Check for PSU or motherboard problems. Could be a hardware issue or user error.
Check for PSU or motherboard problems. Could be a hardware issue or user error.
Evening. I recently assembled a PC for a friend and it was working perfectly when I left my house. After they moved it to their home, two power supplies failed. One was only installed four days prior and still functioned well. Now I received a message saying the PC wouldn’t turn on and they couldn’t determine the cause. After some troubleshooting, I realized they may have damaged this brand new power supply as well. They’re now requesting a refund for a device that worked fine when I handed it over, and they also broke the glass side panel. What should I investigate to understand why these PSUs keep failing?
Have you been connecting the same cables between power supplies? 24-pin, SATA, 8-pin, etc.
I collected every cable from the power supply box. Once I brought the PC back, it showed no signs of life. It seems they successfully destroyed the motherboard.
Having the PC connected to various devices isn't ideal for the PSU, particularly when inductive loads are present (like motors). There could also be issues with the home wiring or the provider's electrical system. Regarding the situation, this is sensitive. Based on past experience: if you checked the computer beforehand and it was functioning properly, components were operating well then, the fault likely occurred after that. The manufacturer probably covers the initial failure under warranty. For a refund claim, you had no control over how the computer was used, and each time it worked fine. If the PSU failed, the manufacturer should be responsible; if the wiring was faulty, it would likely fall on your friend or landlord. If I were you, I’d consider returning usable parts rather than the entire unit. A dead PSU isn’t refundable, and the motherboard is too. You can test components like the CPU, PSU, RAM, and storage to see what’s still functional. The broken glass panel suggests the case is also unusable. This isn’t a perfect scenario, but selling to friends can be risky—supporting them doesn’t mean you’ll get the same help for unrelated problems. Good luck!