When I touch my metal keyboard, I get shocked and the lights go out for a few seconds.

[Bscull12]

So I've had a huge problem with static electricity lately.

When I come home from school I come to my computer and grab my keyboard to type. However, since it's metal, it shocks me. The lights on it go out and the length of the outage depends on the strength of the shock. Sometimes if the shock is strong it will turn off my monitor and reset it like I hit the power button twice. The PC stays on.

1. Is this bad for my PC? Will the current eventually kill the USB port because of this, or even worse, the PC itself?

2. How can I prevent this? I use my PC on carpet and I do have static spray.

3. Is this because the weather is dry? It has happened almost every day since I touched a very large and conductive plastic trash bin. Odd, right? (Oh yeah, it also happens when I get out of bed)

4. What can I touch in order to ground myself?

 

[Barty1884]

Are you "static-y" touching other metal in the house? Dry weather, depending on your specific area's climate, will almost certainly increase static.

If it's solely at the PC, then you may have a greater issue and poor grounding in your outlets.

1. In short, yes. Uncontrolled power-offs, along with other aspects, can certainly cause damage either immediately over time.
2. Depends on the cause. Avoiding carpet would be a good place to start though, just to see if anything changes.
3. Possibly, as above.
4. Grounded metal.

 

[Bscull12]

Are you "static-y" touching other metal in the house? Dry weather, depending on your specific area's climate, will almost certainly increase static.

If it's solely at the PC, then you may have a greater issue and poor grounding in your outlets.

1. In short, yes. Uncontrolled power-offs, along with other aspects, can certainly cause damage either immediately over time.
2. Depends on the cause. Avoiding carpet would be a good place to start though, just to see if anything changes.
3. Possibly, as above.
4. Grounded metal.

Yeah sometimes I get shocked touching other stuff as well.

So can this kill my PC? Kind of worried.

 

[Barty1884]

It *can*, but depends on the severity and, realistically, the route cause anyway.

Try walking up to your PC with rubber-soled shoes on or barefoot (ie not socks on carpet). Ground yourself, or take the 'shock' elsewhere in the home.... then walk over and touch your keyboard etc. Does it happen then?

 

[Bscull12]

It *can*, but depends on the severity and, realistically, the route cause anyway.

Try walking up to your PC with rubber-soled shoes on or barefoot (ie not socks on carpet). Ground yourself, or take the 'shock' elsewhere in the home.... then walk over and touch your keyboard etc. Does it happen then?

It may take some further testing but when I touched my faucet and walked over carpet barefoot it did not happen. I've set up a humidifier.

 

[Barty1884]

Yeah, it's certainly not conclusive - but it's a pretty good sign that static is (at least partly) to blame.

Humidifier should help - and get it off the carpet if you can. Even if it means sourcing a piece of wood for underneath.
If your signature is anything to go by, you've got a pretty high-end/expensive rig there, so try to mitigate the 'shocks' any way you can.

 

[Bscull12]

Yeah, that’s mine. I will see if this helped. Thank you