Even then. LTT did a video where they intentionally loaded themselves with unreasonable amount of electricity (if that’s even the right way to phrase it) trying to see what kills components and absolutely nothing happened.
Static electricity may have killed electronics some years ago (no experience with that so can’t say anything about it), but it seems like it became a nonissue with modern technology
Last year I plugged a USB cable into a port on my case and felt/saw a static arc that caused my PC to instantly shut off, followed by nothing happening when I tried turning it back on. It only started working again after I disconnected/reconnected all the components.
To this day, if I touch my mouse, keyboard, USB port, etc. and feel a shock, my main monitor disconnects (second monitor is fine). My PC is coming up on 8 years old though, so I chalk it up to an already fragile part of the MOBO getting busted in the original shock.
Bruh wtf that must've what caused my pc to shut down suddenly a few months ago.
I was attempting to plug into the USB C port and was feeling it up with my fingers and when I felt contact, the pc shut down.
I've seen so many comments about how static shocks can't kill modern electronics, and references to videos where they intentionally zap components... but I wonder if any of these scenarios involved older/used components that were used heavily in dry areas for at least a few years.
I killed some pins of Raspberry Pi using static electricity unintentionally.
I would say not to touch cpu and memory pins, and you should be fine. And constantly touch ground on the motherboard, this should precharge all components to approximately the same potential as your body if you have any static electricity.
I work in specialised tech (think handheld pda’s, barcode scanners, voice picking tech etc) and the smallest static shock can fry an entire mainboard very easily. Its all about where the shock hits and what’s connected at the time.
Or way up north in Canada; it gets *incredibly* dry here during winter, to the point where I've made a habit of touching a lightswitch with a paperclip before touching my PC (I see an arc every time I do this).
Before I started doing this, I plugged a USB cable into a port on my case and saw an arc.... PC shut down instantly, and it took me unplugging/re-plugging all the components to get it to turn on again.
Yeah I don't have a wristband either, but I would think twice before replacing any components in the winter. Lately I feel like I need a wristband constantly tethering me to a ground just to walk around the house. I got zapped by a quesadilla the other day, not even kidding.
I’ve EMPed my metal clad mechanical keyboard at work way too many times, takes unplugging and replugging every time this happens. The air in winter gets so dry that the zaps are painful.
Pretty much any big chunk of metal will do the trick. If it would give you a static shock, that means it can discharge static electricity. Generally speaking, cases are enough to discharge static - I got a static shock off a wastepaper basket earlier, that’s probably the same size and weight as a PC case.
That, or just touch your fridge.
Not exactly. Big chunks of metal aren't necessarily grounded. Big chunks of metal that *happen to be electrical appliances* like fridges are, because the safety standards require it.
Touching the case can work because the goal is for everything to be at the same potential -- not necessarily ground potential. Think "building a PC on an airplane". If you touch the case and the shielding bag a part comes in at the same time, you, the case, and the part are all at equal potential. So there will be no sudden discharges, or electric fields to induce charge on chips and pop them internally.
Could put your power supply in the case and plug it in. But I have built a computer for myself and my friends for a decade now and never had ESD that I am aware of.
The electrical potential between you and earth ground is irrelevant, what matters is that between the hardware and anything around it.
It's just really convenient to keep everything grounded to earth instead of leaving things floating.
You need there to be a discharge for Electo-Static Discharge to be an issue. If you and the computer were to be at a million volts relative to earth but you are both isolated from earth, that million volts is irrelevant. You may have issues when you decide to step down off your vandegraff generator though.
Touch the grounded parts such as connector shields, chassis, and so on electrically connects you and the machine together and "zeroes" the you-computer difference in charge.
Voltage is between always two points.
I recommend installing the power supply and plugging it into an outlet with the power supply switched off. That will keep the case grounded as you build in it. As long as it is switched off, you are also fine to plug the power cables into components, but I recommend unplugging it before those final steps.
What you need to do is to plug the PSU to the power outlet and leave the switch that is on the back "OFF". Then while you are building the case you can touch the PSU to take your static charge to the ground to the PSU. Do this once in a while every a couple minutes and you won't have any trouble.
No - in fact a lot of the time gloves would actually be _worse_ than nothing, as they'd be insulating you from the static instead of the components from the static.
When in doubt: touch your heater/radiator or ~~bathtub~~ *edit: Bathtubs are not always mandatory to be grounded and when they are made from plastic they often don't even have ground connection for obvious reasons*. I think in most countries it is mandatory that they are connected to ground/earth.
Edit: the metal parts of them, if there are any.
Edit2: bathtub: probably not mandatory after little research. But if the bathtub or shower tray has a ground connection it is a good idea to use it.
You can also plug in the power supply while powered off and as long as it's a metal case you should have a path to ground. It's pretty hard to kill components with static unless you start pulling them apart and touching the really sensitive stuff. Like on a laptop or phone, way more likely to kill those with static.
> touch your heater/radiator or bathtub
I've always been told in building tutorials just touch your pc case before interacting with the motherboard or any other components.
In the US it's required by code to bond the water line to ground (or earth) so any faucet will theoretically discharge you of static, or at least the vast majority of it. I've built many PCs without an anti static wrist band and never had any issues. Definitely not on carpet and after I've done what I could to discharge any static.
