Troubleshooting a Peculiar PC Startup Issue: When Heat Meets Hardware
If you’ve ever found your computer refusing to power on after a night of shutdown, you might relate to a rather perplexing situation I’ve been experiencing. Despite all components being in good condition and no overclocking involved, my PC has developed a unique quirk: it simply won’t start unless I apply a little warmth with a hair dryer.
The Hardware Stack
To give you a better picture of my setup:
- CPU: AMD Ryzen 5 2400G
- Motherboard: Asus PRIME B350M-A (with the latest BIOS update)
- RAM: 2 x HyperX FURY 8GB, running at 2400MHz
- Power Supply: Thermaltake 600W, 80 Plus White Smart Series
Most of these parts are only around 1.5 to 2 years old, and I can assure you that there hasn’t been any overclocking or voltage modifications – everything is right out of the box.
The Startup Mystique
The odd behavior arises after I turn off the PC at night. The next day, it flat out refuses to boot without a bit of coaxing from a hair dryer. Once warmed up, it runs perfectly for hours or even days. Throughout my troubleshooting process, I’ve reassembled components, tested with a single memory stick, and stripped down the setup to bare essentials – all to no avail.
I conducted a stress test with Prime95 for about nine hours, pushing the CPU to nearly 89°C with no errors. Memory tests with MemTest86 came back clean, and the OCCT CPU test yielded no issues either.
Living in a tropical climate, I deal with consistently high temperatures ranging from 24°C to 32°C, along with elevated humidity levels year-round, so I considered environmental factors might be at play here.
Insights and Updates
Unfortunately, sourcing a spare power supply or motherboard for further testing has proven challenging. However, to update my findings, after another failed startup attempt, I again resorted to the hair dryer technique. This time, I focused the heat on the front and upper sections of the case, intentionally avoiding the power supply. After about four to five minutes, the computer booted, reinforcing my suspicion of a potential bad connection on the motherboard.
Additionally, I noticed another oddity: my Windows clock tends to lag behind the actual time
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