Power supply problem

Is1ldur

Hi all,
I am hoping someone can help me. The fan on my power supply finally stopped turning yesterday. It had been making weird noises for the last couple of months. I turned on the pc yesterday and the fan seems like it is trying to turn, but then stops, -starts-stops, etc. There does not seem to be any access to the fan itself, without taking the whole power supply unit off.
Would anyone know if the fan is usually seperate and replaceable by itself, or do I have to put in a whole new power supply. How difficult would it be to fit (fan or power supply)??
Thank you

Mutant_Fruit

Depending on the location of your fan, it might be possible to get a standard case fan and hook it up to your motherboard (or a molex) and just get it to blow air in/suck hot air out.

Its doubtful you can buy a replacement. What you should try is whipping out the powersupply, make sure its fully discharged! and then opening it and seeing what can be done with the existing fan.

Stephen

Be careful if you open the PSU up, the capacitors in it can hold a charge for hours after it has been disconnected from the mains.

Col_Loki

TBH your prob better off just pickin up another PSU.

You could always take the Power supply cover off, see what size the fan is (prob 80mm) snip the two wires , remove the fan , join the two wires from the new fan to the old fans power source, install the new fan (making sure it blows air out from the PSU, and not into the PSU).

Is1ldur

Thanks guys. I did a google search also and found a few articles. It has been unplugged since last night, so I will attempt to take it apart tonight to see. Some articles suggest that dust is a major factor, so maybe it is just clogged up.
Thanks again guys.

Mutant_Fruit

What you could try is connecting it to your motherboard (DO NOT CONNECT THE MAINS) and just clicking the old power button on your box. That will draw any remaining power from the power supply (hopefully).

Just remember not to attach the mains to the power supply.

Is1ldur

Anyone jnow where I can pick up a cheap power supply unit in a hurry. I kinda wrecked mine removing it. I think it was screwed anyway.
By the way, does it matter what voltage I get. The one I wrecked was 230, I think.

Stephen

The voltage does matter, depending on what kind of components you have. If your machine is a Dell, a standard ATX power supply won't work in it - not without some modifications anyway. For a modern machine you would want at LEAST 300W, preferably 400W or more if you've got a power hungry high end graphics card, lots of drives, etc. If its an older machine you can probably get away with 230W like you already had.

Is1ldur

I was a bit surprised when I saw the 230 sign (maybe I am reading Voltage opposed to Wattage) My PC is only about 1.5 years old. AMD 2000 XP with an ATI 9800 pro, which also feeds off the PSU. I always assumed it would be 350 or so. I had a look at some of the sites listed in the stickies, and can see a 350 w for about EUR 30 which seems quite reasonable.
Thanks for the advice.

Is1ldur

PCWorld do a 350watt for EUR39. I presume this would suffice (anyone got a similar set-up), rather than getting one delivered from somewhere and nor receiving it for a few days.

Sir Random

Every PSU I've opened (Chieftec/CompUSA/Eagle/Antec etc) has a standard 80mm fan inside. The only difference is that it's hardwired, so you need to splice the wires to connect a new one.
From the symptoms you described, I'd try cleaning and oiling the fan spindle. I've rescued many fans this way. The 80mm fan on my Arctic Cooler is actually from a burnt-out 200w PSU, taken from an old P90.

Caliden

wd40 tbh

although if the warrenty is gone on it then opening wont affect you and you should be able to replace the fan easily enough or use some lubricant to give it a months extra life (at the max depending on usage).
gl with it, tell us how you get on

Is1ldur

Well the fan was knackered. Got the new power supply and fitted it tonight. Quite easy actually. Just one last question. does it matter if all my peripherals are running off the same cable, I have cdr, DVD, Floppy, hard drive and graphics card running off the one power line, with another power line spare. My mate tells me this is ok, due to the way electricity works.
PC is a lot quieter now!!

unkel

Originally posted by Sir Random
The 80mm fan on my Arctic Cooler is actually from a burnt-out 200w PSU, taken from an old P90.

Nice bit of recycling

Explosive_Cornflake

I fired up my old PII 233 today. The PSU in that had a 92mm fan stuck on the outside. I'd taken it off a while ago, as i wanted the fan, but the wire is only about 4cm long on it. It wires up to a standard connection in the PSU. Stuck it back with sellotape today, and its working good. I was surprised