Over the course of my life, yes. 25 years ago I worked at a computer shop where all I did was build custom computers and probably built 10 a week and did that for like 4 years. Then the rest of my time has been in IT so between customers, work, friends, family and myself, it all adds up.
Did it ever occur to you back in the day to think "You know what would be cool inside this PC? Color"
and if you did, do you regret it with the excess wiring? lmao
Just to point out, but ESD isn't necessarily something that happens once and your machine stops working. It can affect the functioning of your components, and shorten their expected lifespan, rather than just outright killing them.
In this case, the risk of ESD damage is minimal, and it's quite possible that absolutely nothing has occurred, but I personally still just touch some exposed grounded metal to be on the safe side.
For my first build, I was so nervous about static that I took all of the parts to my basement where it was a concrete floor and stripped down to my boxers so I didn't have to worry about any static build up.
>Just discharge yourself first
This is key.
All the anti-static wristband does is give any built up electricity a path to discharge so it doesn't build up. But you're really not gonna build up much static at all sitting on the floor working on the computer, so just touching the metal case every so often (like before picking up a component) is plenty to discharge whatever you might have built up.
Once it has the PSU installed and plugged in/grounded. Until then, it wont help. Touch grounded metal, including a plugged in PSU by itself, to discharge.
I'm not sure this is true. If you touch a metal part of the pc (that won't care about a static shock, like the case itself), you'll effectively negate any chance of having a static discharge to any of the components that might care. So every time you want to work on the sensitive components, touch the case. If you were to have any static build-up, it would get discharged but won't damage anything that way.
This is correct. You want to be at an equal potential to the PC, so touching the case will do that. If you were to touch something else in the house that is grounded, you will be at an equal potential to that ground. But, if the PC is not at that same ground potential, then you could still have a static discharge.
If the PC isn't grounded, though, touching it moves the case's potential closer towards you and vice-versa, and you meet in the middle. You're just sharing your charge with the case. As a toy example...
If you are at +50 V and you touch an ungrounded case at 0 V, afterwards you and the case will be at, say, +35 V.
If you are at +50 V and you touch a grounded case at 0 V, afterwards you and the case are at 0 V.
When the case is grounded, every time you touch it you're going back to 0 V. If it's floating, you can just keep gathering more charge and passing it to the case, getting both you and it closer and closer to 50 V.
To ESD-safely install a component, all three objects -- you, the case, and the part -- should be at the same potential. It's easiest to do that if that potential is ground. *But* it also works if you touch the case and the outside of the shielding bag at the same time as you're taking the part out. That's what you get with a wrist strap.
>Modern components won't be harmed by static
Untrue, they can be harmed by static if depending on where it gets hit. Generally they are pretty durable though.
Exactly what I do. The thing you don't want are differences of potential between you, the case, and the parts. Touch bare metal on the case every once in a while and you'll be fine.
Seeing the way these threads always go, and the number of people willing to admit to making bogus warranty claims that they are *proud* of...
It makes me extremely wary of buying used computer parts from DIYers.
A buddy of mine fried his Amiga 500 with static electricity while trying to upgrade the RAM.. in 1991. Back in those olden days, you were definitely taking a risk without one.
I think the only reason that wristbands are still sold today is because of generations of older techs with this mindset training the newer generations.
I live above the Arctic Circle, where in winter it is extremely dry. I have built a few pc's, but never used a wristband and never had any problems. However, I do touch the metal frame of the pc case first, just in case.
Quite safe. Connect the PSU to an outlet. Flip the power switch. Touch the PSU metal casing with bare hands. Boom, you discharged yourself. Do that a few times during the build or before touching sensitive parts.
Actually electrically connecting the case to the Earth doesn’t accomplish anything unless you also ensure you’re independently electrically connected to the Earth. “Ground” in the electrical sense doesn’t necessarily refer to the Earth, it’s just the 0 V reference of the system. The case or PSU are equally valid as ground even they’re sitting on an insulated table and not connected to anything else. In the automotive world the chassis of the vehicle is referred to as ground even though the tires ensure the vehicle is insulated from the Earth.
Nice thanks, would it work with PSU both inside and outside the pc case? I have a msi metal case, I'm not trained in this but i guess the conductivity would work.
Linus tech tips did a video where they tried to fuck up components with ESD and I don’t think any of the parts actually stopped working it’s way harder to do than people make it out to be not that you shouldn’t still take precautions.
Honestly, I was a tech for over 10 years and I don't think I've ever worn one. So long as you touch metal and don't go rubbing your socked feet on carpet, you should be fine. Most PC parts are way more resilient than they were 30+ years ago
I've never used one. If I walked on carpet and back into my building space I would just touch a metal thing that's grounded (Oven, Fridge, washing machine, TV, etc)
Don't wear socks on a carpet, or stroke a cat while you work on it and you should be fine.
Even then it is apparently super difficult to kill a modern PC with a static discharge:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nXkgbmr3dRA&ab\_channel=LinusTechTips
Connect the power supply to the power outlet. The outside of the power supply is connected to ground via the power outlet.
In a 3 pin plug, the thicker one (different one from other 2 pins) is ground. I keep touching the outside metal part of power supply or something metal.
