Do you remove an AC Capacitor from the circuit before or after you short it out for safety?
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Is it safe to short (discharge) an AC capacitor before you remove it from the circuit. Or do you have to wait until after you remove it from the unit?
electrical central-air
asked Sep 5 at 13:05
Evan Carroll
2262519
add a comment |Â
up vote
1
down vote
favorite
Is it safe to short (discharge) an AC capacitor before you remove it from the circuit. Or do you have to wait until after you remove it from the unit?
electrical central-air
asked Sep 5 at 13:05
Evan Carroll
2262519
add a comment |Â
up vote
1
down vote
favorite
up vote
1
down vote
favorite
Is it safe to short (discharge) an AC capacitor before you remove it from the circuit. Or do you have to wait until after you remove it from the unit?
electrical central-air
asked Sep 5 at 13:05
Evan Carroll
2262519
Is it safe to short (discharge) an AC capacitor before you remove it from the circuit. Or do you have to wait until after you remove it from the unit?
electrical central-air
electrical central-air
asked Sep 5 at 13:05
Evan Carroll
2262519
asked Sep 5 at 13:05
Evan Carroll
2262519
asked Sep 5 at 13:05
Evan Carroll
2262519
asked Sep 5 at 13:05
Evan Carroll
2262519
asked Sep 5 at 13:05
Evan Carroll
2262519
2262519
add a comment |Â
add a comment |Â
3 Answers
3
active
oldest
votes
up vote
6
down vote
accepted
Always short the capacitor as early into the disassembly process as you can. You may accidentally discharge it when handling it or removing it from the unit, and these components have enough energy to kill you.
I make sure to wear jeans and leather boots with a rubber sole when discharging capacitors, and always when it's relatively dry out. I keep my left hand behind my back and short the capacitor leads with a screwdriver that has an insulated handle. After about ten seconds of shorting, I double-check that the voltage across the leads is zero before considering it safe.
answered Sep 5 at 13:33
calcium3000
340213
3
I just making sure it was safe for the equipment, you can always regrow a heart.
– Evan Carroll
Sep 5 at 13:39
3
I grab a big (ohmic value and wattage) resistor when I want to drain a cap. But you do you.
– Harper
Sep 5 at 15:20
@Harper I would prefer that, too, for the capacitor's sake. But I don't like the idea of using two hands to short a cap (in case one's fingers would contact the terminals before the resistor). Does your resistor have clips so you can do one terminal at a time?
– calcium3000
Sep 5 at 15:33
Sorry, by "grab" I mean in the figurative sense: read "obtain". It goes without saying that you should follow good electrical safety practices.
– Harper
Sep 5 at 15:45
add a comment |Â
up vote
6
down vote
I wouldn't short the cap to discharge it. When you do that, a huge current flows for a very short time. This current is almost certainly far beyond the rated current capabilities of the cap. You may not destroy the cap, but you are overstressing it and shortening its life.
I would recommend disconnecting one terminal of the cap first, then shorting it through a resistor applied to both terminals. The resistor limits the current flow, while disconnecting one side prevents you from accidentally shorting/improperly loading your power supply if its still hot or turns on without warning.
answered Sep 5 at 16:47
schadjo
29115
2
Sorting the cap might not destroy the cap, but it might destroy whatever you used to short it. I learned that many decades ago, working on an audio amp with a 40,000 uF 50V cap in the power supply (They don't make them like that any more!) Discharging it with a small screwdriver produced a loud bang - and vaporized the entire screwdriver blade, leaving a piece of metal rod with a somewhat chewed-up end in the screwdriver handle. Don't try that at home, kiddies!
– alephzero
Sep 5 at 20:18
1
Also, leave the resistor in place until you want to power up the cap again. Large value caps can recharge themselves from charge that is "hidden" in the electrolyte, and slowly percolates back onto the capacitor plates. If you remove the resistor, after a few hours you might discover (the painful way!) that the voltage has recovered to half what it was before you "fully discharged" the cap.
