Graphics Card Fan & Smoking?

senordingdong

Recently my machine started giving off a strange whiring sound.
I instantly knew it was the fan so I opened it and gave it a good clean but the noise persisted, albeit not as bad.
I eventually concluded that the fan was goosed and went about changing it but it was integrated in such a way that I feared I'd make it worse if I did it myself.
So I left it to the shop I bought it and they guy who has since fixed it called to say that the problem was caused by cigarette smoke. I believe he said the smoke caused more crap then normal to build up on the fan. He said that he could tell the second he opened the case from the smell.
Has anybody else ever come across a problem like this?

5ftGiant

Quite strange and a little dodgy!!

Id say the "repairman" was using your case as a bong and took it one step too far. Now you are paying for his habit

If it means anything, my computer has been sitting in a smoke-filled room for years without a glitch. its literally been soaked in passive smoke. Id say your "repairman" just smelt fags off the computer and jumped on that conclusion.... But ill stand corrected if someone can back up what he says

Ruu_Old

Never heard of it happening meself but he could be right. Found the below on google.

It's from this... This is TAR from cigarette smoke encrusted on the CPU cooling fan. This is from a residential installation - not a lawn and garden shop!

senordingdong

Yeah, I'd never heard of it either but the ldea of it didn't sound ridiculous to me.
The only thing that does raise my eyebrow is an example liek that of 5ftgiant, I also know plenty of people who smoke loads around their computers for years without any hassle.
That said, my computer has been in a big spacious room its whole life (about one and a half years) (perhaps the desk isn't spacious enough?) and smoking has been very infrequent in this particular room.

LoLth

hmmm, I used to work repairing PCs and I've never heard of cigarette smoke causing a pc to overheat or clog by itself....

The "tar build up" on the pic above is dust. I've seen it on lots of fans. Ok, its fairly brown but htat can be from a number of factors - yes tar could be one but it would take *a lot* of smoking to discolour it like that and in any case the tar is a discolouration of the usual dust and crap not big chunks of it stuck to the blades.

I have worked on PCs in a construction yard office that was constantly full of sand , cement dust and yes, cigarette smoke. The only issue it had was a cement build up in the tape drive from dusty tapes being put into it.

How are your other system fans? In particular the intake fan at the front. Thats more likely to get a build up. Have a look at the intake filter and the exhaust fan at back. The smoke would have to already be inside the PC to get sucked in by the gfx card fan.

I may be wrong but it is just an opinion

senordingdong

Well he didn't say that the smoking was the direct cause of the problem and keep in mind that nothing had actually failed, the fan was simply making a noise as if it was filthy and the guy said that the cigarette smoke was causing more dust etc... to build up then normal.

Fanny Cradock

If it's true (I'm very sceptical), I'd be more worried about your lungs than the computer.

Anti

Yeah the smoke(tar) does build up on the fans. its quite common believe it or not.

matt-dublin

he's an I.T. person like most of us, and makes up bullsh1t so he doesn't have to deal with proper explanations.

Auvers

matt-dublin wrote:

he's an I.T. person like most of us, and makes up bullsh1t so he doesn't have to deal with proper explanations.

Well said

matt-dublin

Auvers wrote:

Well said

well its true isn't it?
i know i do. its more fun than just saying "compter broke, me fix now" in a cave man voice...

or is it...

hmmmm

5ftGiant

matt-dublin wrote:

he's an I.T. person like most of us, and makes up bullsh1t so he doesn't have to deal with proper explanations.

That sums up everyone in I.T. ! Well phrased!

hopeful

Cigarette smoke can cause things to become slightly 'sticky' and so they will attract more dust and possibly fail earlier.

Hence I clean my PC's often! Now where's my cigars gone?

Anti

hopeful wrote:

Cigarette smoke can cause things to become slightly 'sticky' and so they will attract more dust and possibly fail earlier.

Hence I clean my PC's often! Now where's my cigars gone?

Haha

Ginger

Time for my computer to switch to silk cut silver :P I dont smoke but my computer is trying to quit.. maybe you should have asked for nicorette patches for you and the pc??

Anti

Ginger wrote:

Time for my computer to switch to silk cut silver :P I dont smoke but my computer is trying to quit.. maybe you should have asked for nicorette patches for you and the pc??

Get out.... Get out now :rolleyes:

colly10

No sounds like absolute rubbish tbh, it would take a huge amount of smoke to make any buildup of tar on the fan, as for stickyness your walls don't get sticky from smoking 10 a day in a boxroom.

The chap probably called to your door was asked what happened, smelled the smoke and went em... it's the smoke. Same way as I put the ram failing in a mates machine the other day down to a power surge .... cause ye have to give some reason.

Anti

senordingdong wrote:

So I left it to the shop I bought it and they guy who has since fixed it called to say that the problem was caused by cigarette smoke. I believe he said the smoke caused more crap then normal to build up on the fan. He said that he could tell the second he opened the case from the smell.
Has anybody else ever come across a problem like this?

This is 100% correct, it happens. Fact

Just google the problem if you dont believe me or the others that have agreed with it.

From my experience of working in the city of London, the muck from the taxis & busses kills fans! Any equipment in coms room without filtered air or filters on the fan units suffered regular PSU failures & overheating caused by fans clogging up.

I don't believe tobacco on it's own would do this damage but combined with other polutants, definately!

hopeful

colly10 wrote:

No sounds like absolute rubbish tbh, it would take a huge amount of smoke to make any buildup of tar on the fan, as for stickyness your walls don't get sticky from smoking 10 a day in a boxroom.

I'm going to disagree
Ask any smoker what happens when they clean the screen on their TV set.
I'm not saying the smoke causes the damage but it does increase the buildup of dust significantly.

Anyhoo...off for a quick cough before work.

L31mr0d

i'd tend to believe the chap... I mean personally I wouldn't expect an explanation as to why a fan failed, as any moving part is going to fail eventually. Dust build up would of sufficed for me, but going a step further and specifying what kind of particle built up... now thats professional.

senordingdong

Anti wrote:

This is 100% correct, it happens. Fact

Just google the problem if you dont believe me or the others that have agreed with it.

Yeah I thought it sounded believable to begin with...it's just that my computer has not been exposed to alot of smoke.

Anti

What the exact problem is.

The tar is sticky, and when it settles on something(like the fan) it will collect other foreign objects, like dust. Which we all know is 90% human skin.

Now if you have any pets this gets alot worse, as they shed alot more. I have a fan from a old pc at home that is still not cleaned properly, ill take a pic later, and upload it here.

5ftGiant

Im going to start my PC on 40 Benson & Hedges a day to prove it can handle the habit no problem!

senordingdong

Okie dokie, well thanks for all the input.