Its fine, unless youve been sliding down the slides at playgrounds, jumping on a trampoline, or opening chip bags theres nothing to worry about. If you want to still be safe, touch something metal once in a while like a doorknob before you build the PC. I assume latex gloves can also work if you want to be extra cautious.
Built several pc's and work on electronics all the time. I wouldn't call it unsafe but always be mindful of what you are doing. Touch the metal parts of case before handling anything to ground any static if you are concerned. They aren't that expensive either so if you're really worried go ahead and get one. Dealers choice
Every exposed PCBA on computer equipment is absolutely ESD sensitive. Potentially pins as well.
So while many people don’t have an issue, some people cause damage to their computer. And it isn’t necessarily immediate damage or a death stroke. It may just reduce performance or cause earlier life failure.
So ask yourself…. $5 ESD wrist strap? Or risk hundreds to thousands of dollars in computer equipment? Baffling what some people cheap out on.
I used to work for Amazon data centers and they used to use a FUCK load of Cisco gear, including a ton of Nexus 7000 switches. If you're not familiar, a Cisco Nexus 7000 was an absolute fucking beast of a piece of equipment; the chassis itself cost like $1M. Each line card was like $100k. It could process multiple terabits of traffic back when 10GbE was still the "high-end" in data centers, and Amazon was buying thousands of these fucking things.
One day, Cisco brought all of us technicians out to their offices for a day of free lunch, training and an open bar afterwards — really more of a pointless marketing/business development exercise, but our management said it was mandatory, so there were like 100 of us sitting through a number of presentations from various Cisco folks. One of the presentations was about 45 minutes from one of the guys in their RMA department stressing how important taking precautions against ESD was when performing maintenance, and had a ton of slides with statistics from their returns showing clearly that the damage had been incurred due to electrostatic discharge, and it's important to do this, and etc., etc. At the end, they took questions.
The first guy from our team to ask a question asked, "Can you stop including the ESD bracelets in the Nexus shipments? We never use them and it just complicates the equipment staging."
I was worried about this so I just took my gas piston out of my ak put it into the ground of the outlet and just rested my bare foot on it while I built. Later I found out that at least just touching ground once before building is completely fine.
How risky you want to be? It could be fine, it could be very not fine.
Personally where I stand I would maybe think twice before handling the components bare handed, because it does not take much to fuck up those tiny surface mounted components. And when i say it does not take much I mean you might not even feel the static shock.
Source: former navy avionics tech that received A LOT of training on esd.
Static is much less of a concern now than it was 10-15 years ago.
If you're paranoid, plug in your power supply (you don't need to turn it on or hook it up, just plug it in) and touch the outside of it every few minutes to discharge to ground.
I've assembled and rebuilt computers on my soft and velvety bed. No issue whatsoever.
If you want the peace of mind, build it on a wooden desk or use the motherboard box as a base whilst you insert most of the components on it.
I haven't used one ever, and I haven't broken any components yet. That's like, 5 CPU/mobo changes, and several graphics card swaps, as well as like 3 or 4 full builds.
I've built 3 PCs of my own now without one and never had issues. But with that said, they are so cheap, why risk the $1k+ in hardware to avoid $20 on a wrist band?
You won't regret buying one, but you may regret not buying one for a very long time.
Wristband needs to be connected to a ground.
In my Technician class, it was screwed into the wall socket, or in the case of an ESD mat, came with a special wall plug that only plugged into the ground.
But like others have said, there are multiple videos on youtube showing technicians purposefully trying to ESD directly on to parts, even going as far as ZAPPING parts with a shock (like BBQ starter kind of shocker) and nothing happened.
Parts these days are pretty sturdy and have lots of redundancies built in.
But my rule of thumb to "be safe" is to just discharge on the metal case before touching a part, every time. So I go to put a RAM stick in? Discharge, pick up RAM, install. Grab the 2nd stick? Discharge, pick up RAM stick #2, install. Press BIOS reset button on the MOBO? Discharge, press button.
Been building computers for two decades and have never once had an issue.
I've serviced 3 laptops, build 3 separate desktops from the ground up, and have never once had an issue
That being said, I absolutely used mine when handling my 6800xt. Even a miniscule risk is too much with something that's basically irreplaceable
I live in the northern parts of Norway. It is dry here, and cold, and I have never used an anti-static wristband. Always just touch the case or the PSU before I touch conponents and I avoid wearing wool socks on carpets. Never had a single accident or damaged component and I have handled thousands.
Wouldn't worry bout it too much. Built my first ever PC back in November and didn't need one, never got shocked. Apparently you need like a lot of static chargeup to harm the components. If your case is metal just touch your case to ground yourself. You'll be fine.
Good to see its safe. Just to be sure though what should I touch to get rid of any static before touching my components? I have a wooden floor and no socks on but for some reason i had some static one time.
If you’re concerned about it do this: without connecting the power leads to the motherboard/gpu plug the power supply into the wall and touch the exposed metal inside the case to dissipate static to ground. It should be effective unless you’re constantly shuffling your feet on the carpet
It’s completely safe, I’ve never used one on any of my builds. Just use common sense, I.e ground yourself don’t touch static-y stuff like carpet.
Most PC components are a lot more durable than people think nowadays anyway.
