Why is Water Bad for Electronics?

It's happened to more Americans than not. An electronic device- iPods, radios, phones, hopefully not toasters- falls into or is otherwise in contact with water. Sometimes it's not water. I've lost count of how many times I've met people who've spilled soda on their laptops, put an iPod through the washing machine, dropped their phone in the pool, and the list goes on and on. This inevitably leads to a frantic Internet search on how to save their device, but the most potential damage is done within the first few seconds. So, exactly why are liquids bad for electronics?

It's all simple science. Electricity moves through matter- be it solid, liquid or gas. Some things conduct electricity better than others, and water is a very good conductor. The way modern electronics are made, electricity travels around the device through tiny wires that connect all the different parts. When water gets introduced to device, the electricity can spread and go to parts that aren't supposed to get electricity, and give more electricity to parts than they're designed to handle. This essentially electrocutes the device. This is the point where the most potential damage happens.

Now, if your device is turned off when it gets wet it's less likely to suffer major damage, but since few portable devices ever turn off completely there's usually at least a small current of electricity going through them. As far as other problems with getting your electronics wet, you also need to account for material other than water in the liquid. For example, if you spill a soda, the acid can corrode parts as well as make it sticky. Pools have plenty of chemicals, as so washing machines, and I won't even go into the additional problems when you drop a device in the commode!

So what can you do to prevent or minimize the damage of liquid to your electronics? The easiest thing is to keep them away if possible. Don't take your iPod to the beach, or drink your wine next to your laptop. Secondly, if your device does get wet, turn it off right away if it's on- this will turn off the electrical current going through those wires and hopefully minimize further damage. Lastly, once it's off, keep it off for at least 24-48 hours, preferably in a room with low humidity. There are other suggestions on the Internet, but none that have been proven to work.

Practical Tip of the Day:
If you need to take your electronics to a place with potential moisture, there are lots of things you can do to protect it. If you're going to the beach, put your electronics in a baggie. This will help protect against both water and sand. If you canoe, kayak or even scuba dive, they make water-proof cases for most cell phones and MP3 players. They even make water-proof headphones! For your laptop, a simple plastic cover over the keyboard helps cover the easiest point of access for spills of all kinds. This also helps keep crumbs, dust and other matter out of your keyboard as well.

When should I turn off my computer?

This topic was recommended to me by a friend. She writes:

If you use a computer all the time, is it better to leave it on or shut it down each night? Does running a computer for long periods of time cause harm?

This is a very good question, and even people who have been using computers their entire lives are slightly confused on this topic, and with good reason!

It used to be that it was widely recommended to shut your computer down (aka turn it off) whenever you weren't using it- just like your car. You only left your computer on if you were going to be coming back to it soon. This was because older computers needed that break to clear out their RAM (see our last topic!), and they used a lot of electricity even when they were in "sleep mode" (more on that in a bit).

Nowadays, it's generally recommended to shut your computer down once a month, or if you won't be using it for a few days or more. I've had my own personal computer for almost five years now and it's only ever been turned off for about a month's worth of time in total, and most of that was when I was away on vacation.

Here's some quick terminology tidbits to help explain things:

• Shut Down- Completely turns the computer off. The computer has a routine it goes through before turning off (just like people do before going to bed), and then it stop taking in electricity. It's at this point that it's safe to unplug your computer from the wall.
• Sleep/Stand By- This mode can vary slightly between types of computers, but it does a good job of drawing it's own analogy. Just like how people don't completely stop all our functions while we're asleep, in sleep mode neither does the computer. The screen is dark, the computer isn't doing anything, but it can quickly be "woken up" by tapping a few keys on the keyboard or wiggling the mouse around. This is the mode generally recommended if you plan to return to your computer within 48 hours. (That's not a hard and fast rule, by the way, just a loose recommendation.)
• Screen Saver- The screen saver is the simple animation that shows up on your screen if you haven't interacted with your computer in awhile. The screen saver usually comes up before the computer goes to sleep. It's called a "screen saver" because it used to save your screen from getting what's known as "burn in". If a particular image was left on the screen of an older CRT monitor (the ones that looked boxier and were much heavier) , it would literally burn in, and no matter what you wanted to see later, you would always have the hint of that previous imagine there. Think of a double-exposed picture for any camera/film aficionados out there.
• Restart- Restarting tells your computer to shut down, but riiiiight before it powers off, to turn back on again. More on this later!

So why the switch? Sleep mode on most computers nowadays uses so little power that it's almost negligible, and most computers come with enough RAM that an average user can use the computer for long lengths of time without noticing a difference. That added with the increased attention of computer manufacturers to make computers that don't need to rest means that there are few reasons to turn off your computer, especially when it usually takes more electricity to turn a computer on than to leave it running in sleep mode for a few days.

Why turn it off at all then? Turning the computer off does still let it rest and clear out it's RAM- read the PTD (Practical Tip of the Day) for why that's important, but the biggest issue usually is safety. Don't worry, not for you, but for the computer. Coming from Florida, I'm used to having to go around the house and make sure all the electronics were turned off for the big thunder storms. If the power goes out when your computer is turned on, the computer will shut down without getting to go through it's routine. Imagine if you've ever gone to bed without getting to brush your teeth, check the doors, etc. You wake up feeling a bit off. Same with your computer!

Practical Tip of the Day:
Is your computer starting to slow down? It does take longer than normal to open a program or check a web page? Is it being cranky and not doing what you're telling it to? Try restarting your computer. By restarting, you're allowing the computer to shut down, clear out it's RAM, and then start again fresh. Restarting a computer is like letting your computer take a nap- it's only "asleep" for a few seconds, but just like that refreshed feeling you get after a short nap, your computer will be perkier, quicker, and ready to go after a quick restart!

Why do computers hum?

If you've ever been in the same room as a computer you're most likely already familiar with the gentle hum you often hear from the machine. Some are loud, some are quiet, some change pitch as if singing along to their own digital music in their proverbial heads, but why? What exactly is it in the mysterious jumble of parts and cables that makes that sound?

There's no one answer. The sound we most commonly hear the loudest are fans. Remember how we talked about computers running on electricity to make all those ones and zeros? Well, if you've ever touched a lightbulb that's been on for awhile or grabbed your toast out of the toaster too soon you know that electricity makes things hot. Know what delicate computer parts don't like? You guessed it- heat! That's why if you live in a warmer climate like Florida (Hi, Mom!) you're more likely to hear your computer's fan kick on and go faster than if you live in cooler climates like Central New York like me. That's the humming sound that sometimes winds down after awhile or kicks on after you've been using your computer long enough to be startled by it suddenly sounding like it wants to fly away.

Another, usually quieter sound you may hear is the hard drive spinning. The hard drive is a lot like a miniturized record player. It has discs in it that spin at amazing rates and are read by a play head. While a vinyl record may spin at about 30-45 rpm (rotations per minute), the average hard drive in a computer spins anywhere between 5400-7500 rpm. It's this spinning that sometimes causes the humming sound you hear, especially if it starts while you're trying to start a program or open a file.

Practical Tip of the Day:
If you notice your computer humming particularly loudly, you should check the back of your computer tower (if you're using a desktop computer) and see if you have "junk in your trunk". Computer fans are just like ceiling fans and can pick up lots of dust and dirt on the blades. If the fan looks dirty, use some canned air to spray it off. If your fan gets too dirty, your computer can overheat and cause problems for you later on.