Is it ok to leave you PC on for long peroids of time?

[Mullen4Prez]

Mine will be on for around a week and I was wondering if this is ok to do.

 

[daygloeyes2]

I've done it for a few days and nothing's happened.

 

[beatlesboy]

Mine will be on for around a week and I was wondering if this is ok to do.

A friend of mine who owns a computer repair company says it's perfectly ok to leave your system on ALL the time.

He NEVER turns off any of his machines unless it's required for a repair, software upgrade, etc...

Windows is actually made to be on all the time and in a healthy, up-to-date PC will keep itself updated and running smoothly 24/7 and uses very little power, but it's a good idea to make sure you have your screen saver and power settings (default) correct so your system will 'sleep' while you're away.

 

[DeadMansParty]

I have also heard that its ok, but I still turn mine off, electric bills ya know

 

[Cleasai]

beatlesboy is correct. In fact, alot of computer guys will tell you that sometimes it's better on the system to leave it on.

 

[Cleasai]

I have also heard that its ok, but I still turn mine off, electric bills ya know

Ya, I'm a gonna have to agree with you on the electric bills part.

 

[tiny dancer]

Same here also.

 

[maro_chik]

I can't remember the last time I turned mine off.

 

[KhanadaRhodes]

i've had my computer on since the day i got it. it's only been turned off when the power flickered off for a sec a couple weeks ago, and for the occasional system update where a reboot is required.

i've done this with all my computers and none of them have exploded on me yet!

 

[youtooellen]

I can't remember the last time I turned mine off.

same here
but when my computer did turn off, it was probably because of new software installations or power outage.

 

[learn2kneel]

It's not good for your computer to continuously shut it off and back on. It's good to restart when your computer isn't working good, tho.

 

[nbcrusader]

I leave mine on all the time. The electrical bill should not be a concern if you use the power management settings. This turns off the monitor, hard drives, etc. after a specified period of time.

 

[Sicy]

I never shut mine off. I just shut the monitor off when I'm not using it and reboot every couple weeks.

 

[Doozer61]

i only turn mine off when there is thunder and lightening

 

[pepokiss]

I leave it on ALL the time

and as far as I know, leaving the PC on is as expensive as leaving a light bulb on

 

[therulz]

We do both here and both systems are fully operational. I shut mine down in case there is an electrical storm as I lost part of a system once because the ground fault breaker didn't flip off with an electircal jolt (old landlord tried to fix an oven and rewired it backwards though it didn't cook my chicken at all) and Marc leaves his up for work call out 24/7.

I don't see any differences at all.

 

[blueeyedgirl]

Bloody hell people, think of the environment!!!!! That's a stack of fossil fuels we're all burning here!

I always turn my computer off after every session (work and home).

*end santimonious rant*

 

[the soul waits]

We do both here and both systems are fully operational. I shut mine down in case there is an electrical storm as I lost part of a system once because the ground fault breaker didn't flip off with an electircal jolt (old landlord tried to fix an oven and rewired it backwards though it didn't cook my chicken at all) and Marc leaves his up for work call out 24/7.

I don't see any differences at all.

You said "electrical storm"

 

[LarryMullen's POPAngel]

I never turn mine off except for in instances when I really need to reboot. Just easier that way.

 

[beli]

I leave mine on most of the time. I turn it off every once in a while so that it can decrap itself.

During a storm I turn the computer off, unplug the cords, and move the cords more than half a metre away from the power supply as electricity can arch at least that far in a storm. Yes, my previous hard drive was fried in a storm.

 

[enajh2]

The idea that rebooting/turning on your pc frequently is bad for it is a load of baloney! Modern hard drives are good for so many cycles regardless of how frequently they are powered up and down.

I did read recently that a PC left in standby mode is always consuming power from the 3V rail in the power supply if it is still plugged in and turned on at the back of the pc and the mains socket! So in this case, you will use less power if you turn it off altogether and at the socket as well

 

[bono_man2002]

Most days I've got the PC running from when I get up, till when I Go to bed.
The PCs in my room, and its impossible sometimes to get to sleep with it going, aint good for you either.

