A computer components & hardware forum. HardwareBanter

If this is your first visit, be sure to check out the FAQ by clicking the link above. You may have to register before you can post: click the register link above to proceed. To start viewing messages, select the forum that you want to visit from the selection below.

Go Back   Home » HardwareBanter forum » General Hardware & Peripherals » General
Site Map Home Register Authors List Search Today's Posts Mark Forums Read Web Partners

Enlight Power Supply Fan Dead



 
 
Thread Tools Display Modes
  #1  
Old November 25th 03, 08:49 PM
Solly Ezekiel
external usenet poster
 
Posts: n/a
Default Enlight Power Supply Fan Dead

I'm posting this as an aid to anyone who runs into a similar problem;
maybe I can save someone a little pain.

I have an Enlight EN-7230 case
(http://us.enlightcorp.com/products/p...case&serial=61),
and a few weeks ago I started noticing a burning smell in the room
after the computer had been on a while. I opened the case, sure that
the cooling fan on the CPU was dead, but it was fine. I ran SpeedFan
(http://www.almico.com/speedfan.php) to be sure, and found the CPU and
case temperatures to be well within limits.

More checking revealed the problem to be with the power supply, which
in this case was an EN-8254942. The fan wasn't spinning, which had
made the power supply overheat. I pulled the power supply out and
removed the fan to look it over. It turned out the fan bearing (which
in this case is a sleeve bearing rather than a roller bearing) had
seized. I removed the impeller, which can be done just by pushing on
it, and lubricated it with a few drops of 3-in-1 oil (I've read that
you should use a heavier oil, but this worked for me). Then I
reassembled the fan and reinstalled the power supply.

I switched the computer back on, and with a little encouragement the
fan started spinning again. The computer is usable for the time
being, but to be safe I have ordered a replacement power supply (a
Sparkle ATX-300GT) -- a worthwhile insurance policy at $28 including
postage.

One other item of note. The EN-7230 has a small fan at the bottom of
the case near the front, and while looking things over I noticed that
one of the screws that holds my hard drive in place had blocked that
fan from spinning, too. That's a design problem, since one would
expect a fan included with the case to have enough clearance to
accommodate mounting screws. I moved the screw to another hole, and
that fan is now spinning as well.

Moral of the story: if you have an Enlight case and you smell
something burning, you might have a look at the power supply fan.
  #2  
Old November 25th 03, 09:48 PM
kony
external usenet poster
 
Posts: n/a
Default

On 25 Nov 2003 11:49:23 -0800, (Solly Ezekiel)
wrote:

I'm posting this as an aid to anyone who runs into a similar problem;
maybe I can save someone a little pain.

I have an Enlight EN-7230 case
(
http://us.enlightcorp.com/products/p...case&serial=61),
and a few weeks ago I started noticing a burning smell in the room
after the computer had been on a while. I opened the case, sure that
the cooling fan on the CPU was dead, but it was fine. I ran SpeedFan
(http://www.almico.com/speedfan.php) to be sure, and found the CPU and
case temperatures to be well within limits.

More checking revealed the problem to be with the power supply, which
in this case was an EN-8254942. The fan wasn't spinning, which had
made the power supply overheat. I pulled the power supply out and
removed the fan to look it over. It turned out the fan bearing (which
in this case is a sleeve bearing rather than a roller bearing) had
seized. I removed the impeller, which can be done just by pushing on
it, and lubricated it with a few drops of 3-in-1 oil (I've read that
you should use a heavier oil, but this worked for me). Then I
reassembled the fan and reinstalled the power supply.

I switched the computer back on, and with a little encouragement the
fan started spinning again. The computer is usable for the time
being, but to be safe I have ordered a replacement power supply (a
Sparkle ATX-300GT) -- a worthwhile insurance policy at $28 including
postage.

One other item of note. The EN-7230 has a small fan at the bottom of
the case near the front, and while looking things over I noticed that
one of the screws that holds my hard drive in place had blocked that
fan from spinning, too. That's a design problem, since one would
expect a fan included with the case to have enough clearance to
accommodate mounting screws. I moved the screw to another hole, and
that fan is now spinning as well.

Moral of the story: if you have an Enlight case and you smell
something burning, you might have a look at the power supply fan.


Most of not all of those (Sirtec) Enlight/Highpower/Thermaltake et al
power supplies are decent enough, mid-grade power supplies, but indeed
their fans aren't too good. It really is a shame when they try to
save a few cents by putting a cheap fan on the exhaust. Those with
the 2nd fan underneith use similar low-quality fan but that fan isn't
critical and has cool air intake so it's not as likely to fail
prematurely.

I have two right now, a 340W and a 420W, both of which had their fans
swapped out before ever being installed, when new.


 




Thread Tools
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

vB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off
Forum Jump

Similar Threads
Thread Thread Starter Forum Replies Last Post
presario 4764 power supply start up ? Kevin Falconer General 13 December 4th 03 03:03 AM
How do I Choose the Right Power Supply? Jeremy General 4 November 25th 03 03:31 AM
How can I make motherboard to restart after power loss automatically? Amiran General 1 September 24th 03 11:35 PM
Power Supply on its way out? w_tom General 5 July 31st 03 03:43 PM
Power Supply Gone Bad? John General 4 July 22nd 03 08:42 PM


All times are GMT +1. The time now is 10:39 AM.


Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.6.4
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.
Copyright ©2004-2024 HardwareBanter.
The comments are property of their posters.