Will extrme cold damage my components?

UPS/FedEx Delivers on Saturday??? When did this happen?

-Wolf queries

Edit: I'm not sure what their policy is (either UPS or FedEx), but I would guess, if the dollar value exceeds a certain limit, they require a signature from you in order to deliver it. If you're unable to provide one, they keep it at a central location until the next delivery attempt or until you call and schedule a pick-up time (where you go there to get your items).

I've recieved packages from UPS on Saturdays. But maybe they don't and I'm mixing things up, thats happened before.

I would get the tracking number from Newegg and then go to UPS' web site to track your shipment. They should list an expected delivery date. If it is, on Saturday, you should probably contact them in advance and ask them to hold it until you can pick it up.

-Wolf sends

They aren’t going to leave it on your step...

In Canada they will take the parcel back to the post office, leave you a message to pick it up at a later date.

I agree with Wolf, it's best to talk to UPS and reschedule, rather than take a chance. The cold can do damage. Also, when you bring the parts in from the cold, let them sit and warm up for a while, to avoid condensation.

While I agree you should delay the delivery if possible - if the worst comes to the worst, do not 'use' the kit in any way still cold (i.e. power up a very cold bit of kit) - the rapid warming that would then happen would be very bad!!! If the kit is left completely dry and has enough time to warm up slowly, even freezing, the kit would probably not be damaged…

I have had plenty of Newegg/Zipzoomfly/Buy.com packages left in front of my door, even when I asked them not to. They do not require signature confirmation usually, and if some schmuck at some point in time told the FEDEX/UPS guy it was OK to drop off they will do it forever. Thankfully, I never had anything stolen.

I now live in Canada, and you are right, they are different about the dropping stuff off at your step.

I've had both Fed X and UPS drop stuff at my front door when I'm not at home. Strange thing coming home and finding over a thousand dollars worth of electronics just sitting there, begging to be stolen. I've sometimes wondered what would happen if I called up Newegg and asked where everything was? No signiture, nothing to prove I received it. I am glad that I live in a very low crime area.

As for the cold, that shouldn't hurt anything by itself. But if it rains, snows, or gets frost on it, there might be a problem. If the packages are dry, as someone else wrote, just let them warm up before opening anything and they should be ok.

If they did that to me, I would bring it all in, call them a week later and ask when my delivery is due to arrive.

But hey… I got no morals.

Aside from the obvious issue of them leaving your gear out to be jacked by some hood…

I don’t think the cold itself can damage the gear, but condensation can for sure… I have a HDD in my car stereo and the cold does not effect that, it just doesn’t start up right away with the car, it warms up first. (Very annoying) and its CRAZY cold here, like -30c last week multiple times, -23c right now.

Sounds to me like being a Fed X or UPS driver is the best Job ever... They could easily keep the items for themselves, just dont do it too often.

COLD IS GOOD.
as far as condensation, i would not worry about it as long as you have good airflow.
i have heard of putting silicone sealer on the mobo to protect it, but that was for like liquid nitrogen and things like that.
you will have no problem.

But if there were many complaints about a particular driver loosing stuff, he'd be lucky to keep his job. More likely the police would be searching his house and bank accounts for the missing property or proceeds from that property. Here in Nevada, getting caught doing something like that means you get friendly with your new roomate, Bubba, at the local state prison.

 
You goofed on the reading comprehension there buddy.  


If the components ARE left out in the cold, try to bring them up to room temp. SLOWLY. This will help prevent moisture from condensing.

If you are afraid you brought it up to temp to quick, let the components sit for a good 48 hours.

I learned this info while reading the manual of my digital SLR camera, and Im sure it applies to any sensitive electronics.

Some LCD devices can freeze. I had that happen to me once with a 2-way pager.

Everything else, just let it warm up in your house for half a day first. Most devices have two temperature ranges: "storage", and "operating". Operating for computing devices is usually like 0C to 50C or something like that. Storage usually goes much colder and a bit hotter. Problem is, the electronic components change electrical properties as temperature changes, and in some cases the difference can be enough to cause malfunctions.

Nah, there is this guy with a video camera that follows drivers around just to keep up with such activity.

No, I am not a member of the tinfoil beanie brigade. UPS really does follow their employees around with a video camera. Not every driver, not every day, but often enough to keep the drivers honest. Some of the drivers are smart enough to figure out the vehicle, while other drivers can't find their butts with both hands tied behind their backs.

Oh, BTW, the videographer is usually watching the packages and the delivery location..... the customers that claim all of the boxes of high value goods are never at their front door.

I would just let them warm up for a few hours. The cold will not hurt your components, but the condesation will. Take your parts, open them up, take precautions for static electricity, set them on a table, bed, desk, plan out your build while they warm up =] No way to say how long, at least an hour, but you'll have to be the judge of that.

I've had UPS employees throw RAM kits at me, saying "Here, it's light."

Sorry I didn't respond faster but it turns out the parts came today! I was in mid response and about to call UPS when I hear the truck driving off. They just left the stuff in my garage.

I knew newegg had great shipping but they got an entire pc worth of parts shipped in only 2 days! Thanks for the replies in the future Ill avoid leaving components outside for too long.

Oh How I miss living up north in Michigan. Down here in Texas you're lucky if UPS/FedEx deliver on the day it's supposed to arrive. I've had hardware sit in one of their local shipping hubs for 2 days because it wasn't scheduled to be delivered till X day. The aggrivating part of that is those hubs are only about 25miles away from me. I've even tried to have them redirect to the local offices in the same town so I could just drive and pick it up, and they'll give me some story that they can't open up the crates the package is in until it's set to be delivered, which is Total BS. Where as when I lived in Michigan, you'd get things 2 or 3 days early from newegg like you did. Otherwise you wouldn't of had to worry about saturday or sunday delivery. It states on the site when you complete an order that they will not schedule a weekend delivery at all.