Question AIDA64 stress test caused a fire last time, anxious to start it again

[verynicethx]

Hello. Thread title is not a joke.

The last time on my old PC when I did a stress test using AIDA64 it caused a fire on my wall plug, all I did was run it, go make coffee, come back to my room and it was smoking from the wall plug, the PC was hooked on the extension cord and the cord to the wall mount, the wall part of the extender was the part that burned. PC didn't catch on fire, the wall plug literally started to burn and I quickly pulled it out, after that my dad had to inspect it and just told me not to do again whatever I was doing (I told him what it was he is not tech savvy, but is home savvy). I think it's luck that I didn't burn the house down or electrocute myself on that day.

Is it maybe just bad electricity? We had a case of xmas lights exploding the wall mount (literally blew up for no reason leaving it black WHILE I WAS PLUGGING IT IN, I AM LITERALLY LUCKY TO NOT DIE FROM THIS, I remember it felt weird) and one time I left the electric heater running and the extension cord set on fire, still not sure which part of it, it was a long time ago, but I think the electric heater cable burned close to the end of it, also a miracle the house didn't set on fire cause there was a black mark on the table (extension hub was close to the table)

This is not a troll post.

To this day I am anxious about running a stress test on my PC, even on a new PC with a very good respected PSU and rest of pc specs.
Especially because this time it is not my house, I'm renting.

Can I stress test? What was the likely cause? Bad electricity? Why did AIDA of everything make it do it? Why wasn't barely running games on good fps do it? Coincidence or AIDA is really hardcore?

Currently the house is being worked on and electric installation was the first thing to be replaced, it's brand new. I have no knowledge about this stuff, but all I know is old house = old installations.

 

[Fanonic]

If you have a good PSU and a normal wall socket (and plug it in correctly) it will not cause problems. Unfortunately I cannot think of why it would catch fire. If you are in a new house any problems with the old wall plugs obviously won't be present.
You can choose if you want to do a stress test but I would assume it will be fine.

 

[DaleH]

If you have a good PSU and a normal wall socket (and plug it in correctly) it will not cause problems. Unfortunately I cannot think of why it would catch fire. If you are in a new house any problems with the old wall plugs obviously won't be present.
You can choose if you want to do a stress test but I would assume it will be fine.

I have seen this happen on other equipment, not compluters. I suspect that the contacts on the wall socket have gotten resistive. Current through a resistor causes heat: P=Isquared R. ( I don't know how to make the superscript for 2). I've seen it melt non metal parts on the receptacle.

 

[COLGeek]

Given the OP's stated history, I recommend an electrician pay your home a visit before doing anything else.

 

[verynicethx]

Given the OP's stated history, I recommend an electrician pay your home a visit before doing anything else.

Thank you everyone, but especially you. As I said we had an electrician and the electric company come and replace everything and install a new measuring station and what not, but I'm not there for some time so now I'm somewhere else. Anxious about it cause I have no idea if aida is recommended for a normal user like me, but as another user said there is nothing I should worry about if it's a new PC and new apartment. Thank you, if I don't reply ever again here consider me burned lol

@DaleH what does resistive mean in electrical terms? is it just a fancy term for shitty installation in an old house?

 

[COLGeek]

Thank you everyone, but especially you. As I said we had an electrician and the electric company come and replace everything and install a new measuring station and what not, but I'm not there for some time so now I'm somewhere else. Anxious about it cause I have no idea if aida is recommended for a normal user like me, but as another user said there is nothing I should worry about if it's a new PC and new apartment. Thank you, if I don't reply ever again here consider me burned lol

Please don't go the "crispy critter" route!

You should be fine elsewhere, under normal circumstances, to run AIDA.

 

[DaleH]

Thank you everyone, but especially you. As I said we had an electrician and the electric company come and replace everything and install a new measuring station and what not, but I'm not there for some time so now I'm somewhere else. Anxious about it cause I have no idea if aida is recommended for a normal user like me, but as another user said there is nothing I should worry about if it's a new PC and new apartment. Thank you, if I don't reply ever again here consider me burned lol

@DaleH what does resistive mean in electrical terms? is it just a fancy term for shitty installation in an old house?

Resistance is the impediment to current flow. A contact can become resistive throught oxidation of the material it is made of - caused by rust or some corrosive in the environment. Ohm's law tells us about the basics of electrical current. Voltage(volts)=I(current) X Resistance (ohms). If an electric contact becomes corroded through any means, then resistance to current flow increases. Heat will be generated because P(power in watts) = I squared X R. Therefore any increase in resistance will result in an increase in heat due to power dissipation. A toaster uses this principle to generate the heat to make your toast. In this case, nichrome wire is used, which has a much higer resistance than copper wire. I'm not great at explaining things so let me know if you're still confused.