Jump Start A PSU

This Guide Will teach you How to start a computer PSU (power supply unit) with out need for a motherboard. you'll be able to power any component with no need to fiddle with switches and jumpers. and if you want to "leak test" a water cooling kit with out getting an expensive MOBO wet then this is really good. It couldn't be more simple.

you will need;

a PSU, - if you figured this one out, you have the brain cells to complete this instructable

Wire Strippers / side cutters or cigarette lighter, anything you can use to remove some of the plastic off the

some cheep electrial wire (can be ripped from Ethernet cable) i got mine fo £0.80 (just under $2) from rapid electronics

electrical tape

optionally you may want a soldering iron and some solder.

Step 1 The first bit

Ok this bit is very simple.

basically strip the plastic coating of both ends of the wire to expose the bare metal core.

see photos.

Comments

[danielemur]

What if you have a psu with out a switch?

[F1X0R]

Um, I haven't seen that before really. Still I suppose you'd have to just use the wall socket in stead of the switch on the PSU.

[tin701]

lol even though I already knew how to do this I still enjoyed it! great instructable. i laughed so hard when i read this: "you will create a nice blue spark and cry when you realise that the component is now dead."

[F1X0R]

Happened to me once, lucky it was only an old hard drive with nothing important saved on it. Had it of been anything else, I may have cried.

[lilpepsikraker]

Happened to me too once, it was a 40GB Maxtor Fireball (7200RPM). And I did cry, lol.

[tin701]

 :(

[12V]

12v is the yellow wire(or orange)!

[F1X0R]

Sorry. I thought I corrected that little gaff ages ago.

[clunkclunk]

Leek test?

[ekulmeekul]

nah its to test if ur liquid cooling leaks anywhere not to test plants!

[n0ukf]

The red wires are the 5v not 12v supply. 12v is on the yellow wires. Older AT supplies don't need this jumper, they just may need a load resistor as drcrash mentioned. and they always have a power switch of some kind.

[F1X0R]

this instructable doesn't deal with converting the power supply to a bench tester. merely running it with out having to use a motherboard. so i fail to see your point. they may have some similarities. though it wasn't I that said anything about mimicking a load. this instructable just deals with how to make it start to use the molex adapters to test things like water cooling units hard drives etc with out need for a motherboard. this leads me to think you havn't actually read what is in the instructable.

[gamer]

he showed us how to turn on a psu without a motherboard, i needed this the other day, and it wasnt for a bench tester. this instructable is very instructive. -gamer

[drcrash]

There are already several Instructables on how to convert an ATX computer power supply to a standalone power supply for whatever. (Including the part about using a resistor to make sure you present the minimum load so that the think works.)

http://www.instructables.com/id/ATX--%3e-Lab-Bench-Power-Supply-Conversion/

http://www.instructables.com/id/Yet-Another-ATX--Lab-Bench-Power-Supply-Conversion/

http://www.instructables.com/id/Convert-an-ATX-Power-Supply-Into-a-Regular-DC-Powe/

[Hands Without Shadows]

Many modern psu's need a load to turn on. A 10 watt, 10 ohm resistor from Radioshack between a red and black wire will work.

[bleachworthy]

You'd be suprised how many you can jump start like this. I've only found one that needed a load, and it was an ancient AT style. I flipped the switch, and the fucker went up in smoke! I usually just use a bent paperclip to start up my test PSU.

[F1X0R]

oops, lol guess thats what you get for doing this at 01:00 in the morning.

[GorillazMiko]

good instructable :-)

[mikesty]

A paperclip works really well. I've always got one in my wallet, so I just whip it out, short green-to-black (any black), plug it in, and go. :) Good instructable.