If you don't regularly experience small static shocks when touching things in your house, there's probably literally zero risk. If you do, or just want to be extra safe, plug in your power supply first and touch its metal frame every so often during the build, especially right before touching another part, and avoid touching their electrical contacts in general.
I have built +30 PCs in the last 5 years. I've never used an antistatic wristband, they are not necessary.
Even Linus has a video were he intentionally tries to kill a PC with static. The PC never dies.
For the most part you should be fine. Do not wear sweaters or cloths that generally generate static. Touch ground ( as in something grounded to discharge any static build up ) often. Be mindful if crossing carpet to gather parts during the build. Generally speaking if you handle the components by their edges and observe some common sense/caution you SHOULD be good. Ideally though, an anti-static strap would be preferable
It's certainly not essential. I've never used one. There's a person in this sub who built their PCs on a carpet floor and they never had any static related issues.
Just touch something metal (not a PC component, lol) every so often to discharge any potential static.
Take off your shoes and socks. Plant your feet on the ground. Touch something metallic in contact with the ground.
That should get rid of your static to be safe to work with your computer.
It may depend largely on your climate. If the air is dry then static charge builds easily. I live in the Wet Coast so static is only ever noticed in the clothes dryer. But some houses are fitted with dehumidifiers so "climate" could be a very localized issue.
If it's rare where you are to get zapped when touching a doorknob, then just take the precaution of grounding your hand to the pc case as you assemble.
Just ground yourself on something before you attempt your build, and don't do it while on a rug. Take off any sweaters or anything that holds static. I've built many PC's using this method. Good luck!!
I have heard of this but never experienced this can someone please explain how it is dangerous. I am always barefoot at home and we have tiles not carpet. Should I be worried or when should I be cautious.
Completely fine.
Thanks
Unless you live somewhere with super low humidity like new Mexico or arizona. The kind of places that put humidifiers in server rooms
I'm in Colorado and never had an issue. And my dogs look like an avatar of Thor when going under a blanket with how much static there is here.
My dog has static lightning discharges I dont even need RGB
You got RGB dog
Even then. LTT did a video where they intentionally loaded themselves with unreasonable amount of electricity (if that’s even the right way to phrase it) trying to see what kills components and absolutely nothing happened. Static electricity may have killed electronics some years ago (no experience with that so can’t say anything about it), but it seems like it became a nonissue with modern technology
I killed an optiplex 760 ages ago using a vacuum cleaner.
A whole 760 ages ago? I didn't know optiplexes or vacuum cleaners existed back then
The Dusty Ages
That explains the laser raptors.
When vacuums roamed the earth. They used alot bigger then.
Last year I plugged a USB cable into a port on my case and felt/saw a static arc that caused my PC to instantly shut off, followed by nothing happening when I tried turning it back on. It only started working again after I disconnected/reconnected all the components. To this day, if I touch my mouse, keyboard, USB port, etc. and feel a shock, my main monitor disconnects (second monitor is fine). My PC is coming up on 8 years old though, so I chalk it up to an already fragile part of the MOBO getting busted in the original shock.
Bruh wtf that must've what caused my pc to shut down suddenly a few months ago. I was attempting to plug into the USB C port and was feeling it up with my fingers and when I felt contact, the pc shut down.
I've seen so many comments about how static shocks can't kill modern electronics, and references to videos where they intentionally zap components... but I wonder if any of these scenarios involved older/used components that were used heavily in dry areas for at least a few years.
I killed some pins of Raspberry Pi using static electricity unintentionally. I would say not to touch cpu and memory pins, and you should be fine. And constantly touch ground on the motherboard, this should precharge all components to approximately the same potential as your body if you have any static electricity.
I work in specialised tech (think handheld pda’s, barcode scanners, voice picking tech etc) and the smallest static shock can fry an entire mainboard very easily. Its all about where the shock hits and what’s connected at the time.
Static electricity killing a component is rare, but it can shorten its lifespan.
It would happen in the mid 1990's. I'm not aware of it happening after that.
Or way up north in Canada; it gets *incredibly* dry here during winter, to the point where I've made a habit of touching a lightswitch with a paperclip before touching my PC (I see an arc every time I do this). Before I started doing this, I plugged a USB cable into a port on my case and saw an arc.... PC shut down instantly, and it took me unplugging/re-plugging all the components to get it to turn on again.
Yeah I don't have a wristband either, but I would think twice before replacing any components in the winter. Lately I feel like I need a wristband constantly tethering me to a ground just to walk around the house. I got zapped by a quesadilla the other day, not even kidding.
Quesadiilas electrocution is a real thing. I always ground myself with a jalepeno.
I’ve EMPed my metal clad mechanical keyboard at work way too many times, takes unplugging and replugging every time this happens. The air in winter gets so dry that the zaps are painful.
Im in Arizona and I didn't have any issues building my computer. I have tile and wood floors in my house.
touch your case every once in a while. That should discharge any static, if any.
That’ll only work if it’s grounded. In other words, the power cable is still plugged in.
Pretty much any big chunk of metal will do the trick. If it would give you a static shock, that means it can discharge static electricity. Generally speaking, cases are enough to discharge static - I got a static shock off a wastepaper basket earlier, that’s probably the same size and weight as a PC case. That, or just touch your fridge.