– alephzero
Sep 5 at 20:23
Nice! Hope you didn't lose any fingers. The instantaneous starting current when you bleed the cap is I_short = V_cap / R_limiting_resistor. On a dead short, your R is very low, so your current is sky-high. Voltage thrills, but current kills.
– schadjo
Sep 5 at 20:23
No damage done, fortunately. But you never forget what you learned from that sort of practical experience.
– alephzero
Sep 5 at 20:26
add a comment |Â
up vote
0
down vote
In most cases properly designed electrical equipment will have built-in provision for draining the capacitors. So you shouldn't need to drain the capacitors, only verify they are drained, which you can do with your voltmeter.
If you do need to drain a capacitor, then best practice would be to drain it through a high value resistor.
In my opinion the least bad set-up would be two test probes connected via suitable resistors. A chain of ten 2K 0.6W resistors seems like a reasonable choice (chains of resistors have the advantage over single resistors that if one fails it's not a disaster)
Be aware that electrolytic capacitors can partially re-charge themselves if they are left open-circuit after discharging. Most capacitors used directly on AC won't be electrolytics though, electrolytics are normally found in DC applications.
Unless the capacitor has some kind of connector on it I don't think trying to remove it from the circuit while still charged is a good idea. Too much risk of an accidental short.
answered Sep 5 at 23:15
Peter Green
1,450411
How do you recommend connecting the 10 resistors? If they are chained serially and one fails open, then the capacitor won't discharge. If they are in parallel and one fails shorted, then you'll get a big spark when the capacitor discharges. Seems like you'd want both, like 2 parallel banks of 5?
– Johnny
Sep 5 at 23:26
add a comment |Â
3 Answers
3
active
oldest
votes
3 Answers
3
active
oldest
votes
active
oldest
votes
active
oldest
votes
up vote
6
down vote
accepted
Always short the capacitor as early into the disassembly process as you can. You may accidentally discharge it when handling it or removing it from the unit, and these components have enough energy to kill you.
I make sure to wear jeans and leather boots with a rubber sole when discharging capacitors, and always when it's relatively dry out. I keep my left hand behind my back and short the capacitor leads with a screwdriver that has an insulated handle. After about ten seconds of shorting, I double-check that the voltage across the leads is zero before considering it safe.
answered Sep 5 at 13:33
calcium3000
340213
3
I just making sure it was safe for the equipment, you can always regrow a heart.
– Evan Carroll
Sep 5 at 13:39
3
I grab a big (ohmic value and wattage) resistor when I want to drain a cap. But you do you.
– Harper
Sep 5 at 15:20
@Harper I would prefer that, too, for the capacitor's sake. But I don't like the idea of using two hands to short a cap (in case one's fingers would contact the terminals before the resistor). Does your resistor have clips so you can do one terminal at a time?
– calcium3000
Sep 5 at 15:33
Sorry, by "grab" I mean in the figurative sense: read "obtain". It goes without saying that you should follow good electrical safety practices.
– Harper
Sep 5 at 15:45
add a comment |Â
up vote
6
down vote
accepted
Always short the capacitor as early into the disassembly process as you can. You may accidentally discharge it when handling it or removing it from the unit, and these components have enough energy to kill you.
I make sure to wear jeans and leather boots with a rubber sole when discharging capacitors, and always when it's relatively dry out. I keep my left hand behind my back and short the capacitor leads with a screwdriver that has an insulated handle. After about ten seconds of shorting, I double-check that the voltage across the leads is zero before considering it safe.
answered Sep 5 at 13:33
calcium3000
340213
3
I just making sure it was safe for the equipment, you can always regrow a heart.
– Evan Carroll
Sep 5 at 13:39
3
I grab a big (ohmic value and wattage) resistor when I want to drain a cap. But you do you.
