Power supply made a white flash when i turned it on

Dazzeerr · 02-03-2008, 09:19 PM

After quite a long gaming session i turned off my PC, and for some reason can't remember why now I turned off the PSU, then turned it back on and a white flash went off inside. It never usually flashes and when i turned it off and on again the flash didn't occur.

The back of the PSU to touch was pretty warm too, i'm wondering if it can't cope or is on it's way out. It's a:

Octigen 500W Power Supply (It must be pretty old because it has the red voltage switch on the back)

What do you guys think?

Vizy · 02-03-2008, 11:49 PM

it could be on its way down. it could be like when a blb goes out. you tun on the light, then the bulb flashes and it goes out.

imsati · 02-04-2008, 12:37 AM

I wouldn't want to mess with a faulty PSU, as it seems like you have. You may want to look into replacing it rather soon.

PunterCam · 02-04-2008, 01:45 AM

It's a switch, all switches spark. It could've been you just pushed it slowly and the electricity started jumping. If it's still working then ignore it, it's probably nothing

just a noob · 02-04-2008, 02:02 AM

its just the capacitor discharging but be warned they can carry high amperage with them i think 80 milliamps is enough to send a person into cardiac arrest

imsati · 02-04-2008, 02:27 AM

Odd...I've *never* seen a good, solid PSU do that in all my time working with them.

But what do I know...

If you started your car and the alternator sparked with a white flash, would you still drive it?

just a noob · 02-04-2008, 03:19 AM

i doubt an alternator could spark with a white flash maybe if the battery sat there for a while and the hydrogen accumulated under the hood and the alternator made a spark, i suppose it could happen, sorry if your trying to be sarcastic, you cant tell over the internet unless you have a microphone :S

PabloTeK · 02-04-2008, 03:00 PM

I know for certain on the railways with diesel trains if you do get a flashover quite a lot of damage can be dealt to the alternator(s), I'd try and avoind using it if at all possible.

02-03-2008, 09:19 PM	#1 (permalink)
Dazzeerr Gold Member Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: England UK Posts: 401	Power supply made a white flash when i turned it on After quite a long gaming session i turned off my PC, and for some reason can't remember why now I turned off the PSU, then turned it back on and a white flash went off inside. It never usually flashes and when i turned it off and on again the flash didn't occur. The back of the PSU to touch was pretty warm too, i'm wondering if it can't cope or is on it's way out. It's a: Octigen 500W Power Supply (It must be pretty old because it has the red voltage switch on the back) What do you guys think? __________________ Case \| Coolermaster Elite 330 CPU \| Intel Core2Quad Q6600 @ 2.85GHz HS/F \| Arctic Cooling Freezer Pro 7 Mobo \| Asus P5Q-SE2 Graphics \| GeForce 9800GTX+ 512mb RAM \| 4GB DDR2 Crucial Ballistix 800Mhz Sound \| Creative X-Fi Xtreme Audio PSU \| Corsair 650W TX Series

02-04-2008, 12:37 AM	#3 (permalink)
imsati VIP Member Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: EHT, NJ Posts: 3,094	I wouldn't want to mess with a faulty PSU, as it seems like you have. You may want to look into replacing it rather soon. __________________ --Jay Creepy Lurker Guy

02-04-2008, 01:45 AM	#4 (permalink)
PunterCam Platinum Member Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: GREAT Britain, birthplace of modesty Age: 25 Posts: 821	It's a switch, all switches spark. It could've been you just pushed it slowly and the electricity started jumping. If it's still working then ignore it, it's probably nothing __________________ Part Legend, Part Devil, All Man Mac Pro. 2x dual core xeons @ 2.0Ghz. Booting OSX 10.5.8 & Windows XP 5Gb DDR2 FBDIMM NVidia Geforce 7300Gt 256mb Logitech Z5500 New Nuendo build around the corner... WD 250Gb system drive, Seagate 400Gb (Windows storage), WD 400Gb (OSX storage) 24¨ Acer AL2416W

02-04-2008, 02:27 AM	#6 (permalink)
imsati VIP Member Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: EHT, NJ Posts: 3,094	Odd...I've never seen a good, solid PSU do that in all my time working with them. But what do I know... If you started your car and the alternator sparked with a white flash, would you still drive it? __________________ --Jay Creepy Lurker Guy

02-04-2008, 03:00 PM	#8 (permalink)
PabloTeK Diamond Member Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: /dev/null Age: 18 Posts: 2,982	I know for certain on the railways with diesel trains if you do get a flashover quite a lot of damage can be dealt to the alternator(s), I'd try and avoind using it if at all possible. __________________ Click here to save Spa Francorchamps! Join CTMDAGM! [Campaign to make Danny and Geoff Moderators]

02-03-2008, 11:49 PM	#2 (permalink)
Vizy banned Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: Los Angeles Posts: 3,896	it could be on its way down. it could be like when a blb goes out. you tun on the light, then the bulb flashes and it goes out.

02-04-2008, 02:02 AM	#5 (permalink)
just a noob Diamond Member Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: Vault 69 Age: 17 Posts: 3,857	its just the capacitor discharging but be warned they can carry high amperage with them i think 80 milliamps is enough to send a person into cardiac arrest

02-04-2008, 03:19 AM	#7 (permalink)
just a noob Diamond Member Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: Vault 69 Age: 17 Posts: 3,857	i doubt an alternator could spark with a white flash maybe if the battery sat there for a while and the hydrogen accumulated under the hood and the alternator made a spark, i suppose it could happen, sorry if your trying to be sarcastic, you cant tell over the internet unless you have a microphone :S

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