ESD/Anti-Static Protection

[Bensemus]

Building a computer I don't observe the best anti static practices but it's not a gimmick. In the factory that I work in everyone on the production floor wears an anti-static smock, wrist strap, and two foot straps. All of this to protect very simple electronics that light the interior of cars, worth a few cents, up to a few dollars.

[Psykomantis00]

when you spend alot of money like i do like thousands on a pc then the $5 wrist band and little hassel doesnt seem so bad

Implying an enthusiast forum isn't full of 1000+ dollar builds. 

 

You need to discharge static electricity. You can achieve this by touching your power supply or case. You don't need to be tethered to a device with a = strap. It's just silly unless you're walking on shag carpet for 100 feet to get every part while wearing a fuzzy sweater and then walking back, the initial discharge of static electricity will suffice. 

[ForeseenVisionz]

Implying an enthusiast forum isn't full of 1000+ dollar builds. 

 

You need to discharge static electricity. You can achieve this by touching your power supply or case. You don't need to be tethered to a device with a = strap. It's just silly unless you're walking on shag carpet for 100 feet to get every part while wearing a fuzzy sweater and then walking back, the initial discharge of static electricity will suffice. 

better safe than without a gpu or mobo 

[shadowblitz3]

yes I recently found they are useless products

 

but ive used them before

[ThatAngryGnome]

At my school they require use to use them.

They do that kinda stuff at your school? Thats pretty dope.

[Psykomantis00]

better safe than without a gpu or mobo 

I've never killed a single thing ever with static electricity. As long as you discharge yourself before you work on your machine you'll be okay. The strap is just for idiots that can't grab a metal grounded object (which, cmon, the entire pc case is grounded) for a couple seconds while building. 

[Albatross]

Better safe than sorry.

 

What happens if you forgot to touch the case and touched something? For 5$ it is a good extra precaution to securing the life of your PC/hardware.

[lukeptba]

better safe than sorry i had a friend who fried his cpu

I would label that as negligence, not failure to wear anti-static rubbish.

[ForeseenVisionz]

I've never killed a single thing ever with static electricity. As long as you discharge yourself before you work on your machine you'll be okay. The strap is just for idiots that can't grab a metal grounded object (which, cmon, the entire pc case is grounded) for a couple seconds while building. 

yea agreed haha

[ttam]

I probably touch more high end components than most of this forum combined and never once have I used a anti static wrap.

 

It is a gimmick

[GameWizard]

Every man is the architect of his own fortune. I am not going to risk mine or somebody else's components just because ''these things didn't happen''

 

Antistatic gloves is the way for me. No cable to get into way + no finger oils or sweat on components. 

which ones do you use?

[Spev]

I've never killed a single thing ever with static electricity. As long as you discharge yourself before you work on your machine you'll be okay. The strap is just for idiots that can't grab a metal grounded object (which, cmon, the entire pc case is grounded) for a couple seconds while building. 

Or maybe so you don't have to touch the case every so often and can just worry about building. Regardless, I think when installing a CPU I would rather have something like that on, it's $5...why take a chance? Well in this case I guess I'm an idiot, and Linus is an idiot too, we both use wrist straps. (well he uses it around ankle but ya)

[Psykomantis00]

Or maybe so you don't have to touch the case every so often and can just worry about building. Regardless, I think when installing a CPU I would rather have something like that on, it's $5...why take a chance? Well in this case I guess I'm an idiot, and Linus is an idiot too, we both use wrist straps. (well he uses it around ankle but ya)

I very seriously doubt that linus actually uses a wrist strap. More than likely he's just encouraging it for the newbs that have never built a pc before. If you don't know what you're doing, then yes, a strap is something you should do. Once you have a little experience you don't need it. 

[RNorris3926]

I need to wear one all the time, can't get out of my truck without shocking myself.

[dfsdfgfkjsefoiqzemnd]

Especially during the winter I really suffer from static electricity.  When I'm wearing sneakers, 3 steps (even on my linoleum living room floor) is all it takes to build up enough to get a painful jolt the next time I touch something metal.  I have already fried a motherboard and graphics card on 2 seperate occasions due to a strong static discharge, so I'm not taking any chances when dealing with a few thousand $ worth of electronics.

[Spev]

I very seriously doubt that linus actually uses a wrist strap. More than likely he's just encouraging it for the newbs that have never built a pc before. If you don't know what you're doing, then yes, a strap is something you should do. Once you have a little experience you don't need it. 

Even if he doesn't I'll go ahead and say I completely disagree with what you're saying. You may think only idiots use them, I think only idiots don't. It's one thing to go into your case real quick and add a fan or move something. Alright you don't wanna use it then? Whatever. In my honest opinion, if you are building a PC from scratch and you are installing a CPU and you don't use some kind of antistatic protection, I think you are an idiot. WHY TAKE A CHANCE, it's $5, or risk losing $300-$1000 on a CPU. Poster directly above me even admits he has ruined equipment by not using one. 

 

/thread

[Dabombinable]

Keeping with the topic, its a gimmick to me as I am unable to kill any of my motherboards, which span from 1982 right up to 2014, with static electricity. No matter how hard I try.

[asker509]

Man I shock people all the time must be cause I'm hairy and always on carpet lol yeah I used a esd strap while building my pc someone threw it away along with my thermal paste I have to move my parts to a new case.

So do I just touch the case with the psu plugged in and I'll be fine?

[dantayy]

Well normally you shouldn't be able to spoil a computer but I guess just in case lol, if the voltage is high enough it may damage the computer

[Guest]

I use one just to be sure.

[Viking Kong]

I cant count how many times I worked on my old PC on my bed, never had a problem.

[Spev]

I cant count how many times I worked on my old PC on my bed, never had a problem.

I bet you could probably ride a car without a seat belt and never have a problem too, unless the unplanned happened.

[-CLASSIFIED-]

I had one in the 90s that I almost never used.  I have put together and or worked on hundreds of machines from simple no frills PCs to high end PCs to Sun enterprise multi million dollar systems over 22 years.  I have never zapped a single component.  

 

One of the funniest things I have seen though has been at a trade show in 2000.  I forget what the show even was,  was some show in Chicago.  Turned out the PC the PR people grabbed and took to the show had no NIC card in it and no onboard.  So me and another guy in sysops went to take a NIC (really I just went to look around the show heh).  So my partner in crime so to speak takes this NIC,  opens the case and puts it in then goes to power it on.  Dummy did not even realize it was already powered on.  He inserted a PCI NIC into a running system.  It damaged nothing and worked perfectly.  Funniest thing I have personally witnessed in tech.  

ive laways wondered what would happen if i plugged somehthing into a pc while its running lol , now i now it'll probably work 

[wrath]

i never used one but i didnt have any problems either without it

[Darel]

Get rid of your carpet, and you're good \o/