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Notebook, condensation and cold

post #1 of 14
8/23/05 at 2:20pm
Thread Starter 
Is there anything you should do, or not do, with your laptop during winter ?
I am scared of how the temperature might affect or damage a notebook.

I already know that you do not want to turn it one when you just came from the -20 deg outside. Do you have advices ?
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post #2 of 14
8/23/05 at 2:48pm
Quote:
Is there anything you should do
Uh...how about keeping it inside of a heated building...?
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post #3 of 14
8/23/05 at 3:42pm
Actually a cold is better than warm, but keeping your laptop at -20 is extreme. Basically what you need to take care of is not to expose the notebook to cold/warm shocks, such as leaving the laptop in -20 degrees and then putting it in the oven with 50. The bigger problem concerning cold to warm environment is the humidity that could build up inside and around your notebook.
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post #4 of 14
8/23/05 at 6:59pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by epp_b
Uh...how about keeping it inside of a heated building...?
I think you did not get what I meant.

I have to walk 15-20 min from home to University every day. In winter, the average temp is arouns -15. My university has the bad habit to overheat their locals. So it is 18 deg from home to -20 (let's suppose extrems) to 22 deg at University.

I have to wait a little bit before turning it on, or else, cpu and gpu temp will make a 40-60 deg jump. And that cause condensation, and moisture and water and so one, which is not the best thing for a brand new laptop.

Of course, I will be using an isolated bag, and no, I do not have a car to keep the temp constant. I am sure some of you have horror story about weather and noteboks and good advices to share.
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post #5 of 14
8/23/05 at 7:04pm
Wow, yeah I guess that's something I didn't think about. I walk about 10-15 min to school as well and in the winter it can get pretty cold. I wouldn't want my computer to short out, but I can see condensation as a definite possibility! I guess accidental damage coverage would be good then.
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post #6 of 14
8/23/05 at 8:26pm
As long as you keep it in a well-insulated bag, though, the temperature will not drop all that much. It may sound a little extreme, but have you considered looking into getting some kind of battery-powered warmer? There are gloves, jackets, and the like that have a "hot pad" of sorts that keep it warm, and I'm pretty sure you could get some kind of warmer to put in next to your laptop. Either that, or you could bundle your laptop up in some kind of blankets to help keep it even warmer during the travel...

But again, for 15-20 minute walk, I don't think its going to drop _that_ much. What you should try doing is making the trip, then turning it on as soon as you get there and see what the temperature of the CPU is. I'm betting it won't be much colder than the room temperature. Now, if you expose it and leave it open to the elements, that's another story...
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post #7 of 14
8/23/05 at 8:40pm
Leave it on overnight (with powersaving enable to turn off the HD and LCD. and then either suspend or turn off before you leave for school. there should be enough heat left to keep it warm all the way to school in a decent laptop bag.
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post #8 of 14
8/24/05 at 2:43am
Wiz33 has the best thought I have heard... that solves it for you.

Try being in Florida, I use my laptop in the car with the A/C on and as soon as I open a door you can see the moisture on the plastic housing... ugh, the humidity here is bad.
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post #9 of 14
8/24/05 at 5:41am
That's never been a problem for me; not only with a laptop, but my desktop as well. My room used to be freezing during the day because of A/C, but then my parents would turn it off overnight, so I'd open up the windows all around my room to let the fresh air in. I honestly never had a single problem...

Anyways, you have to remember that the chassis is between the elements and the processor, and even that alone would probably be enough to ensure it'd stay toasty enough.
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post #10 of 14
8/24/05 at 6:13am
I am also in Miami and during the summer it can get up to 100% humidity in the air. The only saving grace is the temp is pretty constant so even our winter months it usaully doesn't get that cold.
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post #11 of 14
8/24/05 at 7:50am
I would think if you just wrapped it in a bunch of stuff to keep it insulated, it would stay warm. Especially if you left it on overnight, and then put insulation around it.
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post #12 of 14
8/24/05 at 12:45pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Wiz33
Leave it on overnight (with powersaving enable to turn off the HD and LCD. and then either suspend or turn off before you leave for school. there should be enough heat left to keep it warm all the way to school in a decent laptop bag.
Good idea, but little annoying to do each day. I will try it when I have extrem temps on the cold january. Brrr...
It happened to a friend once. It was around -25 outside with a dtrong wind. Is bag was cheap and he walk half an hour utside. He had a P4, with the temp problems that we know. He opened it directly in the class room and the notebook died instantly (no blue screens, alert) after booting from the bios.
The repair center had to open it and clean/dry the parts.
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post #13 of 14
8/25/05 at 10:54am
Thread Starter 
It seems I should bump this tread in a few months... around january.
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post #14 of 14
8/25/05 at 9:59pm
Chestnuts roasting over a Sager 9880...
Michael Dell nipping at my wallet...

I can't remember any more lines to make anything else up. ugh I suck
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