Power Supply broke, and even with a new one it popped a fuse in my house?

[Rasmus Gustafsson]

Hello!

I'm not sure what to do with my PC, a couple of days ago i plugged it in and attempted to start it and there was like a bright flash and smelled a bit burnt at the power supply. Needless to say it wouldn't start after this... upon investigating the power supply itself was kinda dusty, shame on me i know... so i obviously thought that this was the reason for the burnt up powersupply. So i ordered a new one and plugged everything in, and now when i tried to start it the pc made a fuse pop, so something is still wrong with it and i'm not quite sure what to start investigating... or even how to detect what's the problem... Please help me, holy God's of Tom. 🙂

What do i do? What might have caused the newly functioning powersupply to pop a fuse in my house?

 

[Tkennedy1993]

Hello!

I'm not sure what to do with my PC, a couple of days ago i plugged it in and attempted to start it and there was like a bright flash and smelled a bit burnt at the power supply. Needless to say it wouldn't start after this... upon investigating the power supply itself was kinda dusty, shame on me i know... so i obviously thought that this was the reason for the burnt up powersupply. So i ordered a new one and plugged everything in, and now when i tried to start it the pc made a fuse pop, so something is still wrong with it and i'm not quite sure what to start investigating... or even how to detect what's the problem... Please help me, holy God's of Tom. 🙂

What do i do? What might have caused the newly functioning powersupply to pop a fuse in my house?

I would first inspect the power cable. Make sure you have the correct 3-prong power cable. Then I would inspect your outlet. What are your specs? Also, what size fuse is continuously tripping? Are you using a surge protector?

 

[jay32267]

Well....this is odd. Did the first one pop the fuse? Is it a fuse or a breaker? Do other things you plug in work?

 

[Lutfij]

When posting a thread of troubleshooting nature, it's customary to include your full system's specs. List them like so:
CPU:
Motherboard:
Ram:
SSD/HDD:
GPU:
PSU:
Chassis:
OS:

You should also mention where you're located. You should also stop (what I'm assuming) buying dodgy PSU's since a blown PSU after a new installation isn't a good sign for the system overall. It can and will also kill your other components.

 

[Rasmus Gustafsson]

Hello!

The cable is the one that followed with the new PSU, and i haven't checked the fuse yet... i'll come back to you once i do, but half the basements electricity is dead after i tried starting with the new PSU, including another jack on the other side of the room, so some sorta fuse has popped hehe.

Jay: Nope the first one just made a white flash and weird noises, and it was all dead. Didnt pop the fuse though cus my router/laptop and phonecharger etc was still working fine. The fuse popped now when i tred to start it with the new power supply.

Lutfij:

I'll try my best but i dont exactly remember by spec, but ill do my best:
CPU: This one im not sure about, but i think its a fifth gen i5, ive never purchased a i7 in my life
Motherboard: MSI X170 Krait Gaming
Ram: Corsair 16Gb (2x8) dont remember the clock, but i guess something like 2300
GPU: MSI Gtx 1070
PSU: Old one thats broken was a 700W OCZ ModXStream-Pro, new one is a BeQuiet! 700W Pure Power 10.

And i'm located in Sweden 🙂
I'm not sure the new PSU is blown yet, the pc didnt start whatsoever, no flashes and no abnormal sounds when i tried to start it, it just blew the fuse in the house. So i have no signs of the new PSU being blown out yet.
I'll be back in like 40 mins guys ty for answeing, if you have more questions feel free to ask ill try to answer as good as i can...

 

[Tkennedy1993]

Make sure the Voltage switch on the back of the PSU is set to 220v. Do you have your computer hooked to a surge protector? I only ask because if you have multiple devices pulling current from a single outlet this can cause a breaker to trip(depending on the device).

 

[geofelt]

I suspect you have a short somewhere.

Is this a new build, or has this worked before?

 

[jay32267]

This is what I would do. I would check that outlet. Make sure the voltage is correct and the ground is ground. Then I would check the power cable.

Did you use the same power cable with both supplies?

If all this comes out OK....I would plug the PS into a different outlet on a different circuit and see if it works.

It COULD just be that nothing is wrong with the new PSU and it just popped a breaker or a fuse.

