What to do w/ my pc in a thunderstorm

[Thebman712]

So there is a big ass thunger storm on right now were i live, and i dont know if i should unplug it and my other stuff from the wall, it is pluged into a power bar that my dad says is also a surge protector so will i be fine if something happens

[SAV1OUR]

if your extremely paranoid unplug it from the wall   

[Thebman712]

if your extremely paranoid unplug it from the wall

im downloading a game which is why i dont want to

[SAV1OUR]

im downloading a game which is why i dont want to

if its through steam it will pause it and automatically pick up from where you were 

[XTankSlayerX]

Ahhh, So I did hear thunder. We have some rain here in Surrey.

[EmotionalSloth]

There is an extremely low chance that anything will happen, but if you want you can unplug just to be sure

[CosmicMeteor]

So there is a big ass thunger storm on right now were i live, and i dont know if i should unplug it and my other stuff from the wall, it is pluged into a power bar that my dad says is also a surge protector so will i be fine if something happens

You have a surge protector so most likely you will be fine. The only concern is if your power goes out. When your power comes back on it can surge and fry some parts. If you are really concerned just unplug it. That's all you can do.

 

I'm from the okanogan and we are getting some rain as well.

[Murdoch]

A domestic surge protector ain't gonna do much against a direct lightning strike on your house / wiring.

But the chance of that happening is pretty fucking slim.

[Thebman712]

You have a surge protector so most likely you will be fine. The only concern is if your power goes out. When your power comes back on it can surge and fry some parts. If you are really concerned just unplug it. That's all you can do.

I'm from the okanogan and we are getting some rain as well.

it must be heading west then from here in rider land ( almost any canadain will get that one ;-) ) im not worried about startup as my system has gone through a few when i was not home and is still fine

[Thebman712]

if its through steam it will pause it and automatically pick up from where you were

is origin that smart

[Hoppa]

Be aware of brown outs. They could do some damage to your hardware. And also when the power goes off then on then off again. For those types of situations I'd recommend you have a UPS.

 

Your average serge protector won't protect you from a extremely high voltage / amperage strike. (on the sticker or the box will tell you it's maximum tolerance it can handle.)

 

But even with a UPS, i'd still recommend you to save your work and turn off the computer (if the storm is bad enough)

[CosmicMeteor]

it must be heading west then from here in rider land ( almost any canadain will get that one ;-) ) im not worried about startup as my system has gone through a few when i was not home and is still fine

Yeah my baby has gone through a few as well.  

[Askew]

if your extremely paranoid unplug it from the wall   

 

                YOU'RE*

[euniqe]

If it's surge protected you should be absolutely fine.

[LogicalDrm]

I always unplug pc and any other valuable electronics during thunderstorms. Nothing has blown yet but since thunder can strike same place twice why not on my $800 pc. Ofc there's insurence but all the files and configging...

[loccilucas]

why are some people so over paranoid over the smallest things? no offence but people need to just stop being so scared of everything. Your PC will be fine in a thunderstorm.

[steffen_anywhere]

is origin that smart

 

Yeah it is in fact. The problem with origin is that is doesn't download in the first place. I hate origin... Also this:

 

EDIT: wanted to post picture of origin not scaling on a high DPI display. But now it doesn't even open. Double fail EA...

[Thebman712]

Yeah it is in fact. The problem with origin is that is doesn't download in the first place. I hate origin... Also this:

 

EDIT: wanted to post picture of origin not scaling on a high DPI display. But now it doesn't even open. Double fail EA...

yeah my origin is fucked all the time where it never opens

[theroflcopta]

Live dangerously keep it plugged in and turn on every electrical device in your house you possibly can and scoff at natures futile attempts to crush your greatness. 

[flibberdipper]

Even though it's over by now (hopefully), I usually just unplug mine when the lightning gets more frequent and it gets closer.

[toms94z71]

Are the power lines where you live above or below ground? if they are below ground then I would say you are most likely fine, if they are above ground I would unplug in a bad storm, I have had lightening blow a bunch of light bulbs in a house in a thunderstorm before. I run surge protectors, but consumer grade surge protectors will only protect from inderict strikes, like when it hits the line a 1/4 mile away and most of it has a chance to ground out before  it gets to your house, on the other hand if you have hit on the line between your transformer and your house then most the plugged in electronics in your house are screwed and if you are lucky your house will not burn down. We get a whole lot of thunderstorms here where I live, a few times a week spring and summer it seems. I have know a few people that lost almost all their electronics in the house from a lightening strike. 

[Earache]

You can get a surge protector (rated), UPS, or a power conditioner. All of these would protect your computer from electrical damage.

[Nicktrance]

I remember getting my PCI dial-up modem getting fried by lightning through the telephone cables , but yeah you're probably fine.

[Prokart2000]

what i do is whenever there is a thunderstorm (not often) is turn off and unplug

[doubley_m]

I lost a PSU due to a brownout once, switched to using a UPS after that. Regarding the thunderstorm, if you have overground power cables then there is always a risk, wouldn't trust a consumer grade surge protector against a lightning strike anyway.

 

Furthermore, be aware that telephone lines could be struck, so if you're on DSL and using a physical network in your home...a friend lost a machine to this one back in the 56k days, disconnected from power but he'd left the phone line in, lightning struck the pole down the road and it totalled his modem and motherboard.