something burning

For the past two days when I sit at my computer it smells like wires burning. I have looked inside my case, felt my monitor, unplugged my printer and still I smell wires burning. Anyone have any idea where I should check next?

 

If you have a surge protector cord, you know like one of those things where you plug in all your stuff and there is a red button to turn it on and off. I would check there. The plastic may be melting on that.

 

Thanks Neo, just checked and the whole thing is as cool as a cucumber. Even slid my hand up the cord to make sure it wasn't actually the cord getting too hot.

 

Well do you have anything else in the room that may be burning? like an appliance like a video game or tv or something?

 

I am surrounded by a lot of electronics but the smell seems to be isolated only to the computer area. Closest to it would be only my cordless phone. That seems relatively cool.

 

smell around your power supply if you haven't already.

 

Have you checked the power supply? Sometimes dust can get onto the mechanics and the smoke blown back out.

 

two things
a couple of weeks ago i smelled something burning.
i found alot of dust in and on the tower,but that was not it....
what was burning was a fan ( not computer ) that was in the room that had stopped running but was still on...so check around to see if you have anything on, but not running ( frozen ) and check for dust, cat hair

 

Sniffed around power supply and seems o.k., case was just taken apart on Thursday and I cleaned it out then. Is there something in the monitor that could be causing the smell? The smell seems to be more infront of me than off to the side.

 

yeah you may want to smell around the monitor.

 

Is there a way to pop it open and check it?

 

take the monitor out of the room than turn on everything and if the smell is gone than you know it is the monitor

 

Or just turn off the monitor and see if its the monitor.

 

that would work too..

 

LOL, sometimes the simpler solutions just get missed. i know how you feel lol i do it all the time.

 

PLEASE don't .... We don't want shiver me 'southern fried' timbers

A simple sniff would suffice.

Check in the case for any shorts of Molex (the ones that go to the HDs). If you short one of those, then you will get a fair current going through them. Keep it at 5A for a while and those wires are nice and toasty

If you havn't already watch the machine as it powers on. If its a fan that should be spinning up it should be obvious as you start the machine. Try feeling the insulation of all the cables inside the machine coming from the PSU, obviously not tugging them at all

Have you checked the fuse ratings for all of your plugs? Don't over rate your appliances! The max current your actual PC will use is about 5A (I'm working in ~120V AC here) and the monitor.... well check the back of the monitor as that can vary quite a lot.

Do you have an extension cord? If you have a reel, then MAKE SURE ITS NOT WRAPPED UP. Their current rating changes if they are wrapped up. Usually its somthing like 3A wrapped up 10A unwound fully. This is due to the combined heating effect of the coil, which can cause melting plastic.

If you have any DC transformers (printers, scanners, mobile phones, etc.) then check them too, as they can get pretty hot if they short.

Anyway, hope that gives you some ideas

 

It was my monitor. I shut it off, unplugged it, let it set and took another sniff. Smell was gone. I plugged it in, turned it on, it made a pop sound and I never got any response to it after that. I had to borrow one for now.

I am going to put one on my Christmas list. If anyone wants to send me a present... you know what I need.

 

At least u found out what it was BEFORE your house caught on fire.