Packing and Handling CPUs

[Cezar]

Hell everyone. There is a lot said about shorting pc parts when installing or packing parts. However I am not sure what kinds of packaging materials can lead to shorting your own parts. Is the CPU on the third picture from the bottom could be shorted by getting in contact with the plastic below it?

https://imgur.com/a/z7ODBNB

 

[trents]

Wrap it in the static free material that motherboards and video cards are shipped in. You know, it's kind of a gray or bronze film they make the pouches out of. Mylar?

 

[Cezar]

That picture is from the seller. I am just curious if the CPU would be dead on arrival after he/she placed it on that plastic with the CPU socket side down.

 

[Johan45]

The CPU is fine. Yes, you can short parts but I think it's pretty rare. I handle PC components constantly with no anti-static protection and never had a mishap. I also don't have any carpeting which is a big generator of static electricity. So the CPU just sitting on plastic isn't going to hurt it, it's the interaction between a "charged" person with a component in their hand and that component getting grounded that creates the static discharge.

 

[Bill_Bright]

Shorting your components is not the worry. Zapping them with static discharges (ESD) from your fingertips is the big concern. You can torch a Grand Canyon sized trench (microscopically speaking) through 1000s or even millions of transistor gates in a CPU without you (as a human being) even being aware a static discharge occurred. That is, the "spark" can be so tiny, you, as a human, cannot see it, hear it, or feel it - yet the spark can still easily destroy the component.

That's why ESD is so mysterious. We may think a mishap never occurred, but if we encounter a dead component (processor, RAM stick, motherboard, graphics card, etc.) that is dead for no apparent reason, it could easily have been due to mishandling and improper ESD precautions.

No carpet is a big help but destructive charges can build up by just squirming in our chairs. This is particularly true in dry environments. And remember, it is the ambient (room) environment we are talking about here - not the outdoors environment. If you live in the humid Florida Everglades that does not matter if the air conditioning (or furnace) in your home dries out the air - which it does!

I don't wear an anti-static wristband, but I always take ESD prevention precautions by ALWAYS touching bare metal of the case interior before reaching in and before touching any ESD sensitive device. And I never touch the electrical contacts of the RAM sticks, processors, boards, or pads on sockets.

Wrap it in the static free material that motherboards and video cards are shipped in.

"In" is the critical word there.

It should be noted that those anti-static bags circuit boards come in and the plastic containers CPUs and RAM come are layered. And the outer layers are highly conductive and you should NEVER EVER lay your components on the outer surfaces of those bags. That layer is specifically designed to "shunt" any static around and away from the device inside - like the outer "skin" of your car body during a lightning storm.

The inner layers of those bags are non-conductive. So if you are going to use them, cut open the bag and use that surface.

A better idea, however, is an unfinished wooden bread or cutting board, or a sheet of plain cardboard.

Do NOT use a motherboard box. The problem with "some" motherboard boxes is the printer's ink used to print the product graphics and labeling on those boxes. The chemicals and ingredients to make the various colors can consist of all sorts of things - including metals in the printer ink. These metals (and other components in the inks), besides often being toxic, may be conductive too. Yellows and red often contain lead - not the best conductor, but a conductor just the same.

If you want to use your motherboard box, open it up and use only the unfinished interior surfaces.

 

[trents]

The CPU is fine. Yes, you can short parts but I think it's pretty rare. I handle PC components constantly with no anti-static protection and never had a mishap. I also don't have any carpeting which is a big generator of static electricity. So the CPU just sitting on plastic isn't going to hurt it, it's the interaction between a "charged" person with a component in their hand and that component getting grounded that creates the static discharge.

Same here. I've actually had the "zap" happen between my fingers and the motherboard on my test bench on a number of occasions without hurting anything, although on one occasion it restarted the system. That one kind of scared me but as it turned out no harm was done. I think this used to be more of an issue years ago but maybe the components are tougher now or shielded better or something. A legacy issue, perhaps. I'm not saying it's a waste of time to wear a static discharge harness. I'm just saying I don't think it's very likely to be a problem in real life unless your environment regularly produces strong static electricity conditions. During the heating season, I try to remember to touch the PSU on my test bench before touching the board or RAM so as to discharge but I don't always remember.

But Cezar, back to your situation. I take it you bought a cpu that turns out not to be viable and you are worried that you did it harm (or the seller) by not handling it correctly in the unpackaging and now you're wondering whether or not you should approach the seller about a refund. Am I correct?

Going back to your original post, I see nothing that the seller did or that you did that would concern me about damage from static discharge. I would not hesitate to request an RMA (if from a company) or pursue a refund (if from an individual).

 

[Bill_Bright]

Same here. I've actually had the "zap" happen between my fingers and the motherboard on my test bench on a number of occasions without hurting anything

It depends on where that arc hit the motherboard. Fortunately, motherboards have many (dozens even) ground points. And voltage tends to seek the shortest path to ground with the least resistance. So it really depends on where your fingertips were at that point in time when the discharge occurred. If it hit a grounding point, the discharge would be harmless. But if your finger quickly zeroed in closer to an ESD sensitive device, the arc could go through there first doing unseen damage along the way.

I think this used to be more of an issue years ago but maybe the components are tougher now or shielded better or something. A legacy issue, perhaps.

Engineers and designers are very aware of ESD today. It was never a problem back in the day of vacuum tubes and discrete components. It only became an issue when high-density digital devices became common place. These modern devices definitely are NOT tougher. But you are right that better shielding and more grounding and other ESD "mitigating" designs are incorporated in electronics today.

Note I emphasized "mitigating". To mitigate, you only "reduce" the risk, you don't eliminate it completely. This means the risk is still here and very real. It is not a "legacy" issue at all.

BTW, for those into delidding their processors, it would behoove you to take extreme ESD prevention precautions.

 

[Cezar]

But Cezar, back to your situation. I take it you bought a cpu that turns out not to be viable and you are worried that you did it harm (or the seller) by not handling it correctly in the unpackaging and now you're wondering whether or not you should approach the seller about a refund. Am I correct?

Going back to your original post, I see nothing that the seller did or that you did that would concern me about damage from static discharge. I would not hesitate to request an RMA (if from a company) or pursue a refund (if from an individual).

Have not bought it yet. I was wondering if such handling could kill the part.

 

[Bill_Bright]

Have not bought it yet. I was wondering if such handling could kill the part.

It could but there is no way of telling if it did already.

Just sitting the components on those plastic bags likely would not cause any harm. Before buying, I would ask for a guarantee.