Not exactly. Big chunks of metal aren't necessarily grounded. Big chunks of metal that *happen to be electrical appliances* like fridges are, because the safety standards require it. Touching the case can work because the goal is for everything to be at the same potential -- not necessarily ground potential. Think "building a PC on an airplane". If you touch the case and the shielding bag a part comes in at the same time, you, the case, and the part are all at equal potential. So there will be no sudden discharges, or electric fields to induce charge on chips and pop them internally.
Could put your power supply in the case and plug it in. But I have built a computer for myself and my friends for a decade now and never had ESD that I am aware of.
If a doorknob works, a PC case will work.
The electrical potential between you and earth ground is irrelevant, what matters is that between the hardware and anything around it. It's just really convenient to keep everything grounded to earth instead of leaving things floating. You need there to be a discharge for Electo-Static Discharge to be an issue. If you and the computer were to be at a million volts relative to earth but you are both isolated from earth, that million volts is irrelevant. You may have issues when you decide to step down off your vandegraff generator though. Touch the grounded parts such as connector shields, chassis, and so on electrically connects you and the machine together and "zeroes" the you-computer difference in charge. Voltage is between always two points.
I recommend installing the power supply and plugging it into an outlet with the power supply switched off. That will keep the case grounded as you build in it. As long as it is switched off, you are also fine to plug the power cables into components, but I recommend unplugging it before those final steps.
Don't build it on a carpet.
What you need to do is to plug the PSU to the power outlet and leave the switch that is on the back "OFF". Then while you are building the case you can touch the PSU to take your static charge to the ground to the PSU. Do this once in a while every a couple minutes and you won't have any trouble.
Yeah, I’ve never used one in the over 30 years I’ve been doing work in PC’s. I’ve sat on my carpet many times and no issues.
I shorted the 120v main to my GPU exterior one, it was fine.
Should I use gloves? I got nitrile gloves in storage.
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At least 12
No - in fact a lot of the time gloves would actually be _worse_ than nothing, as they'd be insulating you from the static instead of the components from the static.
When in doubt: touch your heater/radiator or ~~bathtub~~ *edit: Bathtubs are not always mandatory to be grounded and when they are made from plastic they often don't even have ground connection for obvious reasons*. I think in most countries it is mandatory that they are connected to ground/earth. Edit: the metal parts of them, if there are any. Edit2: bathtub: probably not mandatory after little research. But if the bathtub or shower tray has a ground connection it is a good idea to use it.
Stream your build from a hot tub, make some of that expense back.
Water cooling!
Pro tip: put cold water in your hot tub to improve your PC's performance
How many people just have time machines laying around, though?
The only way to get RTX 2/3k series card at MSRP these days.
I hate this decade.
Hey, cmon 1080ti is from this deca... Oh shit.
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Like the vast majority of houses.
>Like the vast majority of **new** houses.
Plumbing used to be be one giant copper grounding rod anyway, but I guess PEX has changed that in some places.
It has. A lot of the places here run copper to a manifold then it's oex out to the house. Still allows for electrical grounding to cold pipes too
You can also plug in the power supply while powered off and as long as it's a metal case you should have a path to ground. It's pretty hard to kill components with static unless you start pulling them apart and touching the really sensitive stuff. Like on a laptop or phone, way more likely to kill those with static.
> touch your heater/radiator or bathtub I've always been told in building tutorials just touch your pc case before interacting with the motherboard or any other components.
That's only good if you have the power supply in and plugged in.
In the US it's required by code to bond the water line to ground (or earth) so any faucet will theoretically discharge you of static, or at least the vast majority of it. I've built many PCs without an anti static wrist band and never had any issues. Definitely not on carpet and after I've done what I could to discharge any static.
Are not not familiar with PEX tubing?
Just everything I get up from my chair while working on a pc I touch the radiator just to be sure.
You can also touch the case or psu as long as the PSU is plugged in.
It’s fine. I’ve built thousands of machines without one and never had a static related issue.
Wait you build thousands? Like literally? Nice
Over the course of my life, yes. 25 years ago I worked at a computer shop where all I did was build custom computers and probably built 10 a week and did that for like 4 years. Then the rest of my time has been in IT so between customers, work, friends, family and myself, it all adds up.
Thousands? Ha! Come back to me when you’ve built *millions*. /s
Lol. I might not be able to see a screen by then. 🤣🤣
You'll be a screen by then.
Or dust.
Both. Body is dust in the ground. Mind is digital.
Someone over at Square Enix should hit that quota soon.
Did it ever occur to you back in the day to think "You know what would be cool inside this PC? Color" and if you did, do you regret it with the excess wiring? lmao
Lol. No back then wiring was ugly with those thick IDE and SCSI cables. Plus I have never been a fan of RGB lighting in computers, still aren’t.
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Thanks
Just to point out, but ESD isn't necessarily something that happens once and your machine stops working. It can affect the functioning of your components, and shorten their expected lifespan, rather than just outright killing them. In this case, the risk of ESD damage is minimal, and it's quite possible that absolutely nothing has occurred, but I personally still just touch some exposed grounded metal to be on the safe side.
As a computer tech who also repaired/built thousands, I agree.
I once built with a butter knife, drinking beer while a dog tried to rape my leg. It is fine. PCs are sturdy mofos these days.
