[SOLVED] Plugging something into surge protector strip caused PC to shutdown

[KaseyFa]

I had one system sitting idle powered on and plugged another system into the surge protector strip with its PSU off (O position), this caused a tiny spark at the plug/outlet, I've seen this before plugging in my router since it has no power switch and thought nothing of it, but noticed it had caused the system that was powered on to have a hard shutdown.

Why did this happen? Could this have caused any damage? I'm getting conflicting answers trying to Google it, anyone have any ideas?

 

[JohnBonhamsGhost]

it may be a cheap, old, or damaged surge protector. i doubt it would have caused any damage to the system in this circumstance though. a decent power supply should be able to take it.

have you run the system since the incident? if it powers on normally and continues to run, it should be fine.

definitely stop using this surge protector/power strip though.
you should look into getting something designed for devices like PCs, etc like a nice Belkin. or even get a battery backed UPS.

 

[Ralston18]

Not uncommon to see a spark when plugging something into a wall outlet or surge protector.

Make and model surge protector?

How many devices and what devices do you have plugged into the surge protector?

Hopefully the shutdown was just some safety measure to prevent damage due to a short of some sort.

Or perhaps the system that shutdown noted and likewise reacted to a "brown out" via the surge protector. That is the voltage sagged when the router was plugged in.

Hopefully no harm done.

Using the router's plug as an "on/off" switch is not recommended. There should be no need to be doing so in most circumstances. However, if there are reasons, then purchase an inline switch to go between the router and its' power source (the wall outlet or other outlet).

 

[KaseyFa]

Thanks for replying!

Brand of surge protector is Belkin (6-way) with model no # BSV603af2M, it's a few years old.

Devices plugged in are like so in this direction starting from wall wire to the end.

1. PC1 (the one that had the shutdown)
2. Monitor1
3. PC2 (this is what I plugged in)
4. Monitor2
5. Radio
6. Lamp (it was on, it's a 12w bulb)

Everything else stayed powered up, the monitors lost signal but didn't turn off, lamp didn't flicker or anything, radio was still playing.

PC1 turns on and I did some burn tests and it seems OK, but I have noticed two random hard shutdowns (like it lost power) from it I'm worried about, I did make a hardware change just before this happened though and that was adding extensions for 24-pin and CPU 8-pin (Silverstone brand) since I changed case, I took those out and haven't had a shutdown so far, so can't rule out coincidence on that I guess.

PSU for PC1 = Corsair 550 RMx Gold.

I can buy another replacement surge protector, am hoping nothing was hurt!

 

[Ralston18]

My assessment is that that surge protector is overloaded.

Surge protection is a cumulative process - after so many hits the total joule protection will not longer exist and the current surges that occur during a plugin can impact other connected devices.

A new surge protector may help but try to find/use other wall outlets for non-IT devices. Even if they are low wattage.