Opening up a power supply

[Ebisoba]

I want to open up a power supply just to see what's in it and maybe mess around a bit. How long should I leave it unplug before opening it up. I heard it's pretty risky to open one up so just trying to make sure I won't get shocked. Thanks.

[thePh@r@oh]

mess around a bit? bad i dea there are capicitors in there that hold charge long after you unplug it you could electricute yourself you can open it up unplug it first though....although i dont reccommend "messing arround"

[meese]

Just be careful around the large capacitors. Capacitors store voltage. If you stick your finger across the two pins you may get a little zap. Nothing life threatening.

Just be sure you have the power cable removed. You don't want to mess with the 120VAC line.

[Ebisoba]

I could wait awhile if I have to. How long does it take to completely disacharge?

[thePh@r@oh]

No definite way to say after a few hours the charge would probably be clear, but be careful anyway there may still be charge that you dont know about. dont mess to much you wouldnt want to ruin anything.

[DanU]

The only capacitors you have to worry about are the two large electrolytic caps (they look like C-size batteries). If you leave the power supply unplugged for a day or two, they should be safe to work around. I would discharge them before handling anyway, just to be extra careful.