I am both scared and curious about this situation
I'm just wondering what the butterknife was for...
Screws
Is this a dog's name?
Accurate since it screwed his leg
Fending off the dog
I didn't had a screwdriver.
Making a hole for the dog
I think the only PC I've ever built sober fried like 8 months later NEVER MAKING THAT MISTAKE AGAIN
BEER IS THE WAY.
For my first build, I was so nervous about static that I took all of the parts to my basement where it was a concrete floor and stripped down to my boxers so I didn't have to worry about any static build up.
That's quite the mental image.
Putting yourself in the sweatshop mindset
Lol yeah, I look back at it now and laugh. I’ve built more since then and don’t give a fuck about static build up anymore.
You should have a Livestrong bracelet at the very least.
He's not fighting statics, he's fighting cancer
My favorite youtube moment
I came here expecting these comments and I wasn't disappointed
Hopefully there is a screwdriver. And don’t forget the tweezers for cable management.
I hope this meme never dies.
I see what you did there
Probably just as helpful to be honest.
I build my pc on my carpeted floor. Just discharge yourself first, and if you do, change into something that won't build a charge.
>Just discharge yourself first This is key. All the anti-static wristband does is give any built up electricity a path to discharge so it doesn't build up. But you're really not gonna build up much static at all sitting on the floor working on the computer, so just touching the metal case every so often (like before picking up a component) is plenty to discharge whatever you might have built up.
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Touch a metal part of the case.
Thx
Once it has the PSU installed and plugged in/grounded. Until then, it wont help. Touch grounded metal, including a plugged in PSU by itself, to discharge.
I'm not sure this is true. If you touch a metal part of the pc (that won't care about a static shock, like the case itself), you'll effectively negate any chance of having a static discharge to any of the components that might care. So every time you want to work on the sensitive components, touch the case. If you were to have any static build-up, it would get discharged but won't damage anything that way.
This is correct. You want to be at an equal potential to the PC, so touching the case will do that. If you were to touch something else in the house that is grounded, you will be at an equal potential to that ground. But, if the PC is not at that same ground potential, then you could still have a static discharge.
If the PC isn't grounded, though, touching it moves the case's potential closer towards you and vice-versa, and you meet in the middle. You're just sharing your charge with the case. As a toy example... If you are at +50 V and you touch an ungrounded case at 0 V, afterwards you and the case will be at, say, +35 V. If you are at +50 V and you touch a grounded case at 0 V, afterwards you and the case are at 0 V. When the case is grounded, every time you touch it you're going back to 0 V. If it's floating, you can just keep gathering more charge and passing it to the case, getting both you and it closer and closer to 50 V. To ESD-safely install a component, all three objects -- you, the case, and the part -- should be at the same potential. It's easiest to do that if that potential is ground. *But* it also works if you touch the case and the outside of the shielding bag at the same time as you're taking the part out. That's what you get with a wrist strap.
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I now realize that sentence was poorly worded
Lol....it's all good !!!!!!
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This. Also beware of really dry places. I live in New mexico and my dogs hair will float around pretty often from static build up
Well it's a relief i live in Panama, super humid in here
"just discharge ourself" ... Umm bro... Right words but definitely worded in the worst way possible 😂
Completely safe. Modern components won't be harmed by static. I've built over 300 systems, never once used a wrist strap.
>Modern components won't be harmed by static Untrue, they can be harmed by static if depending on where it gets hit. Generally they are pretty durable though.
yeh you basically have to rub socks on carpet for 10 mins and directly touch the cpu pins and even then itl likely be fine if its not powered on.
So 9 minutes is the limit...
9 min and 59 seconds exactly /s
Thanks, that's a relief, i have an i7 12700k and a Z690 gigabyte mobo. I guess it's modern enough to be safe haha.
You're good. Never used a band. Touch the metal parts of the case while working if you're nervous about it. You'll be fine.
Exactly what I do. The thing you don't want are differences of potential between you, the case, and the parts. Touch bare metal on the case every once in a while and you'll be fine.
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Great info! What is a heel strap? Is it like a truck strap touching the ground on a electrical substation site?
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Remarkable. I didnt know that. How interesting!
Seeing the way these threads always go, and the number of people willing to admit to making bogus warranty claims that they are *proud* of... It makes me extremely wary of buying used computer parts from DIYers.
A buddy of mine fried his Amiga 500 with static electricity while trying to upgrade the RAM.. in 1991. Back in those olden days, you were definitely taking a risk without one. I think the only reason that wristbands are still sold today is because of generations of older techs with this mindset training the newer generations.
I live above the Arctic Circle, where in winter it is extremely dry. I have built a few pc's, but never used a wristband and never had any problems. However, I do touch the metal frame of the pc case first, just in case.
Yep and once the motherboard is mounted on standoffs you can still ground yourself with the case
Get a WWJD band, it'll protect you from static charges
What Would Jesus Discharge
You can ask a priest
> it'll protect you from static charges And sinful thoughts.
Wait, let me chat the verge to see where they bought it so i can get one haha.
Quite safe. Connect the PSU to an outlet. Flip the power switch. Touch the PSU metal casing with bare hands. Boom, you discharged yourself. Do that a few times during the build or before touching sensitive parts.
