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Electronics Repair (sci.electronics.repair) Discussion of repairing electronic equipment. Topics include requests for assistance, where to obtain servicing information and parts, techniques for diagnosis and repair, and annecdotes about success, failures and problems. |
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#1
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Dead transformer in UPS
The transformer in my Tripp Lite "Internet750U" UPS appears to be dead.
120v goes into it (measured near where the power cord goes into it) but nothing comes out the other side. The sci.electronics.repair faq and http://sound.westhost.com/xfmr.htm both lead me to believe I should check for a thermal fuse under the insulating wrapping. The FAQ says "There may be a thermal fuse buried under the outer layers of the transformer which may have blown. These can be replaced but locating one may prove quite a challenge." There's no visible bulges in the wrapping; do I just cut into it and try to find the thing? I'm not terribly afraid to destroy it. If I can't repair it, I'll want to hack the remains into a standalone inverter and use a standalone charger with it (and maybe a bigger battery -- say, the one in my RV). Are there any other diagnostic tests I should try first? |
#2
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Dead transformer in UPS
Rick Onanian wrote: The transformer in my Tripp Lite "Internet750U" UPS appears to be dead. 120v goes into it (measured near where the power cord goes into it) but nothing comes out the other side. The sci.electronics.repair faq and http://sound.westhost.com/xfmr.htm both lead me to believe I should check for a thermal fuse under the insulating wrapping. The FAQ says "There may be a thermal fuse buried under the outer layers of the transformer which may have blown. These can be replaced but locating one may prove quite a challenge." There's no visible bulges in the wrapping; do I just cut into it and try to find the thing? I'm not terribly afraid to destroy it. If I can't repair it, I'll want to hack the remains into a standalone inverter and use a standalone charger with it (and maybe a bigger battery -- say, the one in my RV). Are there any other diagnostic tests I should try first? If its a metal incased transformer you have to take the clam shell shield off of it before you begin. if its a open type transformer, your in business. First check the primary and secondary for continuity. My guess is you will find the primary open. Measure at the leads directly coming from the transformer. If the leads measure open, look where the leads go into the transformer body. There will usually be a plastic top and bottom of some molded variety. You need to cut away this plastic carefully with a Xacto knife or such and follow the lead wires down to the core. Look for a bulge in the core where the wires go down. This will probably be where the thermal fuse is. If you found it, very carefully pull it out of the transformer core with needle nose pliers. Measure the thermal fuse for continuity. if its open, you can either bypass it (not so safe way) or put in a new thermal fuse. If can be a challenge to get a replacement thermal fuse back into the core. then you have to replace the cut away plastic ends the best you can and secure it. If your real lucky, the transformer core was not damaged and it will work. If it works, check closely for excess heat or smell. Bob ----== Posted via Newsfeeds.Com - Unlimited-Unrestricted-Secure Usenet News==---- http://www.newsfeeds.com The #1 Newsgroup Service in the World! 120,000+ Newsgroups ----= East and West-Coast Server Farms - Total Privacy via Encryption =---- |
#3
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Dead transformer in UPS
"Rick Onanian" wrote in message ... There's no visible bulges in the wrapping; do I just cut into it and try to find the thing? Radio Shack may still sell the fuses. |
#4
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Dead transformer in UPS
Are there any other diagnostic tests I should try first? Have you tried an ohmmeter test? |
#5
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Dead transformer in UPS
Bob Urz wrote:
in business. First check the primary and secondary for continuity. My guess is you will find the primary open. Measure at the leads My diagnosis was wrong, and even some of my observations were wrong. I thought AC from the wall went straight in to the transformer, but having taken it completely out now, I see that they merely are routed very close to it. I thought I had better eyesight than that. Primary has two wires (black and white). They have continuity. Secondary has three wires, each of which come out in bare-looking (but actually covered in thin invisible insulation) twin heavy solid copper wires. All have continuity to eachother. One (red) is definitely +12v (goes directly to the battery and to the circuit board). Two heavy wires (black, white) go to big heatsinks on the circuit board, to which MOSFETs are screwed. It is at this point that I can tell you with absolute certainty that I am out of my league. Monetarily, I have nothing to lose, although I suppose there could be some physical danger here for me. I'd plow on and learn something anyway, but having just spent a half hour following circuits around, I have no idea how to do anything more. Drat...this won't even get hacked into an inverter. The battery seems ok, though, so maybe I'll use the battery for something and give up on the rest. I think with the battery and a tiny float charger I've got, I could build a DC UPS for my cable modem and router and skip AC altogether... |
#6
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Dead transformer in UPS
Still searching for a faulty component in the power circuit, and
nothing seems to be wrong? Search for a (very) little transformer on the printed circuit board (or nearby) and for a fuse attached to it. Should one of these two fails, the whole thing stops working, because this sub-circuit is user for detecting when the mains power is on. Probably, this transformer has a built-in thermal fuse that trips when it reaches 110Cº, so check resistance (its about 50 Ohm for 230 volt mains). The other part to check is a fuse in series with this transformer, but maybe you have a hard time trying to identify it, because its encapsulate is sometimes very similar to a diode bridge, and others seems to be a resistor in a yellow or green body, but with very strange or no markings at all. Manufacturers tend to be very creative when choosing this fuse, and its my believe they do it on purpose. Hope you can "bring it back to life". Greetings Louis. |
#7
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Dead transformer in UPS
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