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PSU Fan blocked - How screwed am I?

AyulinAyulin Registered User regular
edited September 2009 in Help / Advice Forum
I am failing so hard when it comes to keeping my computer working properly. So hard.

I was rewiring the insides of my desktop this morning, and didn't notice a stray wire (the small ones from the case fans) dipping into the grille of the PSU fan. I have an Antec 900, so the PSU is mounted upside down at the bottom, with the fan facing up.

The system was running the whole day, with the wire blocking the fan from spinning. There was a funny smell coming from it (chemical-like), but I wasn't sure what the source was until I checked on the computer this evening, and noticed the PSU fan wasn't moving. D: doesn't begin to describe it.

I powered it down straightaway and plucked the wire out before trying to boot up again, where the issue I had in this previous thread (which hasn't been resolved, so it isn't an old problem coming back) came up. After about ten minutes the system decided it would recognize the video card and booted up properly.

Basically, how much damage would the PSU (and/or the rest of the components) have suffered from the PSU fan not spinning for about 12 - 13 hours? Should I be looking into a replacement?

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    LoveIsUnityLoveIsUnity Registered User regular
    edited September 2009
    How old is your Processor? I can't think of any modern processor that doesn't shut down if it can't regulate its temperatures. Did you turn off temperature monitoring or something?

    I had a similar issue with a PC a while back, where I could hear something clicking, and it turns out a wire was getting smacked around by the heatsink fan. I tied up the wires, turned it back on, and it's been fine ever since. If all of your other fans were working properly, you probably aren't totally screwed.

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    1ddqd1ddqd Registered User regular
    edited September 2009
    You didn't mention if the PSU fan started spinning again or not - usually, if the fan is spinning, it cools its own motor while spinning. If it sits there with current running through it, but not spinning, it could overheat the fan's motor - a simple replacement of the same size should be fine.

    However - the PSU should have its own monitoring (like LoveIsUnity mentioned about processors). Most good PSUs will shut themselves off if a load or temperature hits it that it can't handle.

    Hit up Corsair with an email asking about the tolerances. Chances are, you're fine with the PSU. I was worried you mounted the PSU upside down in the case and the fan was facing the top/bottom.

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    AyulinAyulin Registered User regular
    edited September 2009
    Processor is a Core 2 Quad Q9300. The temperatures were fine throughout (I had RealTemp running, and they held at around 45 - 49C which is about normal). It's the power supply I'm worried about, though; all the other fans were fine, except for the PSU.

    EDIT: Oops, yeah. The PSU fan is spinning now.

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    LoveIsUnityLoveIsUnity Registered User regular
    edited September 2009
    Ayulin wrote: »
    Processor is a Core 2 Quad Q9300. The temperatures were fine throughout (I had RealTemp running, and they held at around 45 - 49C which is about normal). It's the power supply I'm worried about, though; all the other fans were fine, except for the PSU.

    EDIT: Oops, yeah. The PSU fan is spinning now.

    You will definitely want to monitor your temperatures a lot more diligently for a little while, but it sounds like you're probably in the clear.

    Since we're talking about dumb shit we've done, at least this was a free mistake. I was once putting a PC together while I was watching TV and plugged the PCI-E power cable in upside down. I lost an expensive video card and power supply. I don't watch TV while I put computers together anymore...

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