Is it worth opening up a PSU every now and again to remove some of the dust build up inside? I know that it voids the warranty and that you may get a shock if you don't drain the capacitors first, but all that aside, is it necessary to clean it out if the case is in a dusty environment without any dust filters on the case?
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Cleaning out a PSU
- Thread starter SMOKEU
- Start date
- Joined
- May 12, 2010
- Location
- Wilsonville, OR
I wouldn't want to deal with it personally I would just use the straw on a can of air and just stick inside the PSU and give it a few puffs. I have opened a few PSU's and its not hard I just dont see a benefit to opening it up.
- Joined
- Dec 20, 2000
- Location
- Albany, NY
Sorry, I don't agree. I usually don't care about warranties, as the rigs I get to work on are way past them. Just this week I put a crap Dell w/P4 back in service by opening and cleaning(+ oiling the fan) all the crap, meaning dust, dog hair and nicotine that had built up for a few years in the PSU. If you have newer stuff and keep up on the maintenance then it usually shouldn't be necessary, but there are a lot of neglectful people out there who don't know maintenance.
- Joined
- Apr 27, 2009
- Location
- California
Well I think it depends on the severity of how dirty the psu is, in your case with an older Dell psu it was worth opening. But if you want to open a psu for the sake of just getting out some dust, I recommend against it. Like others mentioned just use a can of compressed air.
- Joined
- Dec 30, 2003
Once I jam my toro leaf blower up its behind, the psu is clean. 285 mph airflow/ with hundreds of CFM!
- Joined
- Jul 14, 2002
Don't let the fans spin too fast because that can damage them. Unplug the AC power cord, and block the fan blades by first sticking plastic straws between them -- plastic because it doesn't conduct electricity, won't crack, and won't crack fan blades.
Capacitors drain in about a second if you pull the plug while the computer is still running, about 10-20 seconds normally otherwise, but if there's something wrong with the rectifier diodes, they could need as much as 10-20 minutes for the bleeder resistors to drain them. PSUs have been built without bleeders, like the Enermax 350W EG365-VD.
Capacitors drain in about a second if you pull the plug while the computer is still running, about 10-20 seconds normally otherwise, but if there's something wrong with the rectifier diodes, they could need as much as 10-20 minutes for the bleeder resistors to drain them. PSUs have been built without bleeders, like the Enermax 350W EG365-VD.
- Joined
- Apr 21, 2011
- Location
- Exton, Pennsylvania
You dont need to open it to clean it enough. Just stick with the compressed air and straw.
- Joined
- May 12, 2010
- Location
- Wilsonville, OR
I can see this needing to be done in a specific case where it has been years of dust or sitting or if your a smoker and smoke indoors and everything gets all sticky and covered with a mixture of tar and dust... its a nasty thing to see.
- Joined
- Apr 19, 2003
Also, if you're going to be doing cleaning on a regular basis, for the cost of canned air, a small AC-powered air compressor will pay for itself in less than a year and will provide far more power than canned air.
- Joined
- May 12, 2010
- Location
- Wilsonville, OR
mans gotta point.
- Joined
- Nov 20, 2010
- Location
- crapifornia
similiar to a battery, but far worse; capicitors differ from batteries in that they dump their charge all at once rather than at a steady rate which means you get the full amp level all at once
- Joined
- Mar 27, 2011
Yea, i forgot to mention it.
Also those big caps inside a PSU goes off like a m80 when they get too much voltage. My buddy gave one too much voltage once and it exploded sending gravel and splinters everywhere in his backyard. (This were one of his small experiments XD)
BTW: My English is kinda bad since its not my native language.
Also those big caps inside a PSU goes off like a m80 when they get too much voltage. My buddy gave one too much voltage once and it exploded sending gravel and splinters everywhere in his backyard. (This were one of his small experiments XD)
BTW: My English is kinda bad since its not my native language.
- Joined
- Apr 21, 2011
- Location
- Exton, Pennsylvania
I must disagree with the past few threads...
The voltage of a pc MUST not exceed 50v. 50v can only kill if you decide to put two alligator clips, one on your front of your heart and one on the back.
And caps discharge quickly because they dont hold much. The speed at a cap discharges is fully dependent upon the voltage it holds. If it holds 20v it will discharge 20x faster than 1v.
I have worked with electricity for long enough to know that amps given through a wire depends on the voltage and your resistance and that the electricity must go through.
As long as you dont put this through your heart, dont worry at all!!!!!!!!!
The voltage of a pc MUST not exceed 50v. 50v can only kill if you decide to put two alligator clips, one on your front of your heart and one on the back.
And caps discharge quickly because they dont hold much. The speed at a cap discharges is fully dependent upon the voltage it holds. If it holds 20v it will discharge 20x faster than 1v.
I have worked with electricity for long enough to know that amps given through a wire depends on the voltage and your resistance and that the electricity must go through.
As long as you dont put this through your heart, dont worry at all!!!!!!!!!
- Joined
- Apr 19, 2003
Not quite true:
http://ecmweb.com/ar/electric_basics_electric_shock/
As the Electrical Construction & Maintenance Magazine article indicates amperage is the telling factor. Given the right circumstances, even a lowly PSU capacitor can kill, as I=E/R and physiology varies.
Here's 48 volts that will kill you Tout de suite:
Granted, this is a little bit bigger than a PSU at 24,368 amps, but serves to illustrate the point.
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- Joined
- Dec 30, 2003
They say a 9v battery could kill you if hooked up right.
- Thread Starter
- #18
