Thread: Will a cut off switch prevent water frying a computer??

if you cut the power, all the power to both units and they got wet the circuits wouldn't short the system out. You would then have to not only dry them out but also make sure they were clean before powering them back up. There might be some gunk that gets up in the fans and there could be stuff in the water that could cause some corrosion that you would have to think about. Then there is the battery that keeps the time up to date and all that you have to make sure to disconnect. Then make sure all the caps in the electronics have had time to totally discharge.
If it came down to water hitting it and you had the power completely shut off it could survive but I am not sure I would recommend it. The clean up after getting wet, in some sort of river or puddle, would be a huge pain. That and I am not sure the hard drive would be able to handle it. I doubt the spindle bearings were designed to handle getting wet.

+1 for some kind of waterproof case. maybe have a fan that bring in air from center of vehicle..

Hmmmm... seems to be getting a bit technical for me.

Im not up to moving the instal around as it is allready inplace... im thinking maybe a plastic container open on the top at least 100-150mm tall. i can put it all in that.

i figure if i have more than 150mm of water in the car i have bigger problems than frying my amp

Overhead console built above the cargo bay put the PC in there, and the amps.

scratch that, you have a ute.

I have been water cooling computers for quite a few years now and can say that PURE water will not damage a computer. It is the impurities that allow water to conduct electricity.

Unfortunately, even pure water will be contaminated by contacting a computer system fairly quickly.

The kind of water you are likely to find in a 4x4 when off-roading....
Yeah, another solution would be best.

The waterproof container with an open top is a good idea, and so is disconnecting the power anytime water seems possible.

My suggestion would be to find a way to minimize ANY possibility of water getting to the electronics though:
even if there is NO power to the system when it gets flooded, IF it does you will need to remove everything and give the electronic components an "alcohol bath."

Motherboard, memory, and expansion cards... basically any component that has gotten wet, with special care taken on power supplies (capacitors can hold voltage for quite a while!) and hard drives.

Disassembling the system after removing it from the truck and then cleaning everything and putting it back together is likely to be quite a lot of work.

How about this if you can't find another location for the system:

The waterproof container with a removable lid- I'm thinking BIG tupperware here...
Seal any and all wiring through the side of the case as high as possible but under the lid. Silicone (RTV) may be your friend for this. Leave the lid and sealing surface solid so it keeps water out.

You'll want to remove power before closing it up so that it doesn't overheat, but that should minimize the chances of having to rebuild the thing every time you go four-wheeling.

Hey, there is a way to make your computer more water resistant/proof to any water. I have a remote control scale jeep that I built and ALL my electronics on it are submergeable this includes the motor, the Electronic Speed Controller, the receiver, the External BEC, the servo to control the steering, the servo for the winch, and a servo to turn the winch servo on/off and the Lipo battery that puts out 13V at full charge. Smother a layer of dielectric grease on everything. This is a non conductive grease and it will keep the water from touching your electronics. Here is a picture showing the back end of my RC in the water. (Most of my electronics are in the back there and when I got out of that spot I had a pool of water in there with my electronics under the water line)

I dont have any good pictures of it actually submerged because I'm usually the only one with a camera there, but the whole thing has been completely under water. Here is a picture of another person's RC that uses dielectric grease as well.

People also use this grease all the time in there RC boats.

One problem you MIGHT have with this though is heat.....I dont know how well this will transfer heat in a computer format :/. I do know that with my tiny electronic stuff it has helped bring the heat down a lot. My electronic speed controller used to run really hot (it would burn you if you touched it) now it runs a little warm (like 110 degree's)

A down side will be that dirt will stick to the grease......

I wont take any responsibility if this doesnt work for you, I'm just throwing an idea out there that is being used in a different type of setup with success.