purplewakanda
Gold Level Poster
Would you recommend powering off the PC every day and turning off the switch? Is sleep a better option?
Advise needed for best PC practices
- Thread starter purplewakanda
- Start date
ubuysa
The BSOD Doctor
I have always left every PC I've ever owned switched on 24 x 7. No sleep no hibernate, just turn the monitor off and go to bed. IMO PCS are best left on all the time.
purplewakanda
Gold Level Poster
How about your electricity bills?
Martinr36
MOST VALUED CONTRIBUTOR
I leave mine on as well, just sat there ticking over and monitor off won't use a lot of power
SpyderTracks
We love you Ukraine
On idle they use very little electricity really.
I leave my PC on 24/7 but mainly because it's running a media server which needs to be always available.
My laptop I turn off with a full shutdown every night, I never leave it on sleep.
In fact, on any PC, I personally disable hibernation which is set by default, as it generally causes issues and is only really relevant on tablets IMHO. SSD's these days make boot up so quick that sleep isn't necessary.
purplewakanda
Gold Level Poster
Is it okay to put it either to sleep or hibernate?
ubuysa
The BSOD Doctor
Oh heck, it's tiny. You'll likely use as much power leaving a light on all night.
ubuysa
The BSOD Doctor
Yes it's fine, but there is really no need.
jamiephillips909
Godlike
I personally have always just turn mine off as it can be days before I use it again due to work etc but theres no issue leaving it on make sure you have a decent surge protector !
NoddyPirate
Godlike
I have my machine on from about 8 am every day - it is set to sleep after 2 hours of no use - but if I'm home for the day it generally doesn't manage to do that and runs till 10 or 11 at night - so about 14-15 hours continuously.
I had measured the power draw from the wall previously while trying to figure out my Motherboard settings for my OC - so I know my system uses 60W when on but idle and about 75W average under light use - working that out makes an average of about €70 a year. Running it 24/7/365 instead would cost me about €105 a year. So just €35 more. So the electricity costs are hardly worth worrying about really.
I simply turn my machine off at night so the burglars don't have the benefit of RGB to help them find their way around my house. I like the idea of them stubbing a toe now and then.
Incidentally, when the system is in Sleep or fully off but with the PSU still on, it draws about 0.5W. If I had left it plugged in when I was born and forgot to unplug it until today, I would now owe the leccy company an extra €33. So I really don't think switching it off at the wall is worth the effort.
I had measured the power draw from the wall previously while trying to figure out my Motherboard settings for my OC - so I know my system uses 60W when on but idle and about 75W average under light use - working that out makes an average of about €70 a year. Running it 24/7/365 instead would cost me about €105 a year. So just €35 more. So the electricity costs are hardly worth worrying about really.
I simply turn my machine off at night so the burglars don't have the benefit of RGB to help them find their way around my house. I like the idea of them stubbing a toe now and then.
Incidentally, when the system is in Sleep or fully off but with the PSU still on, it draws about 0.5W. If I had left it plugged in when I was born and forgot to unplug it until today, I would now owe the leccy company an extra €33. So I really don't think switching it off at the wall is worth the effort.
ubuysa
The BSOD Doctor
Interesting numbers, I've not seen anyone do that level of measuring before. That's really useful.
As well as the relatively low cost of the extra electricity, you need to factor in the shock components receive when the power first comes on. They're designed to handle it of course but IMO there is a (probably unmeasurable) gain in not subjecting the electronics to repeated switch on day after day. That's one reason I always leave mine on 24 x 7.
There is the possibility of electrical shock when turning on. Repeatedly starting pumps and fans could theoretically accelerate bearing wear. There is also thermal cycling that could damage components over time - higher frequency and higher amplitude will have a bigger impact, but there will be a level of temperature change below which there is no appreciable impact. Server farms have CPUs, disks and fans running continuously for a long period.Interesting numbers, I've not seen anyone do that level of measuring before. That's really useful.
As well as the relatively low cost of the extra electricity, you need to factor in the shock components receive when the power first comes on. They're designed to handle it of course but IMO there is a (probably unmeasurable) gain in not subjecting the electronics to repeated switch on day after day. That's one reason I always leave mine on 24 x 7.
in the real world it probably doesn’t make much difference for a domestic user.
NoddyPirate
Godlike
That's probably because you haven't seen anyone weird enough to bother checking!Interesting numbers, I've not seen anyone do that level of measuring before. That's really useful.
In fairness I was trying to figure out my EDC current draw on my CPU as it had me confused - and I had resorted to checking what changed at the wall when I tweaked it.100% agree - particularly when it comes to fans or pumps - apart from MagLev ones I guess - the startup can cause a bit of a shock and degrade them over time I imagine.
purplewakanda
Gold Level Poster
Thank you for all your advice. I probably would use my PC for about 10-15 hours a week.
NoddyPirate
Godlike
If you're only using it for 90 minutes to 2 hours a day then turning it off when not in use would seem more sensible to me - unless you use it for lots of short periods throughout the day to reach those times.
In theory turning it off rather than leaving it on 24/7 would save about you the cost of a tank of fuel in your car every year.
jamiephillips909
Godlike
Its the argument of charge when starting it up reducing component lifespan to running it 24/7 reducing component life span its just personal prefrence in the end !
NoddyPirate
Godlike
Very true.
For the OP if their usage is that low then there will be no more than a single power cycle a day anyway - which is basically the same as my system which runs for 7 times longer every 24 hours - a single cycle a day is nothing to worry about. Avoiding starting up every time you sit on the chair in front of your PC throughout the course of a day is the important bit.
In term of run time, she'll get 700 hours a year of power on time with 365 cycles. I'll have 5,000 hours with 365 cycles. I would expect her system to last longer than mine - and I would also expect both our system to last 10+ years.
TomBerry
Bright Spark
On this topic are the surge protectors from PCS any good? Noticed they’re only £10 max but unsure if i’d need to be paying a more premium price
Edit: Just noticed it's £10 and £19
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purplewakanda
Gold Level Poster
I looked around for surge protectors even the reputed brands on Amazon seem to cause a short circuit and/ blow up. I was advised it would be better to add your PC to the insurance cover if your building or house comes with good earthing and protection.