(E-Mail Removed) wrote:
> I need to permanently disable an atx power supply - is there a simple way to do
> it without killing myself?
>
> Thanks.
So we are to help you to surreptitiously destroy someone else's
property? Obviously the PSU doesn't store any data so it's not like you
need to disable a PSU when tossing it in the trash. Your question is
vague and could have several interpretations as to WHY you asked it.
If you're asking how to work on your own host without fear of causing
electrical damage, especially for an ATX-style PSU which continues
providing a 5-volt standby line to the mobo for its power-on circuitry,
just yank the power cord and wait 10 minutes, or longer.
If you're asking about how to discharge the capacitors inside the PSU
because it is the PSU on which you will be working, unplug the power
cord and wait for 20 minutes, or more. If you don't want to wait, yank
the power cord, disconnect all the PSU's harnesses, attach a PSU tester
to provide a load, and short the Power-On green wire on the 20-pin
connector to a ground pin (black) to power up the PSU to have it
discharge to the load from the PSU tester. You could use a 10-ohm,
10-watt (or higher) resistor across the black & red wires on a harness
connector as the load instead of a PSU tester. I have seen mention of
using a 47kohm, 1W resistor to use for shorting across the solder pads
on the PCB for the filter caps for about 10 seconds (or use a voltmeter
to check when voltate goes to zero across the resistor); however, that
requires access to the underside of the PCB which would probably require
dismantling the PCB from its standoffs before you could get at its
backside.