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| User | Thread poster: NR_Stedman Computers in Hot Weather |
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Marie-Hélène Hayles 
Italy
Local time: 12:52
  Member (2004)
Italian to English
+ ...
| | I've been working for 10 years in Rome without air conditioning | Sep 2, 2009 |
Never had a single problem with the computer, even a few years ago when the temperature didn't drop below 30°C (night or day) for 3 months.
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Tomás Cano Binder, CT
Spain
Local time: 12:52
Member (2005)
English to Spanish
+ ...
| | We are not very fond of air conditioning... | Sep 2, 2009 |
...in the office and therefore we sometimes work at temperatures comparable to those you mention (we are in central Spain). All computers work beautifully in that situation.There is nothing you should be worrying about in my opinion... unless your computer is 20 years old.
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Francesca Pesce
Italy
Local time: 12:52
Member (2006)
English to Italian
+ ...
| | That makes two of us | Sep 2, 2009 |
Marie-Hélène Hayles wrote:
Never had a single problem with the computer, even a few years ago when the temperature didn't drop below 30°C (night or day) for 3 months. |
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No trouble in 2003 (most probably the year Marie-Hélène refers to). No problems this year either.
No trouble in Central America either where the humidity was much higher.
This is the first time it occurs to me that my laptop could have more problems with heat that I do. I have never wanted air conditioning, much prefering open windows or in any case "the real thing", instead of contributing to global warming to keep cooler.
Probably my laptop has got used to the Roman temperature together with me and my family.
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Çağdaş Karataş
Turkey
Local time: 13:52
Member (2007)
English to Turkish
| | Keeping your work environment and devices clean | Sep 2, 2009 |
I believe this is the crucial point when it comes to working with computers at (extremely) high temperatures. Accumulation of dust and dirt in your computer (in the fan especially) will both decrease its performance and expose it to the risk of malfunctioning and breaking down. Noone would like to see his/her new (expensive) computer be ruined unexpectedly. In this sense, we should always attach importance to keeping the space around our computer neat and clean. It should not be open to dust in-flow and dirt accumulation (e.g. your case should necessarily be above ground level.) The same rule applies to laptops as well. You should refrain from leaving your laptop on dirty and dusty surfaces and rooms as much as you can. If your computer is clean inside, I don't think high temperatures could cause damage. I'm pretty sure because I live in Antalya and the temperature was consistently near and above 40*C in July and August and everything is safe here because my above precautions are in place. Trust your computer but do never forget that it depends on your care.
My best regards to everyone.
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Andreas Nieckele
Brazil
Local time: 07:52
English to Portuguese
| | You will notice before it's too late | Sep 2, 2009 |
It's also worth mentioning that computers won't suddenly melt or explode from heat. If the temperature gets too high the computer will most likely freeze and some motherboards will even emit a beeping sound. In this case all you have to do is shut the computer down and turn it on again at a later time when the temperature is not so high.
Laptop stands, on the other hand, pose a different threat. As much as it helps keep your computer cool, it will still get quite hot inside nevertheless. The problem is that the laptop is not on its "natural" or "relaxed" position when it's on a stand - the weight is not evenly distributed. So when you have heat + case plastic being forcefully bent, it's not that hard to have the plastic crack - I've seen it happen. Of course it's just plastic and not the precious electronics inside, but try explaining this to the computer repair guy...
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NR_Stedman
France
Local time: 12:52
Member
French to English
TOPIC STARTER | | fan and my carbon footprint | Sep 2, 2009 |
[quote]Tomás Cano Binder, CT wrote:
"We are not very fond of air conditioning"
Extraordinary interest in this question today after a 3-week lull so thanks! Some rather politically correct comments too.
I've had time to consider the question again since first asking it.
A special fan under a laptop is a good idea. Hot temperatures reduce the life of hard disks.
Everyone has there own best working temperature. Mine, (like lots of English people: see number of people wearing just T-shirts in the UK in Winter) is low. Ergonomic studies show you make more mistakes when working above you best working temperature.
As for implied criticism about my high carbon footprint please take into account my lower heating charges in the winter
[Edited at 2009-09-02 13:31 GMT]
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Tomás Cano Binder, CT
Spain
Local time: 12:52
Member (2005)
English to Spanish
+ ...
| | Not politically correct | Sep 2, 2009 |
NR_Stedman wrote:
Tomás Cano Binder, CT wrote:
"We are not very fond of air conditioning" |
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As for implied criticism about my high carbon footprint please take into account my lower heating charges in the winter |
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My comment was not meant to be a politically correct message at all. I was trying to say that we don't like the kind of artificial air you get with air conditioning. Not very healthy in my opinion... or just for my organism!
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Marie-Hélène Hayles
Italy
Local time: 12:52
Member (2004)
Italian to English
+ ...
| | On cleanliness and the toughness of computers | Sep 2, 2009 |
Çağdaş Karataş wrote:
I believe this is the crucial point when it comes to working with computers at (extremely) high temperatures. Accumulation of dust and dirt in your computer (in the fan especially) will both decrease its performance and expose it to the risk of malfunctioning and breaking down. Noone would like to see his/her new (expensive) computer be ruined unexpectedly. In this sense, we should always attach importance to keeping the space around our computer neat and clean. It should not be open to dust in-flow and dirt accumulation (e.g. your case should necessarily be above ground level.) The same rule applies to laptops as well. You should refrain from leaving your laptop on dirty and dusty surfaces and rooms as much as you can. If your computer is clean inside, I don't think high temperatures could cause damage. I'm pretty sure because I live in Antalya and the temperature was consistently near and above 40*C in July and August and everything is safe here because my above precautions are in place. Trust your computer but do never forget that it depends on your care.
My best regards to everyone. |
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Actually, in my experience you can be pretty lax about keeping them clean too. One of my old computers had an LCD display of the CPU temperature. I noticed that it was getting pretty hot (about 53°C, where it had run for years at 37°C) and at the same time I was having a problem with it crashing at random.
Naturally, I assumed the two were related, so I opened it up - and found a half-inch thick layer of cat fur over absolutely everything. 
I removed it, and then gave the innards a quick run over with the vacuum cleaner (yes, really).
I put it all back together again, turned it on and the CPU settled happily back at 37°C. Didn't stop the damn thing from crashing though: that turned out to be due to an incorrectly installed mouse driver.
So computers really are a lot tougher than you think, folks. The neglect and abuse mine have suffered over the years must be pretty much the manual on how not to do it - but they still work perfectly.
I expect my other PC has a half-inch thick layer of cat fur in it too, but as it can't tell me it's too hot and it's never crashed, I've never bothered looking
[Edited at 2009-09-02 15:00 GMT]
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Julie Dion
Canada
Local time: 05:52
English to French
| | Fan does have an effect on objects | Sep 2, 2009 |
NR_Stedman wrote:
(Concerning the use of a fan though I have read that fanning lowers body temperature because of sweat but that an external fan has no effect on computer processors. )
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Most computers have fans to cool them down. So it must be effective somehow
Moving air will cool anything faster than still air if the object is warmer than the air surrounding it, as heat is advected away from the object by the fan and not getting diffused solely by air molecules bumping each other.
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| Pages in topic: < [1 2] |
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