The PC continued losing power, yet a fresh power cord appears to have resolved the problem?
The PC continued losing power, yet a fresh power cord appears to have resolved the problem?
Hi all,
My PC experienced random power cuts each day. I thought the PSU was faulty, changed the power cable, and now everything seems stable. This issue has happened before, and changing the cable seemed to resolve it. However, when it started again a year later, I realized the cable might not be the problem. I’m still unsure if the plug had the wrong amp or if something damaged the cable. My PC also fell over once, which made me wonder if that caused the cable to be pulled out and damaged while still supplying power. It’s confusing why the cable would suddenly fail.
My power cables seem to last a long time. I’ll discard old gear but keep the cords, just in case. Now I have a big pile of them. Unless you use something too thin for your supply, it’s hard to imagine they wouldn’t work. If it were like an extension cord and you kept plugging and unplugging them often, the metal could wear out at one end. I’ve had to replace the end on several outdoor cords because they no longer held the plug securely. The wall outlet can also wear down over time, though that’s not very common. You might also harm the connectors on your power supply. For instance, bending a metal connector and straightening it could cause slight movement due to heat, leading to poor contact sometimes. It’s actually difficult to damage them unless you do it yourself. A faulty connector can be repaired, but it can pose a risk for someone unfamiliar with the process.
Yeah the connectors are a good point, when the pc fell over on its side the cord could have caused damage, though it doesn't explain why a new cord seems to work fine. I've had the pc on most of the day and no power cut off. Before it was cutting off more and more each day until it was like 10 minutes in once I got into Windows. Yeah these leads are usually bullet proof and I'm sure it would work fine for a monitor. Maybe the PSU is more sensitive. One thing I noticed is that the power cord that seemed to cause the cut-offs has a 10 amp fuse. Are pcs supposed to have a specific amp fuse for the plug?
So it's basically the kettle lead that connects to the PSU through the wall. The one I was using had a 10 amp fuse, and then the one that stopped cutting out was a 5 amp fuse. About ten minutes ago, I plugged in my external SSD and the PC went dead—it wouldn't turn on at all. Then I changed the power lead to the old one and it worked again!? It seems like the PSU is somehow harming the new 5 amp power lead, but it still works with my monitor. I tried adding another 5 amp fuse, and that fixed it too. It looks like the PSU might be damaging the power lead, though only when used with it. Not sure what's really happening.
When blowing fuses, the power source is probably faulty.
Even 5 amps at 240 volts equals more than 1000 watts, which is a significant power consumption. Therefore, a computer power supply shouldn't blow a 5-amp fuse... Probably a 1600-watt unit could handle it.
Yeah it happened again with the new 5amp lead. It seems when the computer is in sleep mode it doesn't wake up and even after turning it off at the mains and on the PC fails to turn on (there is a flash of light as it is about to but then dies) then the 5amp lead will no longer work with the PC. I've yet to see if it happens with the 10amp. At this rate I will run out of power leads. 😀
So my main question is my PSU is 650 watts, what would be the correct fuse amp to have in the plug of the kettle lead? Also could using the incorrect power lead plug in terms of fuse amp, damage the PSU and cause this instability?
The process of swapping the fuse in the power lead is straightforward. Calculate the required current by dividing the watts by the assumed voltage, which I believe is 240. Dividing 650 by 240 results in approximately 2.7 amps. If a 5-amp fuse were used, it would indicate a significant issue with the power source.
Using a cord with an incorrect fuse size won’t harm the power supply. I haven’t seen these before you mentioned them; they appear to be common in the UK. In the USA, power cords typically don’t have fuses and operate at 120 volts, meaning the current flowing is double what it would be with a standard fuse.
Fuses serve as a protective measure. Their purpose is to trip before the cable overheats or fails, preventing damage. They mainly safeguard the equipment rather than stopping system failure entirely. If the power supply were to short, the absence of a fuse could cause it to overheat and potentially ignite.
This situation strongly suggests a problem with the power supply itself. I recommend replacing it to avoid damaging costly components inside your computer.
Thanks man, that clears things up more on the amps I need to be using. I read the specs and it says 5-10 amps is fine. Now I have a different issue in that the PC wont power on at all. So power is going to the motherboard as the lights are on, though pressing the power button there is the flash of lights then it shuts off. So is it possible the PSU is faulty now? no cable seems to work anymore.