Computer Shuts Down on Static Shock

[Emberstone]

Hey there. I recently moved my PC to a new location, and have encountered a very, very strange issue there.

 

Previously, whenever ESD jumped from me to my PC's case, everything was fine. I assumed the case was grounded through the PSU and nothing hit any components since there was never a problem in the near two years I've had this rig.

 

In the new location, however, whenever ESD jumps from my hand to the right side of the case (this is crucial. Only the side of the case behind the motherboard has done this as far as I can tell), the computer shuts down.

 

I opened up that side of the case and I don't see anything out of the ordinary. I'm at a loss here as to why my system is shutting down like this. I've tested the outlets for ground and they're all good as well.

 

Any ideas? Or should I just get an ESD clip and ground my case directly? I thought my PSU should ground the case from static shocks.

 

Might also be important to note that my motherboard isn't freaking out. It isn't resetting BIOS, disabling my OC, or anything like that. So I think it might just be tripping the PSU and nothing else, but I'm no expert. I especially don't know why a shock to the top of the case hasn't shut it down, but a shock to the right side does.

[TheBean]

have you tested your psu cable if the ground works? does the side panel have a good contact path to the PSU?

[Guest]

13 minutes ago, Emberstone said:

Hey there. I recently moved my PC to a new location, and have encountered a very, very strange issue there.

 

Previously, whenever ESD jumped from me to my PC's case, everything was fine. I assumed the case was grounded through the PSU and nothing hit any components since there was never a problem in the near two years I've had this rig.

The PSU is only grounded if it's plugged into a plug with Earth ground.

 

Get one of these (assuming you're in North America):  https://www.amazon.com/Sperry-Instruments-GFI6302-Receptacle-Professional/dp/B000RUL2UU

 

[Emberstone]

9 minutes ago, Saksham said:

have you tested your psu cable if the ground works? does the side panel have a good contact path to the PSU?

I haven't checked the cable, but I'm using a multimeter on Ohms mode right now with one probe on the case and another on the PSU's ground terminal out the back, and the multimeter isn't showing anything. It's like I'm not touching the probes to anything at all.

 

Do we have a problem, Houston?

[Emberstone]

Just now, jonnyGURU said:

The PSU is only grounded if it's plugged into a plug with Earth ground.

 

Get one of these (assuming you're in North America):  https://www.amazon.com/Sperry-Instruments-GFI6302-Receptacle-Professional/dp/B000RUL2UU

 

I actually tested the outlet with something similar and it showed as grounded.

[Guest]

1 minute ago, Emberstone said:

I actually tested the outlet with something similar and it showed as grounded.

Interesting.  Have you tried using the PC with that side of the case still open?  You would think a wire is pinched somewhere causing a short. Might be a good idea to trace all your cables.

[TheBean]

9 minutes ago, Emberstone said:

I haven't checked the cable, but I'm using a multimeter on Ohms mode right now with one probe on the case and another on the PSU's ground terminal out the back, and the multimeter isn't showing anything. It's like I'm not touching the probes to anything at all.

 

Do we have a problem, Houston?

not sure. contact psu maker and case maker. 

[Emberstone]

37 minutes ago, Saksham said:

not sure. contact psu maker and case maker. 

 

45 minutes ago, jonnyGURU said:

Interesting.  Have you tried using the PC with that side of the case still open?  You would think a wire is pinched somewhere causing a short. Might be a good idea to trace all your cables.

A cable might've been the issue.

 

I have an NZXT S340 Elite, and I do not use the included HDMI out on the front of the case, so the cable for it is pushed off to the side inside the case.

 

Because I'm stupid, I never covered it or anything. I just pushed it to the side. Well, it was bound to move during the relocation, and it was millimeters from the case body afterward.

 

Since I don't have any HDMI covers, I covered it with electrical tape and closed it back up. After I turned my PC back on, I took my sweatshirt off and reached for my headset to the right of my PC, getting a nasty shock on the offending side of the case (because I'm stupid and wasn't thinking).

 

The PC stayed on.

 

I think the shocks were being grounded through the HDMI cable and into the motherboard via the USB hub it's a part of.

 

I'm not going to test it a second time intentionally, but this was the first time a shock there didn't turn the PC off.

 

[Guest]

1 hour ago, Emberstone said:

I haven't checked the cable, but I'm using a multimeter on Ohms mode right now with one probe on the case and another on the PSU's ground terminal out the back, and the multimeter isn't showing anything. It's like I'm not touching the probes to anything at all.

 

Do we have a problem, Houston?

Glad it stopped rebooting, but this post (which I missed earlier) is interesting. 

 

The AC inlet's Earth ground is grounded to the PSU housing.  The PSU is the grounded to the chassis via the PSU mounting screws.  You should see continuity between the case and ground (bare metal, of course. The paint acts as an insulator). 

[Emberstone]

1 minute ago, jonnyGURU said:

Glad it stopped rebooting, but this post (which I missed earlier) is interesting. 

 

The AC inlet's Earth ground is grounded to the PSU housing.  The PSU is the grounded to the chassis via the PSU mounting screws.  You should see continuity between the case and ground (bare metal, of course. The paint acts as an insulator). 

Yeah, my case is painted black. My dad told me that's why the multimeter wasn't getting anything off of it.

[Emberstone]

5 minutes ago, jonnyGURU said:

Glad it stopped rebooting, but this post (which I missed earlier) is interesting. 

 

The AC inlet's Earth ground is grounded to the PSU housing.  The PSU is the grounded to the chassis via the PSU mounting screws.  You should see continuity between the case and ground (bare metal, of course. The paint acts as an insulator). 

NVM. I decided to do something stupid and shock it intentionally... It still shuts off. Was just a fluke.

 

I'm going to call EVGA tomorrow. I my PSU is a G2 Supernova 650.

[Guest]

40 minutes ago, Emberstone said:

NVM. I decided to do something stupid and shock it intentionally... It still shuts off. Was just a fluke.

 

I'm going to call EVGA tomorrow. I my PSU is a G2 Supernova 650.

If you use your DMM... Put one probe on the ground pin of the AC input (AC cord unplugged, of course) and the other on the PSU housing (where there's little to no paint. Might want to scratch it a little) do you get a circuit? 

[Emberstone]

Random update. Due to uni and family responsibilities I haven't had the chance to call EVGA and deal with support, but I'm pretty sure I know what's going on here and why it doesn't happen when the front, top, or bottom of the case get zapped.

 

My mobo is only screwed into four of the standoffs (only the four corners of the board), because that's all that came with my case. That means there's four points of contact where static could easily jump onto a nearby component before it thinks about going through the PSU.

 

God, I'm stupid.

[protectnor]

Hey op, I'd start a new thread but I wanted to ask you directly. What's wrong with only using 4 stand offs? Does using more mean less chance of shock? If I touch my PC anywhere and shock it it shuts down, and just today it happened when I touched a wired controller and again when I accidentally touched my TV screen.