– Harper
Sep 5 at 15:20
@Harper I would prefer that, too, for the capacitor's sake. But I don't like the idea of using two hands to short a cap (in case one's fingers would contact the terminals before the resistor). Does your resistor have clips so you can do one terminal at a time?
– calcium3000
Sep 5 at 15:33
Sorry, by "grab" I mean in the figurative sense: read "obtain". It goes without saying that you should follow good electrical safety practices.
– Harper
Sep 5 at 15:45
add a comment |Â
up vote
6
down vote
accepted
up vote
6
down vote
accepted
Always short the capacitor as early into the disassembly process as you can. You may accidentally discharge it when handling it or removing it from the unit, and these components have enough energy to kill you.
I make sure to wear jeans and leather boots with a rubber sole when discharging capacitors, and always when it's relatively dry out. I keep my left hand behind my back and short the capacitor leads with a screwdriver that has an insulated handle. After about ten seconds of shorting, I double-check that the voltage across the leads is zero before considering it safe.
answered Sep 5 at 13:33
calcium3000
340213
Always short the capacitor as early into the disassembly process as you can. You may accidentally discharge it when handling it or removing it from the unit, and these components have enough energy to kill you.
I make sure to wear jeans and leather boots with a rubber sole when discharging capacitors, and always when it's relatively dry out. I keep my left hand behind my back and short the capacitor leads with a screwdriver that has an insulated handle. After about ten seconds of shorting, I double-check that the voltage across the leads is zero before considering it safe.
answered Sep 5 at 13:33
calcium3000
340213
answered Sep 5 at 13:33
calcium3000
340213
answered Sep 5 at 13:33
calcium3000
340213
answered Sep 5 at 13:33
calcium3000
340213
340213
3
I just making sure it was safe for the equipment, you can always regrow a heart.
– Evan Carroll
Sep 5 at 13:39
3
I grab a big (ohmic value and wattage) resistor when I want to drain a cap. But you do you.
– Harper
Sep 5 at 15:20
@Harper I would prefer that, too, for the capacitor's sake. But I don't like the idea of using two hands to short a cap (in case one's fingers would contact the terminals before the resistor). Does your resistor have clips so you can do one terminal at a time?
– calcium3000
Sep 5 at 15:33
Sorry, by "grab" I mean in the figurative sense: read "obtain". It goes without saying that you should follow good electrical safety practices.
– Harper
Sep 5 at 15:45
add a comment |Â
3
I just making sure it was safe for the equipment, you can always regrow a heart.
– Evan Carroll
Sep 5 at 13:39
3
I grab a big (ohmic value and wattage) resistor when I want to drain a cap. But you do you.
– Harper
Sep 5 at 15:20
@Harper I would prefer that, too, for the capacitor's sake. But I don't like the idea of using two hands to short a cap (in case one's fingers would contact the terminals before the resistor). Does your resistor have clips so you can do one terminal at a time?
– calcium3000
Sep 5 at 15:33
Sorry, by "grab" I mean in the figurative sense: read "obtain". It goes without saying that you should follow good electrical safety practices.
– Harper
Sep 5 at 15:45
3
3
I just making sure it was safe for the equipment, you can always regrow a heart.
– Evan Carroll
Sep 5 at 13:39
I just making sure it was safe for the equipment, you can always regrow a heart.
– Evan Carroll
Sep 5 at 13:39
3
3
I grab a big (ohmic value and wattage) resistor when I want to drain a cap. But you do you.
– Harper
Sep 5 at 15:20
I grab a big (ohmic value and wattage) resistor when I want to drain a cap. But you do you.
– Harper
Sep 5 at 15:20
@Harper I would prefer that, too, for the capacitor's sake. But I don't like the idea of using two hands to short a cap (in case one's fingers would contact the terminals before the resistor). Does your resistor have clips so you can do one terminal at a time?
– calcium3000
Sep 5 at 15:33
@Harper I would prefer that, too, for the capacitor's sake. But I don't like the idea of using two hands to short a cap (in case one's fingers would contact the terminals before the resistor). Does your resistor have clips so you can do one terminal at a time?
