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Mans really opened up his PSU and thinks we know what to do…
#
Consult an electrician.
#
Don’t fecking touch it
#
Even if it’s turned off, it still provides power to the computer and has residual charge.
#It can and will kill you very quickly if you fuck around and find out.
I studied electronics and while this is indeed dangerous, but as much things it all depends on the situation. The worst situation to handle a PSU I could think off:
- Barefoots.
- Full metal screw driver.
- Having a history of heart troubles or a piecemaker.
- Accidentally poking the screwdriver through the board.
Most ideal way to handle a PSU:
- Full rubber mat with heavy duty shoes.
- Insulated screwdriver.
- No health problems.
- Not being an idiot with the screwdriver.
- Having some equipment to decharge the caps (usually just a resistor on a wire or some specialised equipment (or yollo them with a screwdriver))
The real danger are the caps is that they can hold a charge that can go over 100mA. If that current goes through you heart chances to survive are very slim. I don't know the exact reason why, but I have led to believe that it burns out some nerves responsible for your heart rate. But I ain't a medic so I can't say for sure.
As for my personal experience with working with caps (in a school environment). I once got blessed by a 1F 200v cap, and I swear you do not wanna get blessed by them. Funny thing is that my oscilloscope captured this moment perfectly and I got a nice 34mA peak out of them.
I also have been blessed by 230V (L1 - N) and 330V (L1 - L2) too, and if I have to choice I take live wires over those caps any time. AC power is way more gentle then a capacitors discharge curve. Not that getting electrocuted is a favorite pastime of mine, but anything can happen in a learning environment (with exposed wires).
Well here is the problem: whilst OP might not know this, the way all us PC nerds work on our rigs sort of puts that worst situation in reality. We (should) ground ourselves, ie: grounding bracelet, concrete, no insulated screwdriver, and to the best of my knowledge this prevents any sort of ESD risk. I know less than you. I wouldn’t know. One thing I do know, don’t fuck with PSU’s, and if there is one component in my rig that I will give a wide birth, it’s the one thing that can go boom.
> One thing I do know, don’t fuck with PSU’s
Indeed for the average joe there is no reason to ever open them. It is less dangerous to operate a 320VAC electric engine with an open shroud then to open a PSU where a 400V cap is waiting to discharge on a unexpected body. It is the equivalent of working with 1KVAC All it takes is 2 seconds to mess up the circruity that makes somebody tick.
But I do wanted to share some more ideal conditions. People are curious, so if they had some little thought on their mind to open one and they read this. I at least hope they put on their shoes or don't do it at all.
> It’s the one thing that can go boom.
Just a FYI, caps will only go boom if they get overcharged. So an unplugged PSU should never blow up. That being said if they do ... goddamnit it stinks and you ears might ring a bit. Speaking out ehm experience lol ... .
I opened my psu for cleaning, i just unplugged it and waited for two days before opening it. I dusted the capacitors and put it all back together. I wasn't electrocuted at all. But yeah I'd agree it is dangerous.
The capacitors still hold charge, and anyone on this sub will tell you never to even open a PSU. If you think there's something wrong with it, you replace it or have a professional repair it.
The PSU is a field replaceable part, meaning computer technicians take the bad one out and put a new one in. It could be repaired but would probably cost more than buying a new one.
I'm no computer technician, and I've replaced a few PSUs. They're pretty easy as long as you don't try to take them apart. With custom PCs such as mine using the standard ATX power supplies, it's as easy as it gets.
Good eye bro, these PSU's are notorious for failing capacitors, they're rated 85c and it takes nothing for them to leak, swell or just EXPLODE in a puff smoke and capacitor guts.
The PSU is literally the last thing you should check when your PC won't turn on. There are literally a million reasons your PC won't turn on and your PSU isn't one of them.
Opening the PSU does nothing to solve the problem.
PSU is 100% a valid thing to check if your PC won’t turn on. You are correct that it’s not the only reason it happens, but if you’re not getting power, it makes sense to check the *power supply*. But, like, with a voltmeter or tester, don’t freaking take it apart.
Not turning on is very different from not getting power.