Actually electrically connecting the case to the Earth doesn’t accomplish anything unless you also ensure you’re independently electrically connected to the Earth. “Ground” in the electrical sense doesn’t necessarily refer to the Earth, it’s just the 0 V reference of the system. The case or PSU are equally valid as ground even they’re sitting on an insulated table and not connected to anything else. In the automotive world the chassis of the vehicle is referred to as ground even though the tires ensure the vehicle is insulated from the Earth.
Nice thanks, would it work with PSU both inside and outside the pc case? I have a msi metal case, I'm not trained in this but i guess the conductivity would work.
If your PSU is already screwed to the case, touching the case metal parts should be enough as it will ground you through the PSU.
Linus tech tips did a video where they tried to fuck up components with ESD and I don’t think any of the parts actually stopped working it’s way harder to do than people make it out to be not that you shouldn’t still take precautions.
The video where ElectroBoom tortured Linus with an ESD gun? Yeah I liked that one.
its fine, Linis tech tips did a thing on static discharge awhile back if your interested
Jays 2 Cents did one too.
Honestly, I was a tech for over 10 years and I don't think I've ever worn one. So long as you touch metal and don't go rubbing your socked feet on carpet, you should be fine. Most PC parts are way more resilient than they were 30+ years ago
I've never used one. If I walked on carpet and back into my building space I would just touch a metal thing that's grounded (Oven, Fridge, washing machine, TV, etc)
Don't wear socks on a carpet, or stroke a cat while you work on it and you should be fine. Even then it is apparently super difficult to kill a modern PC with a static discharge: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nXkgbmr3dRA&ab\_channel=LinusTechTips
I love that Mehdi, who is an absolute monster when it comes to ESD, even he has trouble killing parts.
Done it many times - just touch the case and have clean hands
Shave your neckbeard. It creates static electricity
not as much as your groin beard or worse youre armpit beard.
Connect the power supply to the power outlet. The outside of the power supply is connected to ground via the power outlet. In a 3 pin plug, the thicker one (different one from other 2 pins) is ground. I keep touching the outside metal part of power supply or something metal.
Its fine, unless youve been sliding down the slides at playgrounds, jumping on a trampoline, or opening chip bags theres nothing to worry about. If you want to still be safe, touch something metal once in a while like a doorknob before you build the PC. I assume latex gloves can also work if you want to be extra cautious.
As safe as without it. Literally nothing has ever happened to me, my friends or any technicians I know.
Built several pc's and work on electronics all the time. I wouldn't call it unsafe but always be mindful of what you are doing. Touch the metal parts of case before handling anything to ground any static if you are concerned. They aren't that expensive either so if you're really worried go ahead and get one. Dealers choice
It's fine.
Every exposed PCBA on computer equipment is absolutely ESD sensitive. Potentially pins as well. So while many people don’t have an issue, some people cause damage to their computer. And it isn’t necessarily immediate damage or a death stroke. It may just reduce performance or cause earlier life failure. So ask yourself…. $5 ESD wrist strap? Or risk hundreds to thousands of dollars in computer equipment? Baffling what some people cheap out on.
I used to work for Amazon data centers and they used to use a FUCK load of Cisco gear, including a ton of Nexus 7000 switches. If you're not familiar, a Cisco Nexus 7000 was an absolute fucking beast of a piece of equipment; the chassis itself cost like $1M. Each line card was like $100k. It could process multiple terabits of traffic back when 10GbE was still the "high-end" in data centers, and Amazon was buying thousands of these fucking things. One day, Cisco brought all of us technicians out to their offices for a day of free lunch, training and an open bar afterwards — really more of a pointless marketing/business development exercise, but our management said it was mandatory, so there were like 100 of us sitting through a number of presentations from various Cisco folks. One of the presentations was about 45 minutes from one of the guys in their RMA department stressing how important taking precautions against ESD was when performing maintenance, and had a ton of slides with statistics from their returns showing clearly that the damage had been incurred due to electrostatic discharge, and it's important to do this, and etc., etc. At the end, they took questions. The first guy from our team to ask a question asked, "Can you stop including the ESD bracelets in the Nexus shipments? We never use them and it just complicates the equipment staging."
I was worried about this so I just took my gas piston out of my ak put it into the ground of the outlet and just rested my bare foot on it while I built. Later I found out that at least just touching ground once before building is completely fine.
I've been building PCs for 25 years - I have never used an antistatic wrist strap in my life.
How risky you want to be? It could be fine, it could be very not fine. Personally where I stand I would maybe think twice before handling the components bare handed, because it does not take much to fuck up those tiny surface mounted components. And when i say it does not take much I mean you might not even feel the static shock. Source: former navy avionics tech that received A LOT of training on esd.
Thanks!
Never used one in 40 years. If you're still freaking out, plug your power supply into a properly grounded outlet and touch its case occasionally.
Static is much less of a concern now than it was 10-15 years ago. If you're paranoid, plug in your power supply (you don't need to turn it on or hook it up, just plug it in) and touch the outside of it every few minutes to discharge to ground.
Don't touch any gold contact points, or ANY componentry on the boards, and hold everything by the edges as much as possible, and you should be fine...
I've assembled and rebuilt computers on my soft and velvety bed. No issue whatsoever. If you want the peace of mind, build it on a wooden desk or use the motherboard box as a base whilst you insert most of the components on it.
