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PSU Charge Dissipation

Excuse me if this is the wrong group?

I have an old home computer PSU and I want to remove the electronics temporarily while I cut extra metal off the rear circular exhaust port as it interferes with exhaust air flow. Obviously I would prefer not to come to any harm!

Can somebody please tell me how many day/weeks it would take for any stored electrical charge in a computer's power supply unit (PSU), i.e. in the capacitors, to dissipate enough for it to be okay to touch the circuit board and yet be safe from any potential electric shock?

Reply to
Gary D.
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I can't give you a accurate figure, but I've opened and worked on several, and that has been 2 minutes after they've been unplugged. I've never been harmed. The capacitors store little energy, so while they might be painful, they're not dangerous unless you have a heart condition.

On my Sun Sparc it says capacitor c3 will retain charge for 5 minutes...

If you want to be on the safe side, yank the power cord while the psu is on (i.e fans running and a load like a 12V/20W lightening bulb connected.)

Reply to
vidarlo

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