 

[Rasmus Gustafsson]

Tkennedy: The is no switch on the back os the PSU, i'm not even sure those switches exist on the PSU's we got here in Sweden?*confused* it does however say 100-240Vac on the back of it so it shouldnt be the problem. Regarding the surge protection, i i think so? Isnt that why it poppped a fuse and didnt set my computer on fire? I don't know much about these things hehe.

geofelt: This is an old rig, and it has worked on this exact same spot hundreds of times before, ive added nothing to the computer or anything around it either, the only thing that runs through my electrical socket of whatever its called (where you plug stuff into the wall) is my PC, and my router. I do however move the PC between 2 different locations, hence the burst of electricity when i plugged it in and tried to start it 😛

The only thing that IS new is the PSU which makes the fuse pop, instead of exploding the pc internally which the last PSU did.

jay: The voltage is correct, as mentioned above the rig has worked loads of times at this exact location before, nothing has changed in or around the PC untill it broke a couple of days ago. And no, i always use the cable that comes with the PSU, even if theres nothing wrong with the old one. 🙂

I mean, is it even worth trying to connect it into another electrical circuit? The first (old) PSU kinda bursted into flashes and electrical sparkling, the new one pops the fuse for half the basement... and my laptop charger etc worked on the same electrical circuit just a couple of hours ago... It feels like im just gonna possibly blow another fuse, or kill my new $130 PSU? 😱

 

[geofelt]

I suspect that in the moving process, something has become dislodged, causing both power supplies to short out.

It will be a pain, but take it all apart and out of the case on a table.
Plug in only the necessary components, ram, cpu, cooler.
No HDD, no graphics card(use integrated) no other parts.
see pf the psu now works to get you into the bios.
Touch a flat tip screwdriver to the two motherboard front panel pwr pins to start the motherboard.

 

[Tkennedy1993]

Tkennedy: The is no switch on the back os the PSU, i'm not even sure those switches exist on the PSU's we got here in Sweden?*confused* it does however say 100-240Vac on the back of it so it shouldnt be the problem. Regarding the surge protection, i i think so? Isnt that why it poppped a fuse and didnt set my computer on fire? I don't know much about these things hehe.

geofelt: This is an old rig, and it has worked on this exact same spot hundreds of times before, ive added nothing to the computer or anything around it either, the only thing that runs through my electrical socket of whatever its called (where you plug stuff into the wall) is my PC, and my router. I do however move the PC between 2 different locations, hence the burst of electricity when i plugged it in and tried to start it 😛

The only thing that IS new is the PSU which makes the fuse pop, instead of exploding the pc internally which the last PSU did.

jay: The voltage is correct, as mentioned above the rig has worked loads of times at this exact location before, nothing has changed in or around the PC untill it broke a couple of days ago. And no, i always use the cable that comes with the PSU, even if theres nothing wrong with the old one. 🙂

I mean, is it even worth trying to connect it into another electrical circuit? The first (old) PSU kinda bursted into flashes and electrical sparkling, the new one pops the fuse for half the basement... and my laptop charger etc worked on the same electrical circuit just a couple of hours ago... It feels like im just gonna possibly blow another fuse, or kill my new $130 PSU? 😱

Sorry about that. Most PSU here in the States still have the switch. Well the surge protector protects from incoming electrical surges such as lightning. When you pop a fuse are you referring to a circuit breaker in your home or a fuse inside your power supply? A fuse is blown by drawing too much current through it. So if your circuit breaker(a breaker box inside your house) tripped, something connected to that room has pulled too much current. If your fuse inside your power supply blew then something inside your system is pulling too much current or a faulty PSU.

 

[Rasmus Gustafsson]

geofelt: I will try it, when i get a hold of a new fuse... Can't risk killing the electricity in the rest of the home atm hehe.

Tkennedy: I'm referring to a circuit breaker in my home. But ive used he same rig for over 2 years, how can it be that NOW all of a sudden it draws to much current? I'm almost thinking like geofeld above is saying that i got shortage somewhere, just seems odd that 2 years later with the same rig it would draw too much current all of a sudden...

 

[Tkennedy1993]

geofelt: I will try it, when i get a hold of a new fuse... Can't risk killing the electricity in the rest of the home atm hehe.

Tkennedy: I'm referring to a circuit breaker in my home. But ive used he same rig for over 2 years, how can it be that NOW all of a sudden it draws to much current? I'm almost thinking like geofeld above is saying that i got shortage somewhere, just seems odd that 2 years later with the same rig it would draw too much current all of a sudden...

Sorry I didn't explain this too well. A shortage will cause a significant amount of current to be drawn. Most PSU come with a tester in the packaging. I would first use it to test your PSU. If your PSU doesn't turn on when using the tester then its a faulty PSU. Both my RAM and PSU came DOA on my very first build. If it turns on then the next step would be to do what geofelt mentioned and remove it from the case and test the main components. This would eliminate any external shorts.

 

[jay32267]

If you measure the current the PSU is drawing, this will tell you if it's the PSU or the fuse/breaker.

You can use a series style current meter or an amp clamp.

 

[Rasmus Gustafsson]

Hi again, the PSU didnt come with a tester, just checked in the box :-/
How would i measure the current when the pc wont even turn on, do i have to plug in only the PSU to the wall socket and then use some tool to do this? And what output should i expect?

 

[Rasmus Gustafsson]

Hi again, did some googling and i was gonna make sure that the PSU was still working as intended, so i found out i could use a cable to connect into the green wire and one of the black ones to the left of it and start it (on the 24pins cable of the PSU). But guess what? This new PSU only uses pitch black cables, yey! Now im totally shit out of luck haha.