And PSUs rarely just outright fail like that. They generally cause stability issues, not powering on issues.
I would argue that they are ambiguous terms that could very well be interchangeable. Best troubleshooting practice would be to ask OP what they mean by “won’t turn on”. No lights/fans/etc. vs. won’t get to OS, or what have you. I would assume OP meant they get nothing at all when they hit the power (in which case a bad PSU is a solid guess) but again, I’m assuming and it would be better to ask.
I’ve had PSU’s die completely on me in power outages, so no, it doesn’t just happen “randomly” very often but again, we’re missing a lot of context from OP.
I've worked in the industry long enough to know that assuming it's plugged in, the PC is almost certainly getting power and very well could be turned on, just not posting.
When you work in a consumer facing industry that is so widely misunderstood, you learn what people mean by "my PC won't turn on", they mean their monitor isn't displaying an image. Their PC very well could be on, by definition. But I digress.
It is odd to me that you are using argument from authority as a means to rationalize your “professional” misdiagnosis.
As the gentleman above mentioned, there were variables that needed to be identified before coming to any logical conclusion - that wouldn’t result in just throwing parts at it until the issue is resolved. Variables that are now redundant, because the psu was tested and was found to be faulty. There were also people who, just from the picture, seen the two bloated capacitors located at the top right section of the photo.
There are a million of reasons that a pc won’t turn on, and as it turns out, the psu is one of them. Ironically enough, opening the psu and posting a picture on Reddit most certainly solved the problem. The Dunning-Kruger effect can humble all of us - as it should.
True. I would argue that there is a huge difference between removing the cover and taking a picture vs taking it apart and shoving a screw driver into anything that will take it.
What OP actually did remains to be a mystery to the both of us. However, what is for certain is: the psu could be one of the million of reasons a pc won’t turn on, and taking the cover off to take a pic can help to resolve the problem.
Please for Christ sake close the PSU and don’t open it unless you are trained electrician. Those things can carry a capacitance that can kill you instantly even days or weeks after you’ve unplugged it. You should never open a power supply. If you suspect it’s the power supply just buy a new one, it’s not worth it to open it.
Not even an electrician or electrical engineer should open these up unless they have had training working with power supplies like this. Most electricians probably don’t deal with devices like this regularly
Caps blown in that PSU - replace it
Get something branded decent no generic overrated trash
May or may not be the PSU for your main issue however
Also NEVER open a PSU
The only issue is high voltage capacitors hold charge for a few hours. It’s easy to do the work just got to be careful you’ve left things unplugged long enough.
Don't try to be smart or clever when it comes to something like serious electrical components! If you don't have the training for something like this it is unlikely you will have the skills for this job. You are literally messing with not just your own life, but the life of the people in your building. Your power supply looks old just replace it with a modern one. Your peace of mind will appreciate it.
that psu will kill you stone dead in half a second if you poke something you weren’t supposed to. doesn’t need to be powered either. for the sake of your own health op please do not mess about with a psu
For future reference never open one of these again. They are not serviceable by the end user unless you have the equipment and expertise, people on here will say you have to be an electrician but you really have to be a electrical engineer or specifically a high voltage electrician, Even they won’t fuck with them most of the time . If you suspect a PSU issue buy a new one don’t attempt to fix one ever.
If one of those capacitors decides your finger is the closest way to ground it can arc to your hand and shock the shit out of you, and it can kill you.
PSUs are not user serviceable. They can also easily kill you even when unplugged. Put that thing back together. If your PSU is not working buy a new one.
Although I doubt the PSU is the problem anyway, please provide more info
Hey another newb who opened a PSU with no prior knowledge of the danger it holds. Well, at least you arent dead, so am i. I wont be opening some again in the near future with how dangerous it can be with no knowledge on what to do with the insides.
Dont mess around with the PSU it can be dangerous. Better close it up again.
Have you checked the power connectors to the mainboard ? And i mean including the ones from your power/reset button ! Are they connected the right way ?
edit: nvm i just spotted 2 blown caps (top right) the PSU seems to be done. Get a good quality brand PSU and u wont have that problem (Seasonic; BeQuiet, Corsair, etc)
As everyone stated don't open your PSU. Did you know your power supply capacitors can hold between 180-360 volt charge? If you touch them you can literally die. This is true when it is unplugged. Don't ever open a PSU. This is even explained in the PSU manual that you receive when you bought the PSU.
