Testing Capacitor-How to test a capacitor when breakdown under load.Written by Jestine Yong
Have you ever come across power problem where once you switch on power supply and fuse blow? You have checked all components in power (primary) and secondary section and all components seems to be ok! Where is fault? A fuse blown are usually caused by a shorted bridge rectifier, defective posistor, power transistor or FET, shorted primary winding of switch mode power tranformer, shorted secondary diode and etc. But in this article i'm gone to show you another secret of electronic troubleshooting tips.I got frustrated as to where is cause of power problem. Everytime when i switch on power supply fuse blow immediately (the fuse became dark color and this indicate that there is a major short circuit in power supply). I have checked all components in power supply and can't find culprit! What i do is i desoldered all suspected parts one by one and replaced with a known good component. I eventually found caused of power supply problem. Guess what? It was main filter capacitor (220 microfarad 400 volt). After replacing filter cap power supply worked perfectly fine. I begin my detective work to find out why this capacitor can caused fuse to blow eventhough i already confirmed it ok with my meters. The meters that i used to check filter cap were analog meter, digital capacitance meter and esr meter. In this article i will not explain about how to check capacitor or testing capacitor and how capacitor work. I believed most of you know how to check capacitors and also generally using this type of meters. Measured with analog it showed capacitor charging and discharge, with digital capacitor tester it showed around 220 microfarad and with esr meter it showed low esr reading!
| | Introducing Your Family to Solar EnergyWritten by Jim Fritz
One of difficulties that solar and renewable energy have faced in past is that it requires people to learn about it. People are busy and they are also reluctant to change and learn. It is much easier to get energy from traditional sources that seem to “magically” transfer power and electricity to homes through wires of electricity grid. However, we are becoming increasingly aware of problems with this entrenched attitude. We seem to hear almost daily about power blackouts and brownouts, along with warnings about dwindling energy supplies.One way to begin to educate yourself and your children about energy and electricity is to purchase one of many different kinds of small solar energy systems. From solar toys to solar lights to portable solar panels, small solar electric systems make it easy to learn some of basics of energy. You can learn about generation of energy and get an idea of how it is limited by certain factors. Your kids can use a small solar toy or solar energy kit to see directly relationship between energy generation and availability. From your solar light, you will learn that a sunlit day will make light shine powerfully that evening. Conversely, you will notice a relationship between cloudy days and dimness or lack of light from your solar light. While a small portable solar panel provides energy for your boat or RV, it can also teach need for energy storage (the battery) and conservation. Even a solar light gives you a micro-version of all electricity systems: panel generates energy, wires transfer it, a battery stores it and light bulb uses it.
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