When does humidity become a problem?

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blade52x

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Right now it's rainy out, and being on the bottom floor at college with broken de-humidifiers my temp/humidity sensor reads 73F and 83% humidity. Seems really high on the humidity (it's usually around 60-65% on a normal day).

What are the chances of condensation occurring in humid conditions?
 
i have a computer being used as a router that is 10 years or so old, and my basement is always 60% or higher. its raining here right now and its at 80%, even with a dehumidifier its always pretty damp down there. no problems.

you only have to worry about drastic temperature changes (think about your car when nightfall comes), and sub ambient cooling.

the only sign of what a humid climate does to PC parts is on my main rig from 4 years ago there is some oxidization on the copper heat spreaders on the ram from where i have touched them in the center, but that is more likely the oils in my skin than from actual humidity.
 
Ok good to know, thanks.

I guess I should even look at the upsides of a humid environment is better cooling (humid air should absorb heat better) and no worries about esd *knock on wood*.
 
Even if the humidity is condensing slightly (it won't be) you don't really have to worry... It's pretty much distilled water that will evaporate before it can pick up enough ions to do damage.
 
Arcygenical said:
Even if the humidity is condensing slightly (it won't be) you don't really have to worry... It's pretty much distilled water that will evaporate before it can pick up enough ions to do damage.
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Uhm...WHAT?! :eek:

No. Wrong.
It won't be distilled, it will be laden with whatever rests on the surface it condenses on and whatever little it traps from the air around it that it's come from. In agreement with your train of thought however, it won't be hard water if that's what you're getting at.

As far as carrying a charge...water is a conductor. It does not matter whether or not it's charged one way or the other, it will most likely damage any electrical components it comes into contact with via short circuits and whatnot. What you would have been best saying is that it will most likely NOT condense within the confines of his PCs.
 
Wolf-R1 said:
Uhm...WHAT?! :eek:

No. Wrong.
It won't be distilled, it will be laden with whatever rests on the surface it condenses on and whatever little it traps from the air around it that it's come from. In agreement with your train of thought however, it won't be hard water if that's what you're getting at.

As far as carrying a charge...water is a conductor. It does not matter whether or not it's charged one way or the other, it will most likely damage any electrical components it comes into contact with via short circuits and whatnot. What you would have been best saying is that it will most likely NOT condense within the confines of his PCs.
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You'd have to have one hell of a dirty surface for the minute amount of condensation to actually allow for current flow. You'd need an even dirtier surface to allow the amount of current flow that would actually cause problems.

Who said anything about a charge? I spoke only about the uptake of ions from surface contaminants... ions that allow the flow of electricity.
 
water does not allow electrons to pass "period" its the stuff dissolved in the water that conducts.

like mentioned above... only condensing water can be an issue. maybe if you live near an ocean the salt can aid in conductivity when condensed.
 
Tangent inc. said:
water does not allow electrons to pass "period" its the stuff dissolved in the water that conducts.

like mentioned above... only condensing water can be an issue. maybe if you live near an ocean the salt can aid in conductivity when condensed.
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Wow... Did you read anything I posted? Of course water doesn't allow the flow of electricity. I said, "You'd need one hell of a dirty surface to allow the minute amount of condensation the ability to pass current" IE: The surface contaminants that the condensed water would pick up would make the previously insulating water prone to allowing current flow. You would need an extremely dusty/dirty surface (with a huge amount of ions in it) to make condensing water conductive enough to cause problems.

Additionally, salt is left BEHIND when water evaporates... Thus the whole distillation for freshwater from seawater thing? You could live in a boat on the ocean and (provided you stay away from saltspray) water vapor would contain no salt.

If your post wasn't directed at me, well, I'm sorry, but it certainly seemed like it was.
 
nope... not directed. sorry about that though. i commented without refreshing the page and the last post i saw was from blade52x

i am glad you brought up the salt mist though because that is what i was thinking but not what i typed. my mistake.
 
Tangent inc. said:
nope... not directed. sorry about that though. i commented without refreshing the page and the last post i saw was from blade52x

i am glad you brought up the salt mist though because that is what i was thinking but not what i typed. my mistake.
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Hehe Sorry. I just got done playing Crysis with this f*cuking noob that kept PKing me... He was on my team. My final score was like -19 :p
 
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