[SOLVED] PC fans spin at full throttle but no post

[joe thompson]

Hello everyone. Recently I purchased an old prebuilt PC online that I was planning on using, but unfortunately stopped working after I tried cleaning the PC. When the computer first arrived it was running windows 8 and it was extremely dirty inside, but it did properly function and turn on like normal every time I pressed the power button. The first thing I did was install windows 10 on the PC, then I opened up the computer, replaced the dried up thermal paste on the CPU, removed as much dust as I can with a can of compressed air, and I opened up the power supply which was also very dirty inside. After cleaning and putting everything back together, when I pressed the power button the CPU fan began spinning at max speed (much louder than when the PC was properly working) and there was no signal to my monitor. Additionally, no power was going to any of the USB ports or the PC storage, as the LED's on my keyboard werent turning on, and the storage light indicator was not turning on either. However, the light on the power button did turn on, and the light on the LAN port was flashing green.

The strangest thing with this issue was that yesterday, in an attempt to fix the issue I removed all the components from the PC and rebuilt the PC from the ground up (I also removed and reseated the CMOS battery, and I used compressed air on the back of my motherboard) which surprisingly allowed the PC to turn on normally after pressing the power button (this happened twice). Unfortunately however, after shutting down the PC the issue of it not turning on happened again and I was unable to turn it back on again. Any kind of advice or insight to how this issue could be solved would be immensly appreciated. Thank you.

Specs:
CPU: Intel core i5-4590
RAM: 4gb x2 DDR3
Storage: 128 gb SSD x1, 500 HDD x2, DVD drive x1
PSU: 300 watts

 

[Ralston18]

My thought is an intermittent problem within the PSU.

PSU: make, model, wattage (300 noted) - any idea of the actually age of the PSU? Maybe even being the original PSU?

Heavy use for gaming, video editing, crypto mining? Likely unknown but no harm in asking.

Do you have a multi-meter and know how to use it? Or know someone who does?

FYI:

https://www.lifewire.com/how-to-manually-test-a-power-supply-with-a-multimeter-2626158

Not a full test because the PSU is not under load. However, any voltages out of tolerance make the PSU very suspect.

 

[joe thompson]

My thought is an intermittent problem within the PSU.

PSU: make, model, wattage (300 noted) - any idea of the actually age of the PSU? Maybe even being the original PSU?

Heavy use for gaming, video editing, crypto mining? Likely unknown but no harm in asking.

Do you have a multi-meter and know how to use it? Or know someone who does?

FYI:

https://www.lifewire.com/how-to-manually-test-a-power-supply-with-a-multimeter-2626158

Not a full test because the PSU is not under load. However, any voltages out of tolerance make the PSU very suspect.

Thanks for the reply! On the PSU itself it says "DATE: B1450", which I'm not sure what it means, but the prebuilt system itself is a Fujitsu esprimo D583/J which was released in 2014 so I'd guess that the computer was manufactured in 2014 or some year close to that. It is also almost certainly likely that none of the parts in this PC has been removed or replaced since it was first purchased brand new. After I replaced the thermal paste on the CPU I tried installing and running a couple games to test the CPU temps. Other than that I doubt the PC was put under load and was likely used for things like regular office work.

I also thought the PSU was the most likely culprit behind the issue as the issue started after I opened it to clean it. Unfortunately, I do not own a multi-meter and don't know anyone who does. If it is suggested, I might try buying a new power supply first before replacing any other component.

 

[Ralston18]

Possibly Year 14, Week 50 perhaps....

A new PSU would be my suggestion. The PSU is a critical component and must be able to meet the voltage and power demands of the host system.

Start here:

https://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/best-psus,4229.html

Size the PSU to the Fujitusu components and allow a bit of extra wattage margin.

Do be aware that with the system likely being almost 7 years some other component could fail as well.

Hopefully the system will hold up long enough to make it all worthwhile.