signmeuptoo
Folding and Crunching Not just Breakfast
Premium
join:2001-11-22
LOSTinSpace
clubs: 
 ·Future Nine Corpor..
 ·AT&T Southeast
| I just had a BIG scare
Some lightning it, miles away, and it knocked the power on and off quickly. When system came back up, my monitor was all the colors of the rainbow in a halo, concentric circles of colors from the center outward. I thought it was fried, and I have NO money now to buy a new one.
Well, after unpluggin, rebooting, while rebooting I tried degaussing and that did no good, but after fully rebooting, I was indeed able to degauss it.
I wish I had ground here so I could connect a ups, but I don't. I have a surge protector connected, but it can't do enough good without a ground lead...
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Let's be nice to each other, k? Life's too short. |
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Tursiops_G
Technoid
Premium,MVM
join:2002-02-06
Norwalk, CT
clubs:
 ·Optimum Online
| How old is your house?
When I first moved into my current home (a Cape Cod style, built in the 1950's), All of the outlets were only 2-Prong (no Ground), but the house itself is wired with Armored Cable (BX)...
I installed 3-Prong Duplex receptacles, and connected the Outlet's Grounds to the back of the metal outlet boxes with a Green "Pigtail" Ground wire (Home Depot sells them)... A Quick check with an Outlet Tester showed that the Ground connections were fine, and I have had NO problems with Grounding issues at all.
Of course, If your house is much older, and has "Knob-and-Tube" wiring, then your only real option is to have an Electrician run a new line from your Main Power Panel to the outlet for your PC... 
-Tursiops_G.
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If You're Unsure, "RTFM"... If You're SURE, "RTFM" Anyway.  |
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Locutus65
A Closed Mouth Gathers No Foot
Premium
join:2001-05-24
Houston, TX
clubs:
·Comcast
| reply to signmeuptoo
Many times using the built in deguasse feature isn't strong enough and you need to manually degausse it. Do a search on ebay for deguassing coil and you should be able to pick on up for around $25.00.
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M-O-O-N, that spells assimilation...Tom Cullen of Borg. |
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signmeuptoo
Folding and Crunching Not just Breakfast
Premium
join:2001-11-22
LOSTinSpace
clubs:
·Future Nine Corpor..
·AT&T Southeast
| This ain't my house and though I did work for an electrician and know enough to do some wiring, I don't dare do it, the house is a crappy old junky shack, I am not kidding, either.
As far as the deguassing coil, I will have to look into that!
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Let's be nice to each other, k? Life's too short. |
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Tursiops_G
Technoid
Premium,MVM
join:2002-02-06
Norwalk, CT
clubs:
·Optimum Online
1 edit | Even though you don't have an adequate Ground, I would still consider getting a UPS, even if you have to use a 2-Prong to 3-Prong Adapter for it... Yes, It will NOT be able to provide the proper level of Spike/Surge Protection without a Ground, but it Will still be able to provide Backup Power in the event of a Momentary power interruption, and allow you to safely shut down your PC in the event of a Total Power Loss... 
You may even be lucky that just installing a 2-Prong to 3-Prong Adapter will provide a Ground through the Outlet Plate's Center screw...
Anyway, It's Your Call...
-Tursiops_G.
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If You're Unsure, "RTFM"... If You're SURE, "RTFM" Anyway. |
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signmeuptoo
Folding and Crunching Not just Breakfast
Premium
join:2001-11-22
LOSTinSpace
clubs:
·Future Nine Corpor..
·AT&T Southeast
| reply to signmeuptoo
I was thinking even of doing something a bit non-code: Driving a stake right outside my window, making a hole in the outside wall, and running a ground through it just for the one outlet...
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Let's be nice to each other, k? Life's too short. |
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Tursiops_G
Technoid
Premium,MVM
join:2002-02-06
Norwalk, CT
clubs:
·Optimum Online
| If you're considering going to that extreme, I'd try the "Pigtail" method first... If the Outlet Box isn't Grounded, then I'd recommend running the Ground lead to a nearby Cold Water Pipe (if possible), before resorting to the Ground Rod method... 
-Tursiops_G.
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If You're Unsure, "RTFM"... If You're SURE, "RTFM" Anyway. |
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signmeuptoo
Folding and Crunching Not just Breakfast
Premium
join:2001-11-22
LOSTinSpace
clubs: | Heh, this place is basically a shack, not metal tubing.
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Let's be nice to each other, k? Life's too short. |
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Tursiops_G
Technoid
Premium,MVM
join:2002-02-06
Norwalk, CT
clubs:
·Optimum Online
1 edit | If you have no other choice but to use a Ground Rod, I'd recommend using a Solid Copper, or Copper-Clad Steel rod, buried at least 5 Feet into the ground... You should be able to get a suitable Grounding Rod at an Electrical Supply house.
-Tursiops_G.