– calcium3000
Sep 5 at 15:33
Sorry, by "grab" I mean in the figurative sense: read "obtain". It goes without saying that you should follow good electrical safety practices.
– Harper
Sep 5 at 15:45
Sorry, by "grab" I mean in the figurative sense: read "obtain". It goes without saying that you should follow good electrical safety practices.
– Harper
Sep 5 at 15:45
add a comment |Â
up vote
6
down vote
I wouldn't short the cap to discharge it. When you do that, a huge current flows for a very short time. This current is almost certainly far beyond the rated current capabilities of the cap. You may not destroy the cap, but you are overstressing it and shortening its life.
I would recommend disconnecting one terminal of the cap first, then shorting it through a resistor applied to both terminals. The resistor limits the current flow, while disconnecting one side prevents you from accidentally shorting/improperly loading your power supply if its still hot or turns on without warning.
answered Sep 5 at 16:47
schadjo
29115
2
Sorting the cap might not destroy the cap, but it might destroy whatever you used to short it. I learned that many decades ago, working on an audio amp with a 40,000 uF 50V cap in the power supply (They don't make them like that any more!) Discharging it with a small screwdriver produced a loud bang - and vaporized the entire screwdriver blade, leaving a piece of metal rod with a somewhat chewed-up end in the screwdriver handle. Don't try that at home, kiddies!
– alephzero
Sep 5 at 20:18
1
Also, leave the resistor in place until you want to power up the cap again. Large value caps can recharge themselves from charge that is "hidden" in the electrolyte, and slowly percolates back onto the capacitor plates. If you remove the resistor, after a few hours you might discover (the painful way!) that the voltage has recovered to half what it was before you "fully discharged" the cap.
– alephzero
Sep 5 at 20:23
Nice! Hope you didn't lose any fingers. The instantaneous starting current when you bleed the cap is I_short = V_cap / R_limiting_resistor. On a dead short, your R is very low, so your current is sky-high. Voltage thrills, but current kills.
– schadjo
Sep 5 at 20:23
No damage done, fortunately. But you never forget what you learned from that sort of practical experience.
– alephzero
Sep 5 at 20:26
add a comment |Â
up vote
6
down vote
I wouldn't short the cap to discharge it. When you do that, a huge current flows for a very short time. This current is almost certainly far beyond the rated current capabilities of the cap. You may not destroy the cap, but you are overstressing it and shortening its life.
I would recommend disconnecting one terminal of the cap first, then shorting it through a resistor applied to both terminals. The resistor limits the current flow, while disconnecting one side prevents you from accidentally shorting/improperly loading your power supply if its still hot or turns on without warning.
answered Sep 5 at 16:47
schadjo
29115
2
Sorting the cap might not destroy the cap, but it might destroy whatever you used to short it. I learned that many decades ago, working on an audio amp with a 40,000 uF 50V cap in the power supply (They don't make them like that any more!) Discharging it with a small screwdriver produced a loud bang - and vaporized the entire screwdriver blade, leaving a piece of metal rod with a somewhat chewed-up end in the screwdriver handle. Don't try that at home, kiddies!
– alephzero
Sep 5 at 20:18
1
Also, leave the resistor in place until you want to power up the cap again. Large value caps can recharge themselves from charge that is "hidden" in the electrolyte, and slowly percolates back onto the capacitor plates. If you remove the resistor, after a few hours you might discover (the painful way!) that the voltage has recovered to half what it was before you "fully discharged" the cap.
– alephzero
Sep 5 at 20:23
Nice! Hope you didn't lose any fingers. The instantaneous starting current when you bleed the cap is I_short = V_cap / R_limiting_resistor. On a dead short, your R is very low, so your current is sky-high. Voltage thrills, but current kills.
– schadjo
Sep 5 at 20:23
No damage done, fortunately. But you never forget what you learned from that sort of practical experience.