 

[vanessajones82]

It's okay. Just hope you love high electric bills. If you don't know, the electric co.

 

[bono_man2002]

If you don't know, the electric co.

I was gonna try put that line in here somewhere....but couldnt think, its just been one of those days...yeah i'm talking about you!

 

[uwwedoogie]

mines never on

 

[lesallimc]

I haven't turned mine off in months. I got tired of it. I haven't noticed any changes in my power bill since doing this. Just make sure it goes to standby mode when not in use.

 

[blueeyedgirl]

Most days I've got the PC running from when I get up, till when I Go to bed.
The PCs in my room, and its impossible sometimes to get to sleep with it going, aint good for you either.

Actually that's another thing. The idea that we're always surrounded by magnetic fields from electrical currents (Year 10 science coming back here!) I have a telly in my bedroom that I try as much as possible to turn off at the powerpoint before going to sleep. Noone's ever proved the long term effects of being surrounded by the fields and possible radiation, but still I don't like the idea. Nor the idea of mega electric bills. Just an idea to also do our tiny bit for the environment.

Just a thought.

 

[ABEL]

i have mine on almost all of the time too. i only turn it off when i'm going to be gone a couple days or on vacation or if i hear a chance of thunderstorms in the forecast.

when i'm at work i leave it on except for the monitor i turn off.

 

[typhoon]

Speaking as an electrical engineer:

There are two kinds of components in your computers: the ones with moving parts (e.g., the hard drive, the CD-ROM drive) and the ones without (e.g., the processor, the memory).

The ones with moving parts wear down more when you leave them on continuously; this is kind of self-evident. The part of your hard drive most likely to break is the motor simply because it's on all the damn time. You can set your computer to power down the hard drive after a certain amount of idle time (and other similar components, like CD-ROM drives, aren't likely to be used all the time anyway, so you don't have to worry about them). Also, the hard drive is the part of your computer that'll probably be easiest and cheapest to replace if it ever breaks (whereas old memory and processors can be difficult to find). So that's an argument for leaving a computer on all the time.

The ones without moving parts wear down more when you turn them on and off a lot since they expand and contract slightly depending on whether they have an electric current running through them. It's important to note, though, that the kind of wear you'd create by simply turning the computer off and on occasionally is wholly negligible. I mean, you'd have to be flipping the switch on and off constantly like an annoyed child before it started to make a difference. Your computer will be long obsolete before this kind of wear could wreak any meaningful havoc. So that's an argument against leaving a computer on all the time.

Also, the display is one of the main users of power in your system. If you set it so the monitor turns off automatically after a certain amount of time, you can feel good about the environment and still leave your computer on. The processor uses barely any power when it's idle (if you use a complex screen saver, though, that'll waste processor cycles and therefore power while you're away from it). It'll still draw more power than if it were in a standby mode (or off), of course, but bear in mind that, although your computer might have a 300 W or whatever power supply, it isn't likely using that much power all the time.

So, basically, it doesn't matter. If it's easier for you to leave it on all the time, do that. If not, don't worry about "wearing it out" by turning it off when you're not using it. As for environmental (and economical) concerns, I tend to think those are exaggerated (inefficient cars are a much larger drain of resources than idle computers), but even if you leave your computer on all the time, there are plenty of power savings features to balance it out.

 

[bono_man2002]

Actually that's another thing. The idea that we're always surrounded by magnetic fields from electrical currents (Year 10 science coming back here!) I have a telly in my bedroom that I try as much as possible to turn off at the powerpoint before going to sleep. Noone's ever proved the long term effects of being surrounded by the fields and possible radiation, but still I don't like the idea. Nor the idea of mega electric bills. Just an idea to also do our tiny bit for the environment.

Just a thought.

Well I seem to wake up with Headaches sometimes after sleeping with it on........So I think that could effect me.
I've also got a TV and a Cable TV in my room......so my room is just almost one big electric current.