dryer as jor el says.

The idea is just to test if it really is the cold that is causing this problem. It would be a worthwhile test. You could rule out buying new gear etc if you new that it was simply the cold causing the problem.

Dr Bolouswki

coffee?

liamo

gobby wrote:

before you turn it on try heating the pc first. Stick a rad near it or even use a hair dryer as jor el says.

Liam's Top Tip: Try plonking it in a basin of warm water for 5 minutes before switching it on.

robinph

Hellrazer wrote:

Its not on boot up that its locking up--It boots into XP fine.Just the first time an app is run ithttp://www.komplett.ie/k/ki.asp?sku=304831&cks=PRL locks up.But if I leave it on for 10 mins or so before using it I dont get the lock ups.

And what happens if you reboot the machine part way throught the day once its already warm, do you have trouble running apps right after a reboot then?

I'd be surprised if the PC is having trouble due to being cold, if theres condensation as liamo said then thats a problem, but just cold is surely good for it.

RicardoSmith

Could be a tiny crack on a circuit somewhere. When cold it strinks causing a break, and when hot it expands making a connection. We had this problem with a bunch of Dells once. But it was caused by the machine being moved a lot. Which flexed the chasis (too weak) and cracked something on the motherboard. If you put a monitor on the case (it was desktop) it flexed the case and the circuit was opened and the machine have problems. Take the monitor off the case and the machine word fine.

At least that was our theory at the time. We noticed that all the machines affected had been brought home (for teleworking) and then back to work in a taxi, or car and probably shook to bits.