Do you ever turn your power conditioner(s) off?

[AD Chaos]

Hello everyone,

I currently use two Furman units to connect my things: [ame="http://www.amazon.com/Furman-Power-Factor-R-Conditioner/dp/B0009GCWZG/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=musical-instruments&qid=1226910587&sr=8-2"]this[/ame] as the main one, and an M-80x, as a spare.

I have my CPU tower away from where I work (so I don't get any noise from fans and whatnot) and keep it sorta locked inside a closet, so, instead of turning my PC off, I just put it in Sleep mode when I'm done with stuff.
For this to work, I basically have to leave the Furman unit turned on at ALL times (so I won't have to physically press the on/off button on the tower each time).

I've been doing this for months (or years, actually) but for quite some time I've been wondering if the unit could end up having a shorter lifespan -or even some kind performance hindrance- over the long run, as a result from it. I still want to turn off (and even disconnect) everything, especially during storm/rainy seasons.

Do you guys leave your power conditioners on all the time as well?
I'm planning to buy and install a remote control soon, so I'm able to turn the tower on and off, anyway, but I thought I ask nonetheless



Thanks much for your opinions!

 

[GRStudios]

I have mine on all the time.

 

[AudioGeekZine]

Always on.
Computer always on.

 

[amarshism]

Whole room wired ultimately to one conditioner. Turn that off everyting goes off. Handy when you wanna get the fuck out in a hurry.

 

[AD Chaos]

I have mine on all the time.

Always on.
Computer always on.

Even if the machine itself ends up going strong and lasting in good working order for years on end, wouldn't the led bulbs and parts like that potentially last a shorter time?
Or are all the components in these kind of devices specifically designed to function non-stop, for years on end?

I've always wondered about that..

 

[AudioGeekZine]

How many years do people actually keep computers for? I don't expect to get much more than 3 years out of a computer. My current iMac looks like it will exceed that. Usually I feel like I need a more powerful computer by 3 years or it's constantly crashing.

It's not running at 100% processing power all day, every day so there's little risk of overheating. LEDs can last for 10 years, but they'll be dimmer than new. Hard drives and RAM have shorter lifespans but are easy to replace by the user at minimal cost. I would say everything is designed to function non-stop for 3 or more years. It would be pretty shitty if they engineered them to die before then.

It can be argued that turning the devices on an off creates more wear & tear on parts.

I tested electricity savings shutting all my gear off overnight for 2 months, about $4. Not worth the effort.

 

[bryan_kilco]

So you guys just let computers and gear running nonstop, 24/7? That'd just make me nervous and I'd probably lay in bed at night worrying about it.

 

[Sloan]

If I expect to be here, I'll keep everything on. I have always believed most electrical failures happen when either turning off or on, but that's just my experience.

 

[AD Chaos]

How many years do people actually keep computers for? I don't expect to get much more than 3 years out of a computer. My current iMac looks like it will exceed that. Usually I feel like I need a more powerful computer by 3 years or it's constantly crashing.

It's not running at 100% processing power all day, every day so there's little risk of overheating. LEDs can last for 10 years, but they'll be dimmer than new. Hard drives and RAM have shorter lifespans but are easy to replace by the user at minimal cost. I would say everything is designed to function non-stop for 3 or more years. It would be pretty shitty if they engineered them to die before then.

It can be argued that turning the devices on an off creates more wear & tear on parts.

I tested electricity savings shutting all my gear off overnight for 2 months, about $4. Not worth the effort.

Well I use computer parts for WAY longer, I'm pretty sure at least one or two of the hard drives I'm using right now should be about 10 or more years. Those haven't taken any heavier workload (audio) for quite a while, though.

I always put the computer on sleep mode. Oddly enough, if I turn the computer and Windows (whatever the version) on and off instead, bugs are usually much more likely to happen (slower start ups even with a clean registry, BIOS screw-ups, error messages, even BSODs). Always wondered if that only happens to me..

I'm always guilty about spending more electricity though even as I'm aware a hibernating PC shouldn't consume much energy, anyway.