Did I damage my PC?

[123popo]

Hey,

I built a PC yesterday and I'm scared that I might have messed up.

While I was installing my NH-U12P Socket 1366 heatsink the manual said to remember to remove the protection cover on the bottom of the heatsink. No matter how much I checked I couldn't see any protection film or cover. It just felt like metal to me. Are these protection covers easily visible?

Also, I sort of dropped my heatsink on the ground and got a few corners of the heatsink bent, that shouldn't be too much of a problem right?

HOWEVER, what I'm most worried about is my motherboard. It's a UD4P and while I was installing it into my CM 690 case, I realized some of the spacers are pretty terrible, a couple of the M3 screws would go right through the damn spacer and the whole mobo ended up being too loose, I replaced these with the 6-32 screws and they seemed to be a much better fit. Would this cause damage in the future on my mobo?

That's not all of it though, while I was unscrewing the M3 screws off to remove my mobo some of the spacers ended being too tight and got attached to the M3 screws. Everytime I tried to unscrew them off it made a distinct popping sound. I was finally able to pull the entire mobo off and had to remove the spacers and screws with a pair of pliers to hold them down. When I finally removed them, areas around two of the motherboard screw holes ended up pretty scratched up. The green layer seemed to be torn off and I could see some metal. The area that is scratched up is only the area covered by the screws and spacers, but could this possibly damage my mobo as a whole?

That's about it. I'm pretty paranoid about this whole thing as you can see, lol, but I hope my PC will be fine. I have yet to boot it up since my PSU is suppose to arrive today.

 

[MagnusTheBrewer]

1. Lay off the caffeine and sugar
2. Take a deep breathe or two.
3. The protection "cover" on the heatsink is usually a clear piece of plastic and is easily seen.
4. A few bent radiator fins on the heatsink shouldn't make a difference, see #1
5. On many cases, it's easy to cross thread the MB stand off screws so, take your time and use the recommended screws.
6. SLOW DOWN. Why are you installing the MB into the case before you even try to boot?
7. Welcome to the forums. I know it's hard to resist playing with new 'shiny toys' as soon as you get your paws on them but, being methodical and cautious will save you a lot of headaches and money.

 

[MTDEW]

Gather the motherboard standoffs and screws and screw the screws into them by hand to find which screws match before installing the standoffs in the case.

Then once youre sure you have the right matching screws, install the standoffs in the case finger tight, then use your pliers to tighten them another quarter turn to secure them so they dont unscrew themselves the next time you remove the motherboard.

As said above, the plastic cover is easily noticable, its usually there to cover the factory applied thermal paste.
So if you dont see it, youre most likely ok.
Just be sure to use some form of thermal paste between the cpu and heatsink if none is present.

Take your time and follow the manual that came with your motherboard when connecting your case wiring to it.

 

[123popo]

Thanks for the response guys, brought me some ease.

I tend to be a pretty paranoid about these things and always seem to screw up a bit. I should've taken it more slowly like you said.

I did use the right screws though I think, some of the standoffs I probably didn't tighten enough so that's why I crossthreaded one or two, but, some of the standoffs seems looser than others. I could've just pushed the screws into the standoff with almost no force on a couple of the standoffs.

If I scratched some of the PCB layer around the screw holes though, would that possibly cause some damage though? There don't seem to be any tracers nearby them fortunately.

 

[MTDEW]

Originally posted by: 123popo
Thanks for the response guys, brought me some ease.

I tend to be a pretty paranoid about these things and always seem to screw up a bit. I should've taken it more slowly like you said.

I did use the right screws though I think, some of the standoffs I probably didn't tighten enough so that's why I crossthreaded one or two, but, some of the standoffs seems looser than others. I could've just pushed the screws into the standoff with almost no force on a couple of the standoffs.

If I scratched some of the PCB layer around the screw holes though, would that possibly cause some damage though? There don't seem to be any tracers nearby them fortunately.

it is possible there is damage to the motherboard since its scratched badly as you described.
You honestly wont know until you've got it up and running and have tried it.
And theres no way for us to take an educated guess without being able to see. (obviously)

A lot of people setup their new motherboards on a piece of cardboard outside the case before installing it completely.

I personally dont do it that way unless im troubleshooting a build that doesnt work.

Also, you shouldnt be able to just push the screws into the standoffs without "screwing" into the threads, there just shouldnt be that much "play" using the correct matching screws.

As i said , try and match them by hand first, and usually you have a few extra, so try to weed out any of the ones that have been stripped or cross threaded if you can and dont use them.

 

[MTDEW]

And dont be afraid of it, just be careful and work slowly since its your first time.
And if you get the hard drive and power light plugs on the motherboard pins backwards the first time, dont beat yourself up over it. (they wont work if backwards)
Ive been building pc's for almost 20yrs and i still get them backwards half the time and its only a 50/50 chance...LOL

Now the power and restart headers that connect to the case can go on either way, it doesnt matter.

After you get your first build up and running, you'll wonder why you were ever afraid to do it in the first place.
It really is easy.


Also, keep any extra screws / standoffs etc..etc in a box/bag / coffee can, or whatever... you have left over, they always come in handy on later builds or when working on other pcs.