F5F Stay Refreshed Hardware Desktop Could a possible power surge damage your PSU and monitor?

Could a possible power surge damage your PSU and monitor?

Could a possible power surge damage your PSU and monitor?

A
aloli_XD
Junior Member
11
08-04-2021, 11:31 PM
#1
Hello,
I’m dealing with a rather complicated scenario here.

First, let me share my PC details.
Hardware:
- Motherboard: Asus ROG Strix B550-F Gaming WiFi II
- GPU: AMD Radeon 6700XT
- CPU: AMD Ryzen (exact specs unclear)
- Power Supply: Seasonic S12II-520 Bronze (connected to a surge protector I’ve used for years)
- Monitor: ASUS TUF Gaming VG27VQMY (linked via HDMI)

The situation started when my rabbit entered my office and chewed on the PSU cable. It didn’t seem to hit anything obvious, but it reached into the inner white plastic section of the outer black casing. When I tried to power on the PC, the monitor failed to detect any input. Upon inspecting the motherboard, a bright white light illuminated the "VGA" area, suggesting the board wasn’t recognizing the graphics card.

I attempted several fixes online—re-seating the GPU, trying a different slot, even swapping it out for an older model—but the problem persisted. I’m now leaning toward a power supply issue, thinking the PSU might not be delivering sufficient power to the GPU for proper recognition. The fans still spin during boot, but no input is received from the monitor.

My main guess is that the rabbit’s chewing caused a power surge, damaging the PSU. While it was off when the incident occurred and the unit is protected by a surge protector, I’m not entirely convinced.

I also have a related concern: my monitor has stopped responding to any input at all since this event. I’ve tested it on three different HDMI ports with three separate laptops, but it still powers on and shows a menu, though no signal is detected. It’s possible the surge affected multiple components.

My only hope is someone can help clarify this, as it’s becoming increasingly frustrating. If anyone has experience with similar setups or power issues, I’d really appreciate their advice!
A
aloli_XD
08-04-2021, 11:31 PM #1

Hello,
I’m dealing with a rather complicated scenario here.

First, let me share my PC details.
Hardware:
- Motherboard: Asus ROG Strix B550-F Gaming WiFi II
- GPU: AMD Radeon 6700XT
- CPU: AMD Ryzen (exact specs unclear)
- Power Supply: Seasonic S12II-520 Bronze (connected to a surge protector I’ve used for years)
- Monitor: ASUS TUF Gaming VG27VQMY (linked via HDMI)

The situation started when my rabbit entered my office and chewed on the PSU cable. It didn’t seem to hit anything obvious, but it reached into the inner white plastic section of the outer black casing. When I tried to power on the PC, the monitor failed to detect any input. Upon inspecting the motherboard, a bright white light illuminated the "VGA" area, suggesting the board wasn’t recognizing the graphics card.

I attempted several fixes online—re-seating the GPU, trying a different slot, even swapping it out for an older model—but the problem persisted. I’m now leaning toward a power supply issue, thinking the PSU might not be delivering sufficient power to the GPU for proper recognition. The fans still spin during boot, but no input is received from the monitor.

My main guess is that the rabbit’s chewing caused a power surge, damaging the PSU. While it was off when the incident occurred and the unit is protected by a surge protector, I’m not entirely convinced.

I also have a related concern: my monitor has stopped responding to any input at all since this event. I’ve tested it on three different HDMI ports with three separate laptops, but it still powers on and shows a menu, though no signal is detected. It’s possible the surge affected multiple components.

My only hope is someone can help clarify this, as it’s becoming increasingly frustrating. If anyone has experience with similar setups or power issues, I’d really appreciate their advice!

L
Lordcraft555
Member
51
08-05-2021, 12:53 AM
#2
Is the bunny still alive?
L
Lordcraft555
08-05-2021, 12:53 AM #2

Is the bunny still alive?

M
MarshV2
Junior Member
13
08-24-2021, 12:51 PM
#3
When you're in the USA, white insulation means Neutral, while black insulation indicates Line/Live and green or green/yellow signifies Earth. In my area, Neutral is grounded at the substation, so it's uncommon to detect more than a few volts on Neutral, whereas Line/Live here operates at 240V AC 50Hz. If you're based in the US, Line is likely 120V 60Hz. If a rabbit chewed through the Neutral, there might not be sufficient voltage to cause significant harm to equipment or the animal. Chewing into the Line input would probably result in a much worse outcome.

I've experienced similar issues with lighting circuits in the loft when squirrels accessed the roof. Burn marks on the twin and earth cables showed where arcing happened and triggered a blown fuse.

Have you swapped out the chewed mains cable, cord, or lead for a new one without bite marks? Both my monitor and PC are working, but a damaged cable isn't safe to use. Until you locate another functional monitor, it's hard to proceed further. It could be an ATX PSU issue, or a problem with the GPU or motherboard.

I recommend purchasing a budget ATX PSU tester. These don’t provide a full picture of the power supply’s condition, but they’ll help confirm if the PCIe 12V feed to the GPU is intact (look for a PCI-e 6-Pin input on the tester).
M
MarshV2
08-24-2021, 12:51 PM #3

When you're in the USA, white insulation means Neutral, while black insulation indicates Line/Live and green or green/yellow signifies Earth. In my area, Neutral is grounded at the substation, so it's uncommon to detect more than a few volts on Neutral, whereas Line/Live here operates at 240V AC 50Hz. If you're based in the US, Line is likely 120V 60Hz. If a rabbit chewed through the Neutral, there might not be sufficient voltage to cause significant harm to equipment or the animal. Chewing into the Line input would probably result in a much worse outcome.

I've experienced similar issues with lighting circuits in the loft when squirrels accessed the roof. Burn marks on the twin and earth cables showed where arcing happened and triggered a blown fuse.

Have you swapped out the chewed mains cable, cord, or lead for a new one without bite marks? Both my monitor and PC are working, but a damaged cable isn't safe to use. Until you locate another functional monitor, it's hard to proceed further. It could be an ATX PSU issue, or a problem with the GPU or motherboard.

I recommend purchasing a budget ATX PSU tester. These don’t provide a full picture of the power supply’s condition, but they’ll help confirm if the PCIe 12V feed to the GPU is intact (look for a PCI-e 6-Pin input on the tester).