White stuff

[Himanshu pal]

any idea what is this white stuff? How can I clean it?

[freeagent]

Looks like styrofoam..

[Himanshu pal]

4 minutes ago, freeagent said:

Looks like styrofoam..

I don't think thats something supposed to be there

[YoungBlade]

The first thing to try for cleaning it would be compressed air.

 

As for what it could be, I'm frankly not sure. I've seen corrosion like that form on capacitors in very old systems - circa 2005 - but I doubt this is corrosion - its usually found clumped around the base of the capacitor, or along a seam on the edge or top. This is spread around and has fallen into that heatsink, so it doesn't seem like it's stuck to something.

[Himanshu pal]

3 minutes ago, YoungBlade said:

The first thing to try for cleaning it would be compressed air.

 

As for what it could be, I'm frankly not sure. I've seen corrosion like that form on capacitors in very old systems - circa 2005 - but I doubt this is corrosion - its usually found clumped around the base of the capacitor, or along a seam on the edge or top. This is spread around and has fallen into that heatsink, so it doesn't seem like it's stuck to something.

Could it be salt? I didn't study science much but I heard heat causes salt production in some chemicals

[GuiltySpark_]

20 minutes ago, freeagent said:

Looks like styrofoam..

This is exactly what it looks like. 

[RollinLower]

1 hour ago, Himanshu pal said:

Could it be salt? I didn't study science much but I heard heat causes salt production in some chemicals

did you taste it?

 

edit: people are agreeing with me but pls don't actually do this 

[YoungBlade]

1 minute ago, Himanshu pal said:

Could it be salt? I didn't study science much but I heard heat causes salt production in some chemicals

From my understanding, salts can be used in the production of capacitors. Capacitors contain electrolytes. They're not actually what plants crave, but electrolyte solutions do contain salt. So it's possible that failed capacitors could release salts when they fail. The salt isn't being created by heat - it's already inside the capacitors to begin with.

 

But again, I don't think it's from a failed capacitor, because the capacitors in the image look fine.

[Himanshu pal]

17 minutes ago, RollinLower said:

did you taste it?

Obv not! Why would I lol I said its salt not NaCl one 

[Tan3l6]

I doubt that the capacitors eject refined table salt.

More likely its styrofoam like mentioned earlier.

[djksm]

mold maybe

[Levent]

2 minutes ago, djksm said:

mold maybe

Then it would be first time I have seen mold grow on VRMs of actively used computer

[Mark Kaine]

White stuff? Yikes  

[BlackDragon1971]

Replace the motherboard....

[Himanshu pal]

2 hours ago, BlackDragon1971 said:

Replace the motherboard....

I bought this pc like 6-7 months ago

[BlackDragon1971]

2 hours ago, Himanshu pal said:

I bought this pc like 6-7 months ago

Then it's defective....