I noticed the PSU's fan has been blocked for 38 months. Should I consider replacing the PSU?
I noticed the PSU's fan has been blocked for 38 months. Should I consider replacing the PSU?
PC Components:
Asrock B450 Pro4 (7 years)
AMD Ryzen 5 5600G - (38 months) Just expired 5 days ago
NVIDIA 1660 SUPER - (Used, over 20 months old, 12+ months since original owner)
4x8GB DDR4 RAM Sticks (2 sticks are 38 months old, others are 7 years old)
Samsung 970 EVO Plus (37 months)
SSD WD Green 120 GB SATA (38 months)
Corsair CX650M (38 months)
For the initial 18 months of building, I used the PC for roughly 12-18 hours daily, with about 4-5 hours gaming using the APU, mainly on Warzone and Garry's Mod. The next 20 months were spent with the 1660. Throughout this period, I didn’t notice that I had positioned the PSU in a way that fully obstructed the fans. Only recently did I realize this, after placing the PSU atop a case on its plastic casing, which helped release heat (I don’t use a case).
On August 30, 2024, my PC experienced its first boot freeze with the Asrock logo after the circles spun once, followed by a force shutdown and restarting. Usually, this fixes itself after a few attempts. Around March of this year, I began encountering full PC freezes whenever running demanding Chinese games like Once Human or Delta Force. The system would freeze instantly on the game’s splash screen, while Warzone remained stable, so I attributed it to those games.
However, after experiencing weekly boot freezes—CPU failing to progress past the boot screen despite multiple forced restarts—I tested a PC shop’s 5600X with my PSU and it loaded normally into their system.
I typically run the CPU for 12-18 hours daily, maintaining an average temperature of 60-70°C. This suggests the CPU isn’t damaged, but I suspect the PSU may have degraded and poses a risk now.
Welcome to the forums, newcomer!
I only noticed this recently and set up the PSU inside a casing with its plastic net, which helped release heat (though I don’t use a casing).
Could you share pictures of your build or the PSU assembly? You might want to consider placing components inside a chassis designed for good airflow to help dissipate heat.
RAM: 4x8GB DDR4 sticks (two are 38 months old, others are 7 years old)
If these are Corsair rams, you may want to switch back to the original two sticks or the one you bought later. Corsair offers PCB versions for their kits because they source ICs from several suppliers. This can cause instability in your system.
Asrock B450 Pro4 (7 years old)
What BIOS version are you using on your motherboard?
Corsair CX650M (38 months)
Is this the PSU you’re working with? If yes, you should have a 5-year warranty. If you think it’s faulty, return it for repair.
Would you like me to share pictures showing how your build or rather your PSU was assembled? You might want to consider constructing inside a chassis with optimal airflow to help dissipate heat from your components. PC parts are now in boxes... but I still need a proper casing. If they're Corsair rams, then you might prefer reverting to the two sticks you originally had or the one you selected later. Corsair is the only brand that offers PCB versions for their RAM kits because they source ICs from several suppliers. This can potentially cause instability in your system.
Yes, these are Corsair RAM sticks. Should I stick to just two Corsair RAM sticks? I’m not sure what you mean—this is really confusing, and I’m lacking in PC knowledge.
What BIOS version do you have on your motherboard?
I’m not entirely certain right now and don’t want to boot the BIOS with a questionable PSU... but last time I took it to an ASUS repair shop in early 2022 (possibly January or February), updating it made it compatible with the 5000 series AMD CPUs.
Is this the PSU you’re using? If so, you should have a 5-year warranty on the unit. If you suspect it’s faulty, I recommend initiating an RMA.
Yes, it is. I’ll check if it works out.
But based only on speculation, could my PSU be compromised by now? I mean, I suspect it might be, but I can’t confirm for sure. After 38 months of operation with fans blocked, I think it’s likely, but I don’t have a definitive answer. I visited a few local PC shops, but they didn’t suspect the PSU and didn’t conduct a thorough inspection—just listened to my fan blockage story without digging deeper.
I saw recent reports about Ryzen 5 3600s failing because they overheated when using the standard cooler, likely in cases with inadequate airflow. How were your own temperatures throughout the device's life? Could this have contributed to its breakdown?
My 5600G typically ran 12 to 18 hours daily, maintaining an average temperature of 60 to 70 degrees Celsius. However, during its first year before acquiring the GPU, it operated at around 60 to 70 degrees Celsius with non-gaming or low-mid usage software (about 12 hours), and reached 70 to 80 degrees when gaming using its APU for 3 to 4 hours each day over a year.
The readings seem acceptable, but it might just be unlucky. You might have gotten a duff chip.
But might it be a chance that following years of PSU's exhaust/fan obstruction, the PSU deteriorated and gradually caused the CPU to fail?
It seems like a reasonable hypothesis, though it relies heavily on the assumption that your CPU has stopped working. I believe your current setup wouldn’t be using close to the 650W capacity your power supply is designed for, and I suspect the PSU doesn’t require excessive cooling even at reduced load. Swapping it with a better model could help, but you might only need to replace the CPU.
During February this year, I experienced unexpected restarts while playing Delta Force for several hours straight. Initially, my PC would blue screen, and then it would restart multiple times again. I considered these issues might be related to the power supply unit. My CPU and GPU temperatures were within normal ranges—around 70°C for the CPU and 75°C for the GPU. If the PSU's internal components were damaged, possibly due to blocked fans, its rating could drop significantly from 650 to 400 or even lower.
It's conceivable, though I wouldn't wager on it. As Lutfij mentioned before, you might return the power supply if you believe it's defective.