Question Samsung TV as display flickering when air conditioner on in old apartment - should I be worried?

[SomeGuyOnTheWeb]

Hi guys, I use a 65" 4K Samsung TV as my display for my gaming PC. I live in an older apartment so we had to install a window air conditioner which I leave in place over the winter to use the fan function. Sometimes while I'm gaming it gets very warm in my room and I turn on the AC to cool the room down. However, the AC draws so much power that the room light will dim/flicker sometimes and occasionally the TV will flicker off for a few seconds then come back on (sometimes it doesn't happen at all, sometimes it happens every time the compressor starts). I have both my TV and high-end gaming PC (4090 RTX) plugged into a surge protector, but it looks like kind of a cheaper model of surge protector. I've also been experiencing some powering off issues with my gaming PC which at first I thought was due to the RTX 4090 video card sitting too loosely in its original PCI Express slot, so I moved the video card to another slot and it worked fine for a while, but it shut down and restarted again last night with the Event Log showing a critical error Event ID 41 for Kernel-Power. Last thing I want to do is fry my new gaming PC or my TV. Should I cough up the cash for a high-end surge protector? Is there anything else you guys can recommend? Thanks for your thoughts on this.

 

[ex_bubblehead]

That AC unit is placing far too much draw on the existing wiring. This is a potential fire hazard and needs to be investigated by the appropriate authorities immediately. Surge suppressors will do absolutely nothing in this situation.

 

[SomeGuyOnTheWeb]

That AC unit is placing far too much draw on the existing wiring. This is a potential fire hazard and needs to be investigated by the appropriate authorities immediately. Surge suppressors will do absolutely nothing in this situation.

Multiple residents of this apartment complex have had these kind of window ACs installed for many years and no fires have occurred. The flickering of the TV only happens occasionally when the compressor kicks in, not every time. It does not seem significant enough to be a fire hazard. Just concerned about my TV and gaming PC. I think I'm still going to buy a UPS to protect my TV and gaming PC... thinking the 1,500VA APC.

 

[ex_bubblehead]

Multiple residents of this apartment complex have had these kind of window ACs installed for many years and no fires have occurred. The flickering of the TV only happens occasionally when the compressor kicks in, not every time. It does not seem significant enough to be a fire hazard. Just concerned about my TV and gaming PC. I think I'm still going to buy a UPS to protect my TV and gaming PC... thinking the 1,500VA APC.

That's completely irrelevant. Just because something hasn't as yet happened does NOT mean that it won't the very next time you turn something on. Get this electrical safety problem checked out IMMEDIATELY

 

[SomeGuyOnTheWeb]

That's completely irrelevant. Just because something hasn't as yet happened does NOT mean that it won't the very next time you turn something on. Get this electrical safety problem checked out IMMEDIATELY

Okay thanks I will, but I still have another question: do you generally recommend using Uninterruptible Power Supplies for gaming PCs? Or is a good surge protector enough?

 

[ex_bubblehead]

Okay thanks I will, but I still have another question: do you generally recommend using Uninterruptible Power Supplies for gaming PCs? Or is a good surge protector enough?

Either one according to your needs. A UPS will allow a couple of minutes to perform a clean shutdown during an outage. However, if you go with a surge supressor just keep in mind that they are a "one and done" device and if you require heavy duty protection (close aboard lightning strikes and such) you will pay the BIG bucks. Anything less than $100-150 is nothing more than an extension cord.