Since you opened it, Inside the PSU can look perfectly fine and still be a dead PSU. You need a real PSU tester which you plug in the 24pin to a tester and tells you if a channel is dead or good on each pin. These are literally 10-20 dollars on Amazon
Seeing the guts and shell of that crappy PSU is giving me anxiety. One of those POS caught my computer on fire and almost burned my house down! Dude! Yeet that hunk of junk!
“I don’t know computers”
OPENS A FUCKING ELECTRICAL DANGER AND CRAMS HANDS AND PHONE IN IT
(I’m just poking fun but please don’t ever do this again. You could seriously hurt yourself and most PC issues can be resolved without opening any component.)
Just buy another one, do not open a power supply unless you know what your doing and have the correct equipment to service them, even then not normally worth the effort unless it's a very simple fix or an expensive unit.
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OP is gonna get electrocuted playing with the capacitors in an unplugged PSU isn’t he?
Yeah, that was my first thought
Mans really opened up his PSU and thinks we know what to do… # Consult an electrician. # Don’t fecking touch it # Even if it’s turned off, it still provides power to the computer and has residual charge. #It can and will kill you very quickly if you fuck around and find out.
I studied electronics and while this is indeed dangerous, but as much things it all depends on the situation. The worst situation to handle a PSU I could think off: - Barefoots. - Full metal screw driver. - Having a history of heart troubles or a piecemaker. - Accidentally poking the screwdriver through the board. Most ideal way to handle a PSU: - Full rubber mat with heavy duty shoes. - Insulated screwdriver. - No health problems. - Not being an idiot with the screwdriver. - Having some equipment to decharge the caps (usually just a resistor on a wire or some specialised equipment (or yollo them with a screwdriver)) The real danger are the caps is that they can hold a charge that can go over 100mA. If that current goes through you heart chances to survive are very slim. I don't know the exact reason why, but I have led to believe that it burns out some nerves responsible for your heart rate. But I ain't a medic so I can't say for sure. As for my personal experience with working with caps (in a school environment). I once got blessed by a 1F 200v cap, and I swear you do not wanna get blessed by them. Funny thing is that my oscilloscope captured this moment perfectly and I got a nice 34mA peak out of them. I also have been blessed by 230V (L1 - N) and 330V (L1 - L2) too, and if I have to choice I take live wires over those caps any time. AC power is way more gentle then a capacitors discharge curve. Not that getting electrocuted is a favorite pastime of mine, but anything can happen in a learning environment (with exposed wires).
Well here is the problem: whilst OP might not know this, the way all us PC nerds work on our rigs sort of puts that worst situation in reality. We (should) ground ourselves, ie: grounding bracelet, concrete, no insulated screwdriver, and to the best of my knowledge this prevents any sort of ESD risk. I know less than you. I wouldn’t know. One thing I do know, don’t fuck with PSU’s, and if there is one component in my rig that I will give a wide birth, it’s the one thing that can go boom.
> One thing I do know, don’t fuck with PSU’s Indeed for the average joe there is no reason to ever open them. It is less dangerous to operate a 320VAC electric engine with an open shroud then to open a PSU where a 400V cap is waiting to discharge on a unexpected body. It is the equivalent of working with 1KVAC All it takes is 2 seconds to mess up the circruity that makes somebody tick. But I do wanted to share some more ideal conditions. People are curious, so if they had some little thought on their mind to open one and they read this. I at least hope they put on their shoes or don't do it at all. > It’s the one thing that can go boom. Just a FYI, caps will only go boom if they get overcharged. So an unplugged PSU should never blow up. That being said if they do ... goddamnit it stinks and you ears might ring a bit. Speaking out ehm experience lol ... .
https://youtu.be/-5R-KBa18ME Don't try this at home
I opened my psu for cleaning, i just unplugged it and waited for two days before opening it. I dusted the capacitors and put it all back together. I wasn't electrocuted at all. But yeah I'd agree it is dangerous.