– alephzero
Sep 5 at 20:26
add a comment |Â
up vote
6
down vote
up vote
6
down vote
I wouldn't short the cap to discharge it. When you do that, a huge current flows for a very short time. This current is almost certainly far beyond the rated current capabilities of the cap. You may not destroy the cap, but you are overstressing it and shortening its life.
I would recommend disconnecting one terminal of the cap first, then shorting it through a resistor applied to both terminals. The resistor limits the current flow, while disconnecting one side prevents you from accidentally shorting/improperly loading your power supply if its still hot or turns on without warning.
answered Sep 5 at 16:47
schadjo
29115
I wouldn't short the cap to discharge it. When you do that, a huge current flows for a very short time. This current is almost certainly far beyond the rated current capabilities of the cap. You may not destroy the cap, but you are overstressing it and shortening its life.
I would recommend disconnecting one terminal of the cap first, then shorting it through a resistor applied to both terminals. The resistor limits the current flow, while disconnecting one side prevents you from accidentally shorting/improperly loading your power supply if its still hot or turns on without warning.
answered Sep 5 at 16:47
schadjo
29115
edited Sep 5 at 17:47
answered Sep 5 at 16:47
schadjo
29115
answered Sep 5 at 16:47
schadjo
29115
answered Sep 5 at 16:47
schadjo
29115
29115
2
Sorting the cap might not destroy the cap, but it might destroy whatever you used to short it. I learned that many decades ago, working on an audio amp with a 40,000 uF 50V cap in the power supply (They don't make them like that any more!) Discharging it with a small screwdriver produced a loud bang - and vaporized the entire screwdriver blade, leaving a piece of metal rod with a somewhat chewed-up end in the screwdriver handle. Don't try that at home, kiddies!
– alephzero
Sep 5 at 20:18
1
Also, leave the resistor in place until you want to power up the cap again. Large value caps can recharge themselves from charge that is "hidden" in the electrolyte, and slowly percolates back onto the capacitor plates. If you remove the resistor, after a few hours you might discover (the painful way!) that the voltage has recovered to half what it was before you "fully discharged" the cap.
– alephzero
Sep 5 at 20:23
Nice! Hope you didn't lose any fingers. The instantaneous starting current when you bleed the cap is I_short = V_cap / R_limiting_resistor. On a dead short, your R is very low, so your current is sky-high. Voltage thrills, but current kills.
– schadjo
Sep 5 at 20:23
No damage done, fortunately. But you never forget what you learned from that sort of practical experience.
– alephzero
Sep 5 at 20:26
add a comment |Â
2
Sorting the cap might not destroy the cap, but it might destroy whatever you used to short it. I learned that many decades ago, working on an audio amp with a 40,000 uF 50V cap in the power supply (They don't make them like that any more!) Discharging it with a small screwdriver produced a loud bang - and vaporized the entire screwdriver blade, leaving a piece of metal rod with a somewhat chewed-up end in the screwdriver handle. Don't try that at home, kiddies!
– alephzero
Sep 5 at 20:18
1
Also, leave the resistor in place until you want to power up the cap again. Large value caps can recharge themselves from charge that is "hidden" in the electrolyte, and slowly percolates back onto the capacitor plates. If you remove the resistor, after a few hours you might discover (the painful way!) that the voltage has recovered to half what it was before you "fully discharged" the cap.
– alephzero
Sep 5 at 20:23
Nice! Hope you didn't lose any fingers. The instantaneous starting current when you bleed the cap is I_short = V_cap / R_limiting_resistor. On a dead short, your R is very low, so your current is sky-high. Voltage thrills, but current kills.
– schadjo
Sep 5 at 20:23
No damage done, fortunately. But you never forget what you learned from that sort of practical experience.
– alephzero
Sep 5 at 20:26
2
2
Sorting the cap might not destroy the cap, but it might destroy whatever you used to short it. I learned that many decades ago, working on an audio amp with a 40,000 uF 50V cap in the power supply (They don't make them like that any more!) Discharging it with a small screwdriver produced a loud bang - and vaporized the entire screwdriver blade, leaving a piece of metal rod with a somewhat chewed-up end in the screwdriver handle. Don't try that at home, kiddies!
