Is it safe to put a cpu in a ziplock bag

[Wiggy Fuzz]

i can picture an intel cpu painted black with a scythe stuck to it, ready to take your processor at the slightest whiff of static electricity

 

[diaz]

cardboard on the pinout side, then tape around it. Then whatever you want

 

[Old Thrashbarg]

Instead, nothing happened despite repeated attempts to zap the compter. It turns out its not so easy to kill a computer even with high voltage statics.

Y'know, I have a bad habit of dumping salvaged/spare parts into ziplocs or plastic storage boxes, or wherever. I never take any static precautions when working on machines, and I even lay parts out on the carpet if that's the most convenient spot to put them. But even with my bad/lazy practices, I have never had anything die from static in the 15 or so years I've been working with computers. I've had dead parts, but it was all either DOA, leaky capacitors, or some physical damage.

I'm certainly not advocating practices like mine, but I do think the static danger is quite overrated.

Anyway, back to the direct topic at hand:

You can probably scrounge some anti-static bags from a local computer repair shop... find one that's been around for awhile and they will probably have them piled all over in boxes, on shelves, on the floor, pinned to the walls, stuck to the dog, etc. Ask nicely and you can probably walk out with more than you'll ever need for free.

 

[OldSkool]

All I can picture is a pb&j with the chip inside.

Haha, that's great. I'm gonna have that image in my head for the rest of the day, lol.

 

[neonblingbling]

Interestingly we used a Tesla Coil to zap an old PIII computer, its keyboard and mouse. Static lightning bolts struck the metal keyboard, hit the case and the power supply. We all thought the machine would die an immediate death. Instead, nothing happened despite repeated attempts to zap the compter. It turns out its not so easy to kill a computer even with high voltage statics.

I really don't know if it matters, but was the computer plugged in (grounded)?

 

[wav3form]

If static doesn't kill the component outright, it can severely limit its life. You can use zip lock style bags but they are usually the pink colored anti-static kind. You can buy anti-static shipping materials online for not much money if you ship a lot.

 

[wingman99]

I once took a ignition coil from a car 80,000 volts and tried to kill a p4 chip it took 6 hours shocking it continuously to kill it, static electricity is over rated.

 

[jason4207]

On my old P4 rig I managed to kill the mobo w/ static.

I had my cellphone hooked up via a USB cable. After walking across the carpeted basement in the winter time I grabbed the phone to disconnect it. A static charge hit the antennae.

Later my PC was acting very fishy. The mouse wasn't working right, and after I tried to reboot it it froze.

I disassembled everything and upon closer inspection found a small bump on the SouthBridge chip. I RMA'd that board for a replacement.

Static can kill. Static will usually hit ground first, but if it doesn't then you can have problems.

 

[wingman99]

That story is is kind of fishy your phone is fine but the static mess up your pc, it just traveled through your phone to the usb then to your pc, not buying that story at all.

I cant keep count on the the mother board i've shocked some are from customers with new P3's i built in the past still running strong.


When i purposely shock chips to death with high voltage and low amps so it wont leave any burn marks there is no bumps on chips.

 

[jason4207]

That story is is kind of fishy your phone is fine but the static mess up your pc, it just traveled through your phone to the usb then to your pc, not buying that story at all.

I cant keep count on the the mother board i've shocked some are from customers with new P3's i built in the past still running strong.


When i purposely shock chips to death with high voltage and low amps so it wont leave any burn marks there is no bumps on chips.

Well, you don't have to believe me, but it is the truth.

I've got better things to do than make up stories for the interweb.

The phone did make it. The charge went through the antennae which I'm assuming is grounded to the case, so the charge would have gone around the delicate components. The mobo wasn't so lucky. I could smell it, but I had to look close to find the source.

The southbridge on that mobo (P4P800E-Deluxe...still have the RMA'd board in my wife's PC) was covered in black plastic, and there was a physical bump on it....like a pimple. I can only assume that was the issue, and it made sense since the mouse went all quirky before the PC completely gave up, and that was plugged into USB as well.

I told the story to Asus, and they had no issues sending me a new board.

What kind of chips are you shocking? If the chip has an IHS you are not going to see a bump. Are you sure the charge is not getting to ground first? How are you holding the chip when you shock it?

Since you have the equipment, perhaps you can remove the SB from an old board and give it the shock treatment!

I do know one thing, though. If you can't even keep count on the number of mobos that you've shocked while building PC's then I know who I won't be recommending to others to have build their PC's.

It's pretty easy to touch the case periodically while building a PC to relieve any static charge. It only takes 1 dead mobo to realize you should be more cautious.

 

[wingman99]

Yes it's really static were a build computers after the first 10 times i shocked motherboards and pc chips and nothing went wrong it got me curious.

