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It seems that the fan on the power supply has gotten noisier. I'm wondering if I need to replace the power supply or if I can just replace the fan. If I replace the power supply do I need to make sure the new one is compatable with my system or will any one work?
E. Klassen
You can replace the fan, but you have to be very careful, those things store something like 50000V, so its probably not a good idea. As for compatibility, if the system is a brand name machine ie. HP, Dell etc. etc., ou have to check if the machine uses a proprietary power supply. The other thing to consider is whether you need an AT or ATX power supply.
Adz
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Its probably a standard 80mm fan. You can get one from bestbyte.net for a couple bucks. Here's how to replace it.
http://www.bleedinedge.com/guides/psu_fan_r2/psu_fan_r2.html
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LOL "50,000 Volts"
Computer power suppley have the same voltage as a car battery, which is 12V, but the input Voltage is around 200V.
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Actually, its the capacitors inside, do you even know what a capacitor is? Shows how much you know.
Adz
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I read it in a magazine a while back, didn't think anything more about it, although it was a while ago, hell it was probably even an Amiga PSU. Anyway I jumped on the web and went hunting for a PSU schematic. Going by the schematics I have found, one wrongly placed hand could quite easily send a few hundred volts streaming through your body. So yes I, probably mis-quoted some figures, but regardless of whether the capacitors store 50Kv or 300v, I still think its a dangerous for novices to tinker with the inner workings of a PSU.
Adz
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its not the voltage thats the problem with capacitors its the current that is discharged into your body that will stop your heart. The capacitors in the power supply are going to be 12V, 5V and 3... just like the 3 different voltage lines coming out of it into the computer. And in any case they will not be more
than the input voltage from your line. ie 120volts for north america. But if you actually look in a power supply the first think that happens is it gets stepped through a transformer to the correct voltages for the computer. So at most 12volts.If you are worried about gettting fried. Unplug the computer. Disconnect the power supply and wait a few hours before doing anything. This will ensure that the capacitors are drained.
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Do not bet the farm on capacators discharging of their own accord.
The danger lies in the 120/240vac line voltage and there is a rectified dc voltage of ~360vdc present in most psu's that you don't want to encounter either.
Some experience with hi voltage and good working habits will usually help you get through a hard wired fan replacement, etc.
Common sense (don't touch bare electrical connections) and a general fear of getting smoked helps a lot too. Take time to read and understand this; all of it:
http://www.repairfaq.org/REPAIR/F_smpsfaq.html#SMPSFAQ_014
Be safe...this stuff can ruin your day.
Skip
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If the "50,000" refers to the size of the filter capacitor of the power supply, expressed in units of microfarads (ufd), it represents no danger to the user since the voltages involved are so low. The size of the capacitor determines the amount of electrical charge that it will hold at a given voltage.
One should exercise moderate caution on the remote chance that the capacitor is not automatically discharged when AC power is removed. Then, it is remotely possible that a conductor of the power supply output connector, if when unplugged from the motherboard, could contact a portion of the the computer that might be damaged by the residual voltage on that conductor. It is all very unlikely, but it happened to me once. Anyway, there is no danger to the user.It would be bestif people who gave advice were more careful about giving advice in areas where they seem to have little or no knowledge.
People who ask for help on this site need reliable advice on which they can depend. It would be good if people who gave advice were more careful about giving advice in areas where they seem to have little or no knowledge.Good luck on your project.
vlevadi@yahoo.com
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if you are not covered in water or sweat electrical warnings rarely apply to you unless you are otherwise stupid.
Which is why I never give disclaimers. The disclaimer is a current phenomenon which exemplifies how much time we waste on the unthinking.
"Think"
T.J. Watson, 1938, IBM founder
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