– alephzero
Sep 5 at 20:18
Sorting the cap might not destroy the cap, but it might destroy whatever you used to short it. I learned that many decades ago, working on an audio amp with a 40,000 uF 50V cap in the power supply (They don't make them like that any more!) Discharging it with a small screwdriver produced a loud bang - and vaporized the entire screwdriver blade, leaving a piece of metal rod with a somewhat chewed-up end in the screwdriver handle. Don't try that at home, kiddies!
– alephzero
Sep 5 at 20:18
1
1
Also, leave the resistor in place until you want to power up the cap again. Large value caps can recharge themselves from charge that is "hidden" in the electrolyte, and slowly percolates back onto the capacitor plates. If you remove the resistor, after a few hours you might discover (the painful way!) that the voltage has recovered to half what it was before you "fully discharged" the cap.
– alephzero
Sep 5 at 20:23
Also, leave the resistor in place until you want to power up the cap again. Large value caps can recharge themselves from charge that is "hidden" in the electrolyte, and slowly percolates back onto the capacitor plates. If you remove the resistor, after a few hours you might discover (the painful way!) that the voltage has recovered to half what it was before you "fully discharged" the cap.
– alephzero
Sep 5 at 20:23
Nice! Hope you didn't lose any fingers. The instantaneous starting current when you bleed the cap is I_short = V_cap / R_limiting_resistor. On a dead short, your R is very low, so your current is sky-high. Voltage thrills, but current kills.
– schadjo
Sep 5 at 20:23
Nice! Hope you didn't lose any fingers. The instantaneous starting current when you bleed the cap is I_short = V_cap / R_limiting_resistor. On a dead short, your R is very low, so your current is sky-high. Voltage thrills, but current kills.
– schadjo
Sep 5 at 20:23
No damage done, fortunately. But you never forget what you learned from that sort of practical experience.
– alephzero
Sep 5 at 20:26
No damage done, fortunately. But you never forget what you learned from that sort of practical experience.
– alephzero
Sep 5 at 20:26
add a comment |Â
up vote
0
down vote
In most cases properly designed electrical equipment will have built-in provision for draining the capacitors. So you shouldn't need to drain the capacitors, only verify they are drained, which you can do with your voltmeter.
If you do need to drain a capacitor, then best practice would be to drain it through a high value resistor.
In my opinion the least bad set-up would be two test probes connected via suitable resistors. A chain of ten 2K 0.6W resistors seems like a reasonable choice (chains of resistors have the advantage over single resistors that if one fails it's not a disaster)
Be aware that electrolytic capacitors can partially re-charge themselves if they are left open-circuit after discharging. Most capacitors used directly on AC won't be electrolytics though, electrolytics are normally found in DC applications.
Unless the capacitor has some kind of connector on it I don't think trying to remove it from the circuit while still charged is a good idea. Too much risk of an accidental short.
answered Sep 5 at 23:15
Peter Green
1,450411
How do you recommend connecting the 10 resistors? If they are chained serially and one fails open, then the capacitor won't discharge. If they are in parallel and one fails shorted, then you'll get a big spark when the capacitor discharges. Seems like you'd want both, like 2 parallel banks of 5?
– Johnny
Sep 5 at 23:26
add a comment |Â
up vote
0
down vote
In most cases properly designed electrical equipment will have built-in provision for draining the capacitors. So you shouldn't need to drain the capacitors, only verify they are drained, which you can do with your voltmeter.
If you do need to drain a capacitor, then best practice would be to drain it through a high value resistor.