The antenna on a sell phone goes to the output and receive transmitter on the phone it's electronic. you proved it your self and other people have also static does not kill phones or ipods.

When i do shock testing for fun with micro chips, i do it right over the pins on the bottom of the chip and some shocking with the chips on a soldered board, the chips get vary hot with 80,000 volts coursing through them but it takes hours to kill them and it leaves no burn marks or bumps so you could warranty the items.

 

[jason4207]

Yes it's really static were a build computers after the first 10 times i shocked motherboards and pc chips and nothing went wrong it got me curious.

The antenna on a sell phone goes to the output and receive transmitter on the phone it's electronic. you proved it your self and other people have also static does not kill phones or ipods.

When i do shock testing for fun with micro chips, i do it right over the pins on the bottom of the chip and some shocking with the chips on a soldered board, the chips get vary hot with 80,000 volts coursing through them but it takes hours to kill them and it leaves no burn marks or bumps so you could warranty the items.

I think I understand what you're saying in the 1st 2 paragraphs, but the wording/grammar/spelling is making it difficult.

As for the 3rd paragraph...

You can point your shocker at the pins, but you can't be certain the charge is actually traveling through the delicate components. Electricity will always take the easiest route to ground, and that might involve going around directly to the IHS. Again, how are you holding the chip? In your hand or in a metal vise, etc?

You could ground one or several of the pins, and then shock the other pins. This would most certainly force the current through the delicate components (if you can keep the sparks from jumping straight to the grounded pins across the surface of the chip package), and you could probably go on a chip killing spree in the same amount of time it's taking you to kill 1 chip.

When i do shock testing for fun with micro chips, i do it right over the pins on the bottom of the chip and some shocking with the chips on a soldered board, the chips get vary hot with 80,000 volts coursing through them but it takes hours to kill them and it leaves no burn marks or bumps so you could warranty the items.

So, let me get this straight...you purposefully spend hours of your time killing chips, and do so in a manner so that no one can tell you've been purposefully destructive. Only to then RMA them for free replacements at the manufacturers expense?

I really hope that is not what you are saying...

 

[Pylet Lyght]

Eh, I have never killed anything with static, ive even arced the board on an old pentium. I was working in the computer lab at my grade school setting up the LAN and repairing donated computers (this was a high school project) and while working on one of the computers I touched the motherboard with a screw driver and ZAP the screen went blank and the computer shut off (i dont remember why it was on but it was) I pulled the plug, waited 30 seconds, plugged it back in, hit the switch and POST -> windows! the motherboard was even a bit charred but no burnt traces and over a year later it was still running strong.

That being said.. I store no component outside of its anti-static bag. EVER. even old motherboards that will never be used again (semi packrat.. but its come in handy a few times for ram and upgraded CPUs on older systems) are in anti static bags.

anyway.. as has been said.. dont use a ziploc baggy.. lol

 

[wingman99]

I think I understand what you're saying in the 1st 2 paragraphs, but the wording/grammar/spelling is making it difficult.

As for the 3rd paragraph...

You can point your shocker at the pins, but you can't be certain the charge is actually traveling through the delicate components. Electricity will always take the easiest route to ground, and that might involve going around directly to the IHS. Again, how are you holding the chip? In your hand or in a metal vise, etc?

You could ground one or several of the pins, and then shock the other pins. This would most certainly force the current through the delicate components (if you can keep the sparks from jumping straight to the grounded pins across the surface of the chip package), and you could probably go on a chip killing spree in the same amount of time it's taking you to kill 1 chip.



So, let me get this straight...you purposefully spend hours of your time killing chips, and do so in a manner so that no one can tell you've been purposefully destructive. Only to then RMA them for free replacements at the manufacturers expense?

I really hope that is not what you are saying...

Well the sparks from the coil runs all over all the chip's pin's and the chips get vary hot so it's penetrating the micro chip, also i hold the electronic items' on a metal grounding surface, 80,000 volts would burn your nervers in your hand.

I guess my point is i tried static electricity for hours and gave up.

No i do not do this to RMA products unless there already defective.

 

[Kayden]

So you spend your free time breaking things in an undetectable fashion that are already broken?

How do you know your process actually damages something if it was already broken? Conversely, what if they could fix the original damage but not whatever boneheaded shenanigans you come up with?

 

[wingman99]

So you spend your free time breaking things in an undetectable fashion that are already broken?

How do you know your process actually damages something if it was already broken? Conversely, what if they could fix the original damage but not whatever boneheaded shenanigans you come up with?

Well if it was not working correctly from the beginning it wont work at all when i get done with it LOL.

The way i think of this is they wasted my time and i'm going to save them RMA time it's DEAD.