Computer help
 

We lost power Monday for a few hours. Our home Dell was plugged into a surge protector but now it will not power up.

Is there anything we can do to get it going again?

TIA

Do any of the lights turn on, any sign of power at all?
If they don't, then either it isn't getting any power or maybe the power supply is dead.
Power strips fail. Plug it into something else, make sure power is actually getting to it.

If lights are turning on but it won't boot up, that's a different problem. More details please.

Check power strip. Leave computer unplugged for a while. Should be diagnostic lights on the back or beep codes if something got fried.

Sorry. The power light does not come on. I tried a different outlet and it was the same, nothing.

It's a Dell and is about 5 years old.

My first guess would be the power supply got fried.

Can I get the part somewhere and fix it myself?

Yes, fairly simple straightforward process.

Any Bestbuy, MicroCenter, etc... should have.

Just know that if the PSU took enough of a hit to fry it you may find other components that are damaged after you get it to boot.

the last power unit I replaced was virtually plug n' play. virtually.

Sweet. I'll look into the power supply after the holiday.

If you can wait till after the holidays then you have time to order online and have it shipped. You'll find a better selection with better prices online. Unless you have a MicroCenter or Frie's that's local having one shipped may work out better for you.

Those "surge protectors" aren't much use at protecting electronics, although it may have stopped your computer bursting into flames...

Buy a old cheap APC smart UPS on Evil Bay and replace the batteries if/when necessary. Hint: you don't have to buy battery packs from APC @ $80 a pop.

Electronics really prefer clean in-spec power... A smart UPS will log the amount/duration that utility power goes under/over voltage. It can be eye-opening..

Some (very old now) Dells used power supplies that looked like ATX (? IIRC) but had proprietary wiring. Plugging in a standard PSU would fry everything in sight. But that was around 15 years ago and they abandoned that idea fairly quickly... A lot of people got quite irate...

Dell are actually noted for keeping large spares inventory which typically gets cleared very reasonably afterwards. Ebay is a great place to pick this up.

Some aftermarket PSU can be better quality than OE, but most of the cheap ones aren't.

I has a power supply die on me. Called Dell but they didn't have them any more. Opened up the machine and got the brand. Went online and did a search of my model machine and power supply and found a perfect match on amazon.

PM me the specs on the power supply, maybe post a pic. I have a couple laying around from old desktops I could send you if one matches. Just gathering dust on my end.

Icemaster, you have a PM.


I took the PSU out and took some pics. I don't know what info is important but here it is. I also blew out the dust from the console as it was pretty nasty inside.

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1417367198.jpg
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1417367245.jpg


CN-0M0148-71615-4CO-42CD
REV AO1

Got it, be back to you in a few.

You want the information off the hard drive.
The rest of the computer might be considered worthless.....depending.....

To go the long inexpensive route:
It will take internet research and maybe weeks waiting for components to arrive.
Motherboard/Power/Fans/Memory/tracking problems/running diagnostics/etc
These all add up.

To fix it now:
Take out the HD, and plug into another computer as a slave drive.
(Changing jumper pins might be necessary.)
This will tell you if THE HARD DRIVE is fried.
New computers and backup drives are cheap these days.

If the HD is fried, there's no need to waste any more time.
The whole computer can be recycled at this point.

Update now that we have our laptop back(free repair by local computer shop).

Icemaster graciously sent me a PSU which arrived today. Thanks again!!!


Some of the connectors are slightly different so I am going to drop it off to the shop to have them check it out. I am totally afeered of mucking it up worse than it already is. I may end up trading it in on a newer setup that is a bit more powerful.

Thanks all of you that helped me out. That is why this forum is so great.SmileWavy