In my opinion the least bad set-up would be two test probes connected via suitable resistors. A chain of ten 2K 0.6W resistors seems like a reasonable choice (chains of resistors have the advantage over single resistors that if one fails it's not a disaster)
Be aware that electrolytic capacitors can partially re-charge themselves if they are left open-circuit after discharging. Most capacitors used directly on AC won't be electrolytics though, electrolytics are normally found in DC applications.
Unless the capacitor has some kind of connector on it I don't think trying to remove it from the circuit while still charged is a good idea. Too much risk of an accidental short.
answered Sep 5 at 23:15
Peter Green
1,450411
How do you recommend connecting the 10 resistors? If they are chained serially and one fails open, then the capacitor won't discharge. If they are in parallel and one fails shorted, then you'll get a big spark when the capacitor discharges. Seems like you'd want both, like 2 parallel banks of 5?
– Johnny
Sep 5 at 23:26
add a comment |Â
up vote
0
down vote
up vote
0
down vote
In most cases properly designed electrical equipment will have built-in provision for draining the capacitors. So you shouldn't need to drain the capacitors, only verify they are drained, which you can do with your voltmeter.
If you do need to drain a capacitor, then best practice would be to drain it through a high value resistor.
In my opinion the least bad set-up would be two test probes connected via suitable resistors. A chain of ten 2K 0.6W resistors seems like a reasonable choice (chains of resistors have the advantage over single resistors that if one fails it's not a disaster)
Be aware that electrolytic capacitors can partially re-charge themselves if they are left open-circuit after discharging. Most capacitors used directly on AC won't be electrolytics though, electrolytics are normally found in DC applications.
Unless the capacitor has some kind of connector on it I don't think trying to remove it from the circuit while still charged is a good idea. Too much risk of an accidental short.
answered Sep 5 at 23:15
Peter Green
1,450411
In most cases properly designed electrical equipment will have built-in provision for draining the capacitors. So you shouldn't need to drain the capacitors, only verify they are drained, which you can do with your voltmeter.
If you do need to drain a capacitor, then best practice would be to drain it through a high value resistor.
In my opinion the least bad set-up would be two test probes connected via suitable resistors. A chain of ten 2K 0.6W resistors seems like a reasonable choice (chains of resistors have the advantage over single resistors that if one fails it's not a disaster)
Be aware that electrolytic capacitors can partially re-charge themselves if they are left open-circuit after discharging. Most capacitors used directly on AC won't be electrolytics though, electrolytics are normally found in DC applications.
Unless the capacitor has some kind of connector on it I don't think trying to remove it from the circuit while still charged is a good idea. Too much risk of an accidental short.
answered Sep 5 at 23:15
Peter Green
1,450411
answered Sep 5 at 23:15
Peter Green
1,450411
answered Sep 5 at 23:15
Peter Green
1,450411
answered Sep 5 at 23:15
Peter Green
1,450411
1,450411
How do you recommend connecting the 10 resistors? If they are chained serially and one fails open, then the capacitor won't discharge. If they are in parallel and one fails shorted, then you'll get a big spark when the capacitor discharges. Seems like you'd want both, like 2 parallel banks of 5?
– Johnny
Sep 5 at 23:26
add a comment |Â
How do you recommend connecting the 10 resistors? If they are chained serially and one fails open, then the capacitor won't discharge. If they are in parallel and one fails shorted, then you'll get a big spark when the capacitor discharges. Seems like you'd want both, like 2 parallel banks of 5?
– Johnny
Sep 5 at 23:26
How do you recommend connecting the 10 resistors? If they are chained serially and one fails open, then the capacitor won't discharge. If they are in parallel and one fails shorted, then you'll get a big spark when the capacitor discharges. Seems like you'd want both, like 2 parallel banks of 5?
– Johnny
Sep 5 at 23:26
How do you recommend connecting the 10 resistors? If they are chained serially and one fails open, then the capacitor won't discharge. If they are in parallel and one fails shorted, then you'll get a big spark when the capacitor discharges. Seems like you'd want both, like 2 parallel banks of 5?
– Johnny
Sep 5 at 23:26
add a comment |Â
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