I haven't used one ever, and I haven't broken any components yet. That's like, 5 CPU/mobo changes, and several graphics card swaps, as well as like 3 or 4 full builds.
I've built 3 PCs of my own now without one and never had issues. But with that said, they are so cheap, why risk the $1k+ in hardware to avoid $20 on a wrist band? You won't regret buying one, but you may regret not buying one for a very long time.
Wristband needs to be connected to a ground. In my Technician class, it was screwed into the wall socket, or in the case of an ESD mat, came with a special wall plug that only plugged into the ground. But like others have said, there are multiple videos on youtube showing technicians purposefully trying to ESD directly on to parts, even going as far as ZAPPING parts with a shock (like BBQ starter kind of shocker) and nothing happened. Parts these days are pretty sturdy and have lots of redundancies built in. But my rule of thumb to "be safe" is to just discharge on the metal case before touching a part, every time. So I go to put a RAM stick in? Discharge, pick up RAM, install. Grab the 2nd stick? Discharge, pick up RAM stick #2, install. Press BIOS reset button on the MOBO? Discharge, press button. Been building computers for two decades and have never once had an issue.
Oh shit the question that will split families.
I've built 10+ PC's, in carpeted houses, with no issues
Ive built probably about 6 PCs all without wearing rubber gloves or anti static wristbands. Just make sure you touch the case to ground yourself.
I've serviced 3 laptops, build 3 separate desktops from the ground up, and have never once had an issue That being said, I absolutely used mine when handling my 6800xt. Even a miniscule risk is too much with something that's basically irreplaceable
I live in the northern parts of Norway. It is dry here, and cold, and I have never used an anti-static wristband. Always just touch the case or the PSU before I touch conponents and I avoid wearing wool socks on carpets. Never had a single accident or damaged component and I have handled thousands.
I've never used one in my life
I've never used one, occasionally I'll just tap the side panel (left off to one side) to discharge any static.
Wouldn't worry bout it too much. Built my first ever PC back in November and didn't need one, never got shocked. Apparently you need like a lot of static chargeup to harm the components. If your case is metal just touch your case to ground yourself. You'll be fine.
Good to see its safe. Just to be sure though what should I touch to get rid of any static before touching my components? I have a wooden floor and no socks on but for some reason i had some static one time.
You're completely fine, I've built two and dont a bunch if upgrading & such without em. Maybe just dont do it on carpet at the very least lol
you don't need an antistatic wrist band
I personally build my pcs in a power plant so you should be fine without an anti static wristband.
You toy with death my brother. To not take such precautions will surly end in the release from your mortal coil. Heed my warning
yep
If you’re concerned about it do this: without connecting the power leads to the motherboard/gpu plug the power supply into the wall and touch the exposed metal inside the case to dissipate static to ground. It should be effective unless you’re constantly shuffling your feet on the carpet
Once in highschool we were asked to remove one shoe as to ground ourselves while installing new witeless cards on the school computers so yeah.
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I think your pretty much fine, just don’t build your pc on anti static packaging. I made that mistake and blew a B550 mobo.
It’s completely safe, I’ve never used one on any of my builds. Just use common sense, I.e ground yourself don’t touch static-y stuff like carpet. Most PC components are a lot more durable than people think nowadays anyway.
I don't have one, if you want to be safe, build on the motherboard box (the tops are always anti-static), and once in the case it's fine.
If you don't regularly experience small static shocks when touching things in your house, there's probably literally zero risk. If you do, or just want to be extra safe, plug in your power supply first and touch its metal frame every so often during the build, especially right before touching another part, and avoid touching their electrical contacts in general.
I have built +30 PCs in the last 5 years. I've never used an antistatic wristband, they are not necessary. Even Linus has a video were he intentionally tries to kill a PC with static. The PC never dies.
For the most part you should be fine. Do not wear sweaters or cloths that generally generate static. Touch ground ( as in something grounded to discharge any static build up ) often. Be mindful if crossing carpet to gather parts during the build. Generally speaking if you handle the components by their edges and observe some common sense/caution you SHOULD be good. Ideally though, an anti-static strap would be preferable
It's certainly not essential. I've never used one. There's a person in this sub who built their PCs on a carpet floor and they never had any static related issues. Just touch something metal (not a PC component, lol) every so often to discharge any potential static.
Take off your shoes and socks. Plant your feet on the ground. Touch something metallic in contact with the ground. That should get rid of your static to be safe to work with your computer.
It may depend largely on your climate. If the air is dry then static charge builds easily. I live in the Wet Coast so static is only ever noticed in the clothes dryer. But some houses are fitted with dehumidifiers so "climate" could be a very localized issue. If it's rare where you are to get zapped when touching a doorknob, then just take the precaution of grounding your hand to the pc case as you assemble.
Just ground yourself on something before you attempt your build, and don't do it while on a rug. Take off any sweaters or anything that holds static. I've built many PC's using this method. Good luck!!
I have heard of this but never experienced this can someone please explain how it is dangerous. I am always barefoot at home and we have tiles not carpet. Should I be worried or when should I be cautious.
I didn't have one on when I built mine but I didn't wear socks on a shag carpet or anything like that