"N Cook" writes:

peter wrote in message
news:enV3j.18414$B21.13403@trndny07...
Electrolytic capacitors sometimes blow up -- due to heat, old age, or lack
of use(?).

I have some old studio flashes used for photography and they contain some
high voltage electrolytic capacitors. I use them once in a long while. But
if they ever blow up, it would be very unpleasant.

Could someone reassure me that it is not going to happen, or suggest a
solution?

If it's a line powered flash, you can increase the input voltage slowly to
allow the cap to reform after non-use.

This might be more difficult with an inverter type though.

I would say that generally speaking they heat up before exploding so perhaps
fixing a very low temp thermal fuse to the outside/top of the cap, wired
into the supply rail would help but I somehow doubt a guarantee.
They all should have a vent, like any pressure vessel, but obviously they
don't all or those fail to work. I've seen the bolied electrolyte mess in a
part of a lab and hole in the ceiling where a techie replaced a large ps
one, the wrong way round.

--
Diverse Devices, Southampton, England
electronic hints and repair briefs , schematics/manuals list on
http://home.graffiti.net/diverse:graffiti.net/