I have owned my Dell Dimension Computer for 3 1/2 years and I have a few concerns. Having the computer and using it on a daily basis, it is rare that I turn the computer off and I usually leave it on all night. The computer has been very good for 3 years and I have had NO problems in the years but I recently started having some problems, I have a 4 year warranty from Dell and they have had to come twice in 6 months time recently.


The first time was about 6 months ago and I was using the computer, it was raining a little outside but I didn't notice it thundering and lightening and my computer went off. I tried to turn it back on and it would not come on. Dell sent a tech out and it was a bad power supply and they replaced it. Now last week I had the same problem but there was a bad storm outside and I was not at at home but my computer WAS turned on. I got home and the computer was off and I tried to turn the tower on and nothing happened. Again tech support came and this time they said that it was the mother board and they replaced it.


I have about 6 months left for my 4 year warranty and I am hoping that I will not have any more problems with my computer but I am prepared to buy another one if I have to but I really can't afford it. I had a Surge protector and after the first time the computer went out I replaced it with a brand new one which was a little different than the one I had. It is an expensive HP brand! The new one has two lights on the surge protector and the red light indicates that the surge protector is working properly and the green light indicates that the wires are properly grounded. The other surge protector is an expensive one also, I am not sure the brand but I bought it from Radio Shack. It only had one light on it to indicate that it was turned on and so I thought it was working, as it had been for 3 years with no problem.


Well the green light did not come on on the new HP surge protector so I tried the other outlets in my home and with ALL of the other outlets the green light came on. What does this mean exactly? Does this mean that my computer is not protected against lightening in that wall outlet? Only the red light came on to indicate that the surge was on! I have no other area in my home that I can put my computer at and in no other outlet either and I am concerned that my computer is going to go out again after the warranty is up from Dell. Also is there a way that I can get the wires grounded by an electrician, if so how much would this cost, about? Thanks for any information that you can give me on this!

Hmm, HP doesn't make surge protectors. But it certainly sounds like the wiring in that outlet has been damaged.

Also I would suggest that you get a UPS instead of just a surge protector. You can get a battery backup unit that connects to the PC. If there is a problem with the power line, the PC will shut down safely.

The surge protector is an HP brand and I bought it from Walmart, they also sell this surge protector online and I think I saw it sold at Amazon when I was comparing prices to see if I got a good deal or not a while back. Anyway I didn't know that there was a problem with the wiring until I got the new HP surge protector that has the green indicator light and I noticed that the light would not come with this wall outlet but will with the other outlets in my home. I wish that I can move my computer but I can't! What is a UPS? Will that also protect my computer? Thanks..

(I also own a laptop also which I use basically as a back-up computer because I hate being without my computer when something happens to my Dell but I LOVE my desktop more than the laptop because it runs faster using XP than Vista, memory is lower on the notebook also and I am so used to using my desktop mostly!)

Well, surprise, they do have an HP branded one (its not made by HP). But its hardly top of the line.

A UPS is an Uninteruptable Power Supply. A UPS provides power line protection and power interruption protection/

Sounds like you need to get an electrician to look at that socket!

The surge protector that I bought at first was from Radio Shack and it cost about $40-50 but after 3 years and my computer got hit I figured it was time to get another one and when I went to Walmart they didn't have any expensive surge protectors and I think I spent about $20-25 on this one which was actually the most expensive one that Walmart carried. I will probably go out and buy a better brand from an electronic store next week when I get the time but if the wires are not grounded properly will I just be waisting my money if I buy another one or will the protector still help some?


Any suggestions on a good brand would be greatly appreciated! I thought for sure that this was a real HP protector made specifically by "HP" because when I called the customer service number to ask questions about the green indicator light they kept having to switch me to different departments because at first I was in the HP computer department and then I got switched to a different department for other items such as printers, etc and it was really the number for HP technical support but they were not much help. I live in an apartment and they are of no help so I would have to hire an electrician and I don't know if I can afford it or not! It is terrible that this wall outlet is the only one that has bad wiring but I really can't move my computer and the next wall outlet is way across the other end of the living room.

If you live in an apt the landlord is responsible for the wiring.

You can get a UPS at any place that sells computers. CompUSA, Best Buy, Office Max, Staples, etc. They cost anywhere from $40 on up depending on the capacity. To get one that interfaces with the PC and give you enough coverage would probably run $50-$70. There are easy to install. I would recommend an APC brand.

I am not an electrician, so cannot really answer your questions about the surge protector issues properly. I wouldn't think one socket would be expensive, but it depends on what they find!

Just remember that surges can also come through other connections such as telephone wires also and protect/unplug these. Some surge protectors have sockets to put the telecoms wires through also!

It sounds like the two possible lightning surges may have damaged the ground wire connected to the outlet, severely enough that the power bar is detecting a short.

This is a very unsafe condition, and you should have an electrican look at it.

Thanks! I will look in to all of the above and see if I can get the UPS for my computer as well. I am positive that my apartment management want do anything about the short in the wire but I will ask them anyway, they are bad about wanting to fix anything and usuallly I end up doing everything or hiring someone but it depends on what it is that needs fixing. On my surge protector, I do have the phone line going in to the surge protector because everything is connected to one wall outlet. I also have my Comcast cable modem adapter going in to the surge protector as well but I think the wiring must be getting really bad and even though the surge protector is hooked up I don't think I am getting much protection from it!