Old HDD issue

[HelloImBob]

recently I cleaned out a couple of places that I had stored old computer hardware and I came across 2 pretty old HDDs, a 6gb and a 8gb that I used awhile back, when I put them away Im almost positive they worked, Id say its been probably about 2 years since they have been used last...anyways I put them into an external case to see what I had on them and it seems almost like the HDD is completely frozen, the thing doesnt spin at all and I cant even be sure that its getting power correctly or anything, I know the external case works because I still have another HDD I use in it on a weekly basis and I tested it after neither of the old HDDs worked

so my question is, does anybody know if HDDs just kinda freeze up after too long of not being used or something and if there is any way to get it running again, Im pretty sure I have some important stuff I would really love to get back and some of the stuff is old conversations and pictures of old friends....stuff I cant just find online

 

[Dante_Caligari]

If they aren't spinning or making any noise, which is typical with old drives, they are probably defective. Having them sitting there for a long time could have exposed them to numerous things that could have killed them.

If the data on them is really important, you could sent them in to a company like OnTrack, but Data Recovery is very, very expensive. Tough luck.

 

[HelloImBob]

hmm alright thanks, I was kinda afraid of that, they just sat inside a wooden dresser in my room for awhile....and yea its not worth sending in....looks like I might have to take a couple computer tips my old computer instructor gave me about getting data off old drives, kinda a shame tho cuz the drive is useless afterwards

anyways thanks again for help and the fast reply

 

[Dante_Caligari]

Were they in anti-static bags? Were there any other objects in with them?
The most common reason for hard drive failure is shock, and another thing that can kill them is static electricity. If they were being jostled around in the dresser, that could have wrecked them, or if there was clothing in the dresser, static electricity could have fried them.

I am just trying to find the source of the problem so that it doesn't happen again in the future.

 

[HelloImBob]

I hadnt put them in anti-static bags, and it wasnt opened very often, I made sure to keep it pretty much static free, no clothes or any other kind of bags or anything to make static, the odd thing is they were stored in seperate areas and both have the same problem.

Ive never come across anything like it before, I guess I should try putting together the motherboard and all the cards together and see if they work, cuz that will tell me if it was static or not since they would be more vulnerable than a HDD