 

[jay32267]

You can find what pins to jump. Google it. I forgot off the top of my head. You can go by the numbers instead of the colors.

As far as reading the current...there are ways to do this....and yes....even with the PC power switch off...because there is current being drawn if your fuse is blowing....but if you don't have a meter etc....I'm not going to get into it.

A quick easy way to eliminate a lot of things is to plug the PSU into another outlet and start it up. If it blows another breaker or fuse....you know it's the PSU.

Think of the fuse a a meter with only 2 values. Above X and below X where X is the fuse value.

 

[Rasmus Gustafsson]

So should i try and start the PSU from another electrical circuit? I can google it i think, but will have to wait untill tomorrow probably.

 

[mortemas]

An amp clamp doesn't sound like something you have. Besides, it needs to clamp around 1 leg so you would have to remove the jacket from the wall cord or make an adapter with the hot wire accessible for clamping. If you have something like a kill-a-watt meter it would tell you how much the psu is consuming. I would avoid the old PSU completely, since you said sparks were coming out of it. Focus on the new PSU you just bought. You could start by plugging in just the PSU, and ONLY the psu into the wall. Don't connect it to the motherboard or anything. If that doesn't blow anything, the next step is to "jumpstart" it or get a PSU load tester to put on it. If it passes both those steps, connect it to your system again. If after you connect it to the PC again and your home's "fuse" (maybe it's really a circuit breaker?) pops again, then you can reasonably assume the problem is not in your PSU or your home, but somewhere in the PC. If you can determine that the problem is in fact within the PC, then as geofelt said you need to strip the PC down to the bare minimum and try it (mobo w/cpu, ram, graphics card, kbd/mouse, monitor, system drive). If it works under that condition, slowly add back more components and the one that pops the breaker again will be the bad component. Like someone said, sounds like there is a short somewhere. It could be the graphics card, which is a high power device. If you have another card you could test the system with that. It could be a loose screw that made its way under the motherboard and is causing a short to ground. If that's the case, then merely removing everything from the case and testing it like that will fix the problem -- and you should find the loose screw if it is there. Whether something is permanently damaged or not is another story and you should be prepared for that possibility, too. Examine all the items, top and bottom of mobo, graphics card, to see if there is any "fried" electronics. This kind of damage is not always visible, but my guess is that if it was enough to pop your mains breaker then there could be a burnt spot somewhere that you might see (besides inside the old PSU).

EDIT: sorry, I got ninja'd and there's some repeat info in here. ;-)

 

[Tkennedy1993]

Hi again, did some googling and i was gonna make sure that the PSU was still working as intended, so i found out i could use a cable to connect into the green wire and one of the black ones to the left of it and start it (on the 24pins cable of the PSU). But guess what? This new PSU only uses pitch black cables, yey! Now im totally shit out of luck haha.

The wire layout should be the same of every 24 pin PSU. So just look up the pin layout of a 24 pin connector and go off that.

 

[mortemas]

Just make sure you are looking at the connector from the right orientation. If the old PSU has the standard wire colors, then hold it up to the new one in the same orientation as a guide. The clip will also be a clue.

 

[Rasmus Gustafsson]

Thank you all for your answers!
I will try some of it tomorrow as its getting a bit late for now, bought some more fuses though, the old one is burnt as suspected. But now as i got more i'll try to strip it down, after i made sure that the new PSU is still working as intended (will try to get it to start with a paper clip, see if the fan will start going).

It's just that i'm scared to connect it to the PC if the PSU still works, it's brand new and is 130+ USD (Swedish SEK), i'd hate to see it end it's hopefully long life in a tragedy like the other PSU did, specially when i bought it just 2 days ago. 😛

It's still worrying that the PSU's are behaving differently, one of them blew up while the newer one just made the fuse in the house pop instead... but i'm still thinking some kind of shortage somewhere...

 

[Rasmus Gustafsson]

Update one: New PSU worked with the paperclip trick, tunrned it on and the fan started spinning. Happy to see its still alive. I guess i'm gonna have to start remove all parts from the chassi i guess. I'm gonna be so mad if this PSU dies before i find out what's causing the shortage.
And if it does, i'm buying a new PC instead. xd

 

[Rasmus Gustafsson]

Update 2: I removed the GPU, disconnected SSD's and CD reaader, and only had the 24pin connected to the motherboard connected. The PC powered up, "CPU" led was shining on the motherboard and the CPU cooler fan was spinning. Next step; connect the JWPR2 with the 2x4 pins and see if PC starts. Will keep you updated.

 

[Rasmus Gustafsson]

Update 3: COnnected the JWPR2 and still works, been running for like a minute now. The CPU LED that was shining (on the motherboard) before has stopped shining, maybe someone can tell me what that means? Lack of power?
Anyway, gonna connect the rest of the fans and start her up, see what happens.