How to know if PC has ESD damage?

[Guest]

I know that a potentially hazardous electrostatic discharge(which could fry the delicate circuitry inside the PC) can happen without being seen, heard or felt. How do you know if your PC has been damaged by static electricity?
Can a computer have ESD damage even if it doesn't show visible signs(random crashes, Blue Screens etc.)?

 

[hunter315]

You can't really tell. The reason the electronics industry takes such strong precautions against it is because there is no non-destructive method to check for ESD damage so they are all super diligent to reduce the risks of ESD in their facility other wise "walking wounded" units get out the door and you won't know they were hurt by ESD until they die/malfunction prematurely.

Most parts of a computer are built to withstand ESD to reduce the risks, and they are likely to survive 99.99% of ESD incidents, but everything has that one magical spot where a tiny amount of ESD could do far more damage than a major amount hitting somewhere else on the board. Just do what you can to reduce your risks, if it is humid your risks of ESD are greatly reduced.