electronic device storage - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / general

author: carlosff2
author_rank: Newbie
timestamp: October 20, 2022, 12:46:56 pm
content: What causes more defects in old electronic devices (the 90's and 2000's) when they remain stored for a long time without being used are the electrolytic capacitors? many people report that after a while stopped when turning them on there is no sign of life

author: Black Phoenix
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 22, 2022, 11:00:45 am
content: For me is Caps. Normally with gaming consoles, where I have experience. The OG Xbox and in some way the GBA suffer from capacitor degradation, mostly because of that era of defective caps -https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capacitor_plagueI've probably recaped already 8 OG Xbox motherboards with that problem and 3 PSUs for the same console.

author: carlosff2
author_rank: Newbie
timestamp: October 22, 2022, 12:01:41 pm
content: Unfortunately I don't have control of the weather conditions, do you have any tips to keep the electrolytic capacitors good even though they are electrolytic capacitors from electronic devices from the early 90's and early mid 2000's? i have cartridge consoles, crt tvs, ps2 slim

author: Simon
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: October 22, 2022, 01:24:34 pm
content: caps wear out end of, eventually they have to be replaced, they are the most common failure.

author: ebastler
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 22, 2022, 08:54:53 pm
content: We have had a user here who posted under several different accounts -- classicsamus87, robertart, johnrodrigues, tiago1986 -- which are now all banned. That poor guy was obsessed with preserving old video games, CD ROM drives and media, and electrolytic capacitors too.You sound a bit like him, and certainly your topic of interest sounds like him. He also has used the name "cloudff7" on other forums, which sounds a lot like your current name. Is it you, yet again?Here's a pretty comprehensive (but probably incomplete) list of this person's accounts used on many forums:https://www.eevblog.com/forum/general-computing/doubts-dvd-drive-of-pc/msg3423498/#msg3423498. I don't recommend engaging in discussions with this user. There is never a satisfactory answer, and discussing his preservation issues and concerns only seems to make the obsession worse.

author: EEVblog
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: October 23, 2022, 11:50:39 pm
content: Quote from: ebastler on October 22, 2022, 08:54:53 pmYep, matches to tiago1986

author: jmelson
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 26, 2022, 05:12:58 pm
content: Quote from: carlosff2 on October 20, 2022, 12:46:56 pmInteresting topic. One thing I do know, wet slug Tantalum capacitors need to be used regularly, or the dielectric breaks down. the worst thing is to use some gear with this capacitor type for a while, then put it in storage for several years, maybe even a decade, and then power it back on. The caps will short out, and if enough supply current is available, they will catch fire!I have a pick and place machine made in about 2000. I got it from an auction in Austin, TX in 2020. Looking at file dates on the disk, it apparently was used between 2001 and 2004, and then abandoned after monkeys broke it. So, apparently it sat in unconditioned spaces from 2004-2020.I have had a huge number of problems with this machine, mostly looks like the failure of ICs with flash/EPROM memory. I'm guessing that storage in high temperatures/humidity caused early failure of these parts. None of the used parts I have put in it have failed.Jon