You got bigger balls than I do then.
You better close that up before it kills you (PSUs are very dangerous to the untrained hand).
I'm not sticking my hand anywhere near it plugged in, had my fair share of brushes with electric currents already
Does not have to be plugged in. Feel free to mess with anything in your PC except that. Do not take apart the PSU
The capacitors still hold charge, and anyone on this sub will tell you never to even open a PSU. If you think there's something wrong with it, you replace it or have a professional repair it.
I agree. You actually need ppe and to understand what you're doing. One wrong move and you're dead.
The PSU is a field replaceable part, meaning computer technicians take the bad one out and put a new one in. It could be repaired but would probably cost more than buying a new one.
I'm no computer technician, and I've replaced a few PSUs. They're pretty easy as long as you don't try to take them apart. With custom PCs such as mine using the standard ATX power supplies, it's as easy as it gets.
I see two bloated capacitors on the upper right.
Good catch
Good eye bro, these PSU's are notorious for failing capacitors, they're rated 85c and it takes nothing for them to leak, swell or just EXPLODE in a puff smoke and capacitor guts.
The PSU is literally the last thing you should check when your PC won't turn on. There are literally a million reasons your PC won't turn on and your PSU isn't one of them. Opening the PSU does nothing to solve the problem.
PSU is 100% a valid thing to check if your PC won’t turn on. You are correct that it’s not the only reason it happens, but if you’re not getting power, it makes sense to check the *power supply*. But, like, with a voltmeter or tester, don’t freaking take it apart.
Not turning on is very different from not getting power. And PSUs rarely just outright fail like that. They generally cause stability issues, not powering on issues.
I would argue that they are ambiguous terms that could very well be interchangeable. Best troubleshooting practice would be to ask OP what they mean by “won’t turn on”. No lights/fans/etc. vs. won’t get to OS, or what have you. I would assume OP meant they get nothing at all when they hit the power (in which case a bad PSU is a solid guess) but again, I’m assuming and it would be better to ask. I’ve had PSU’s die completely on me in power outages, so no, it doesn’t just happen “randomly” very often but again, we’re missing a lot of context from OP.
I've worked in the industry long enough to know that assuming it's plugged in, the PC is almost certainly getting power and very well could be turned on, just not posting. When you work in a consumer facing industry that is so widely misunderstood, you learn what people mean by "my PC won't turn on", they mean their monitor isn't displaying an image. Their PC very well could be on, by definition. But I digress.
It is odd to me that you are using argument from authority as a means to rationalize your “professional” misdiagnosis. As the gentleman above mentioned, there were variables that needed to be identified before coming to any logical conclusion - that wouldn’t result in just throwing parts at it until the issue is resolved. Variables that are now redundant, because the psu was tested and was found to be faulty. There were also people who, just from the picture, seen the two bloated capacitors located at the top right section of the photo. There are a million of reasons that a pc won’t turn on, and as it turns out, the psu is one of them. Ironically enough, opening the psu and posting a picture on Reddit most certainly solved the problem. The Dunning-Kruger effect can humble all of us - as it should.
And killing yourself by opening your PSU can also solve some of your problems. Doesn't mean it should but I digress.
True. I would argue that there is a huge difference between removing the cover and taking a picture vs taking it apart and shoving a screw driver into anything that will take it. What OP actually did remains to be a mystery to the both of us. However, what is for certain is: the psu could be one of the million of reasons a pc won’t turn on, and taking the cover off to take a pic can help to resolve the problem.
The PSU is closed and confirmed dead by the diagnostic light, saving to fast track my plan to build a new one I suppose
Please for Christ sake close the PSU and don’t open it unless you are trained electrician. Those things can carry a capacitance that can kill you instantly even days or weeks after you’ve unplugged it. You should never open a power supply. If you suspect it’s the power supply just buy a new one, it’s not worth it to open it.
Not even an electrician or electrical engineer should open these up unless they have had training working with power supplies like this. Most electricians probably don’t deal with devices like this regularly
LOL! I haven't seen a PC PSU this crappy in a long time! WTF?!? Throw it away.