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If You're Unsure, "RTFM"... If You're SURE, "RTFM" Anyway. |
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signmeuptoo
Folding and Crunching Not just Breakfast
Premium
join:2001-11-22
LOSTinSpace
clubs:
·Future Nine Corpor..
·AT&T Southeast
| Yeah, I can go to home depot or lowe's or something where it is cheaper, but they are the 8+ foot ones, I'd have to cut it if I wanted it shorter of course. Driving 8 feet is really hard, I used to work for an electrician and I learned how to make life easier with that: don't use a sledge hammer, but one of those steel post drivers that farmers/ranchers use, you can rent them. It is still a beotch of a job, even so.
Main thing is getting out of this house as soon as I can, actually...
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Let's be nice to each other, k? Life's too short. |
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28482647
Premium
join:2003-05-13
England
|  reply to signmeuptoo
said by signmeuptoo  :the house is a crappy old junky shack, I am not kidding, either. Pics? |
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Sweet Witch
Be the flame, not the moth.
Premium,MVM
join:2003-07-15
Gallifrey
·Comcast
| reply to Locutus65
said by Locutus65 :
Many times using the built in deguasse feature isn't strong enough and you need to manually degausse it. Do a search on ebay for deguassing coil and you should be able to pick on up for around $25.00.
Isn't there a way to do that with a drill and a magnet??
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The most courageous thing you can do is be honest.
The weight of a tongue can destroy a person. |
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Locutus65
A Closed Mouth Gathers No Foot
Premium
join:2001-05-24
Houston, TX
clubs:
·Comcast
| said by Sweet Witch : said by Locutus65 :
Many times using the built in deguasse feature isn't strong enough and you need to manually degausse it. Do a search on ebay for deguassing coil and you should be able to pick on up for around $25.00.
Isn't there a way to do that with a drill and a magnet?? I'm not sure. Never heard of doing it that way and with degaussing coils being so cheap....
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M-O-O-N, that spells assimilation...Tom Cullen of Borg. |
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Tursiops_G
Technoid
Premium,MVM
join:2002-02-06
Norwalk, CT
clubs:
·Optimum Online
1 edit | Yep, It HAS been done that way before...
See Here: »woil.ws/fixmonitor/
Personally, I'd be a bit concerned about the possibility of the Magnets coming Loose and flying off, or accidentally hitting the Monitor screen with that contraption...
BTW, I've used a Hand-held 110V Audio/Video Bulk Tape Eraser to Degauss TV/Monitor CRTs... (with the proper technique, it actually does the job quite well.)
-Tursiops_G.
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If You're Unsure, "RTFM"... If You're SURE, "RTFM" Anyway. |
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91439306
15,000 Watts of Bass Power
join:2002-10-16
New Milford, CT
| reply to signmeuptoo
Your monitor got magnetized not because of a lack of proper grounding, but because there was a strong electromagnetic impulse very close to the monitor.
I was called in to a radio station where this same thing happened. I used a bulk tape erasor from the editing studio to degauss the monitor and it was fine after that. |
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signmeuptoo
Folding and Crunching Not just Breakfast
Premium
join:2001-11-22
LOSTinSpace
clubs:
·Future Nine Corpor..
·AT&T Southeast
| Wow! That's why? We **DO** get INCREDIBLE lightning here, really intense stuff and a ton of it regularly, especially with the power plant right nearby, but dag blast it, when it happened, the bolt was very far away, you could hardly hear it...
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Let's be nice to each other, k? Life's too short. |
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TheAnalyzer
join:2006-01-20
| reply to signmeuptoo
Hello signmeuptoo, 
If there is lightning, I would unplug the machine from the mains and other connections such as network connections.
Delicate electronic components inside the machine could be damaged from lightning.
Even with a very good surge protector/suppressor or UPS,
a direct or nearby lightning strike can destroy a system.
Nothing can protect from lightning strike.
just my 2c.
regards,
TA
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quod erat demonstrandum |
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GunnarDanne
join:2002-12-02
Crown City, OH | reply to Tursiops_G
From the site...
"I would not recommend taping the magnets to a drill bit. The odd colors are gone but I now have a 3/16" hole in my monitor. Will the magnets fix this too?" |
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signmeuptoo
Folding and Crunching Not just Breakfast
Premium
join:2001-11-22
LOSTinSpace
clubs: | Yeah, that one is funny. I sure hope it isn't true, if the person tried to operate it the shock value and electric radiation from the egun, heh, well...
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Let's be nice to each other, k? Life's too short. |
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maxey13
Premium
join:2001-06-02
Anderson, IN
·Insight Communicat..
| reply to signmeuptoo
Maybe we have soft ground here in Indiana. I have put alot of them in by digging a very small hole. Just enough to pool some water. Let the hose run in it while pushing on the ground rod and then pulling it up a little. Each time it will go in a little father. Some go in without a hammer. Just keep the water going and push pull..
Dennis |
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