Don't keep computers in damp basements!(Pic)

[newtekie1]

You ever walked into a basement and just smelled the horrible smell and you know the moisture is through the roof?

I put two new drives in a server in a basement like that 2 months ago. They called me back yesterday because BOTH had failed. I took them out and found both PCBs looking totally corroded. Just look at the picture!

These drives were bought brand new from newegg in July, and they definitely didn't look like that when I put them in. The manufacture dates on them are May 2012.

Looking around the basement, I noticed everything copper had turned completely black. I've actually never seen anything like it. The copper pipes were totally black, the brass keys in their filing cabinets were totally black. It is strange.

I ordered some de-humidifiers...

 

[ThE_MaD_ShOt]

They may be really tough to rma also.

 

[xxdozer322]

are those SAS drives? i have 2 that are brand new, one was opened just to see the content, the other one is still sealed. i have no use for them, both of them are 72gb 15k rpms. i could sale them to you or even trade you something.

 

[micropage7]

yeah damp and water is not friendly to electronic stuff.
sorry to hear that
copper would oxidate in that condition

 

[Kreij]

@Newt : What did the basement smell like?
There are various atmospheric issues that can cause water pipes to turn black, like sulphur or salts from a water softener.
There may be more issues than just the level of air humidity.
Google "copper pipes turned black".

Have fun.

 

[Norton]

@Newt : What did the basement smell like?
There are various atmospheric issues that can cause water pipes to turn black, like sulphur or salts from a water softener.
There may be more issues than just the level of air humidity.
Google "copper pipes turned black".

Have fun.

You are correct sir- copper turning black indidates Hydrogen Sulfide (H2S), which is an anaerobic decomposition component of organic waste. Hydrogen Sulfide combines with water (water vapor, humidity,etc..) to form Sulfuric acid (H2SO4) which eats into copper, cement, and steel fairly easily.

Worst case the Hydrogen Sulfide can combine with the water vapor in your lungs and cause serious respiratory damage.

Here's a quick test- put a nice shiny penny near the floor in that space and see how long it takes to turn black. Example- we tried this in a sludge processing area of a wastewater plant I worked at and the penny turned black in less than 8 hours

 

[Jstn7477]

You are correct sir- copper turning black indidates Hydrogen Sulfide (H2S), which is an anaerobic decomposition component of organic waste. Hydrogen Sulfide combines with water (water vapor, humidity,etc..) to form Sulfuric acid (H2SO4) which eats into copper, cement, and steel fairly easily.

Worst case the Hydrogen Sulfide can combine with the water vapor in your lungs and cause serious respiratory damage.

Here's a quick test- put a nice shiny penny near the floor in that space and see how long it takes to turn black. Example- we tried this in a sludge processing area of a wastewater plant I worked at and the penny turned black in less than 8 hours

I was thinking that too, as Florida had a nasty case of "fake chinese drywall" that emitted harmful gases, corroded and destroyed air conditioners and electronics quite fast, and also made the people living inside the homes sick. If moisture alone did that, we'd probably have to seal all the wiring and connections on cars, computers and just about everything.

 

[Norton]

I was thinking that too, as Florida had a nasty case of "fake chinese drywall" that emitted harmful gases, corroded and destroyed air conditioners and electronics quite fast, and also made the people living inside the homes sick. If moisture alone did that, we'd probably have to seal all the wiring and connections on cars, computers and just about everything.

Did they ever find out what was in the drywall? I followed that story for awhile and never found out what chemical compounds were in the drywall to cause the problems....

 

[Jstn7477]

Did they ever find out what was in the drywall? I followed that story for awhile and never found out what chemical compounds were in the drywall to cause the problems....

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chinese_drywall

Looks like the chemicals found were carbon disulfide, carbonyl sulfide, and hydrogen sulfide.

 

[Jetster]

I watched Prometheus last night so I'm thinking its some alien life form. Leave the house

 

[Benetanegia]

I watched Prometheus last night so I'm thinking its some alien life form. Leave the house

I had nightmares after watching it. In the most recurring one, they had released a movie that completely ruined one of my favourite franchises, but fortunately it was just a bad dream... Oh wait!

 

[newtekie1]

@Newt : What did the basement smell like?
There are various atmospheric issues that can cause water pipes to turn black, like sulphur or salts from a water softener.
There may be more issues than just the level of air humidity.
Google "copper pipes turned black".

Have fun.

Yeah, it is hard to describe, the best I can do is say it smells like my grandma's basement. Luke a very strong musky smell.

 

[Widjaja]

Never seen corrosion like that before.
Seen lost of rust in and on computers which come from homes near the sea.

 

[Mussels]

you're gunna die tekie. the moulds are a comin'

 

[OneMoar]

clean em up they should be fine =/
a old trick is to invert one of the fans and let it blow warm air over the drives

 

[mediasorcerer]

Just a little tip, i use those gel packs from vitamin bottles etc and i stash em in my electronics gear my guitar amp and other stuff like that to keep em dry, i collect them for this purpose.

Get a hair dryer on low onto them why not, and a vacuum cleaner too.? ive saved an iphone that was dropped into water at the beach fully submerged and its still working 3 years later, took a week to get it going and a full reboot etc . A toothbrush and alcohol might help[not to brush your teeth lol].
Hope u sort it.