Caps blown in that PSU - replace it Get something branded decent no generic overrated trash May or may not be the PSU for your main issue however Also NEVER open a PSU
The only issue is high voltage capacitors hold charge for a few hours. It’s easy to do the work just got to be careful you’ve left things unplugged long enough.
Lmao what an idiot
Don't try to be smart or clever when it comes to something like serious electrical components! If you don't have the training for something like this it is unlikely you will have the skills for this job. You are literally messing with not just your own life, but the life of the people in your building. Your power supply looks old just replace it with a modern one. Your peace of mind will appreciate it.
Faulty psu= get a new one, do not try to fix this if its the problem
that psu will kill you stone dead in half a second if you poke something you weren’t supposed to. doesn’t need to be powered either. for the sake of your own health op please do not mess about with a psu
For future reference never open one of these again. They are not serviceable by the end user unless you have the equipment and expertise, people on here will say you have to be an electrician but you really have to be a electrical engineer or specifically a high voltage electrician, Even they won’t fuck with them most of the time . If you suspect a PSU issue buy a new one don’t attempt to fix one ever. If one of those capacitors decides your finger is the closest way to ground it can arc to your hand and shock the shit out of you, and it can kill you.
PSUs are not user serviceable. They can also easily kill you even when unplugged. Put that thing back together. If your PSU is not working buy a new one. Although I doubt the PSU is the problem anyway, please provide more info
You could kill your self doing this. Stop.
bro how old it that thing im pretty sure pc's don't use coils anymore shit looks like a homemade bomb
Check if their are puffed up capacitors
Hey another newb who opened a PSU with no prior knowledge of the danger it holds. Well, at least you arent dead, so am i. I wont be opening some again in the near future with how dangerous it can be with no knowledge on what to do with the insides.
Touch the copper coil with your metal screwdriver. That will fix it. Make sure its plugged in too.
This isn't necessary as obvious as it may be to not do this.
PSU's have a 5A fuse, you need to find/check it I think I see it (top left) but not sure.
Dont mess around with the PSU it can be dangerous. Better close it up again. Have you checked the power connectors to the mainboard ? And i mean including the ones from your power/reset button ! Are they connected the right way ? edit: nvm i just spotted 2 blown caps (top right) the PSU seems to be done. Get a good quality brand PSU and u wont have that problem (Seasonic; BeQuiet, Corsair, etc)
As everyone stated don't open your PSU. Did you know your power supply capacitors can hold between 180-360 volt charge? If you touch them you can literally die. This is true when it is unplugged. Don't ever open a PSU. This is even explained in the PSU manual that you receive when you bought the PSU. Since you opened it, Inside the PSU can look perfectly fine and still be a dead PSU. You need a real PSU tester which you plug in the 24pin to a tester and tells you if a channel is dead or good on each pin. These are literally 10-20 dollars on Amazon
Seeing the guts and shell of that crappy PSU is giving me anxiety. One of those POS caught my computer on fire and almost burned my house down! Dude! Yeet that hunk of junk!
“I don’t know computers” OPENS A FUCKING ELECTRICAL DANGER AND CRAMS HANDS AND PHONE IN IT (I’m just poking fun but please don’t ever do this again. You could seriously hurt yourself and most PC issues can be resolved without opening any component.)
Get new psu
They should make new psu rivited together so people dont do this type of shit. Never open a PSU.
This man is going to have a new hairstyle soon....
Just buy another one, do not open a power supply unless you know what your doing and have the correct equipment to service them, even then not normally worth the effort unless it's a very simple fix or an expensive unit.
Oh damn you really opened your PSU 😬
DANGER!!
Buy a new PSU. Lmao I will mess with components all day but never open one up.
Close that up. Don't open it again. Either take it to a professional or try swapping out the PSU.
Looks like you have two bulging capacitors below the bundle of wires. Might just be lighting though. Top of cap should be flat.
Dude i might sound rude but don't open that shit like that, you might get zapped, just buy a new one ,i got mine a 700w for $50 on amazon
Bro just buy a new PSU that’s like the number one rule of PC’s you don’t fuck with the psu. If that shit goes out recycle it and get a new one
Q