Can electrostatic discharge hurt a power supply?

[gothuevos]

Sorry, total physics noob and only 2nd time builder here with what may seem like a really silly question, so please cut me some slack.

Received my PSU the other day (still boxed/wrapped and in cardboard shipping box too) and my roommate stored it on top of my dog's metal crate/cage which he goes in and out of quite frequently. Any risk of static building up and discharging through all that to even get to the PSU, much less harm it? Still waiting on the other parts of the build, just paranoid because it'll be powering a rather expensive build. Thanks.

 

[oynaz]

Lightning is an electrostatic discharge, so yes, it can damage a PSU.

In your particular case? No way.

 

[bryanl]

Ordinary static voltage from walking on a wool carpet or brushing against a cat can do harm only through the Power_On and Power_Good lines since only they connect to directly to sensitive electronics inside the PSU. The power wires are essentially immune to static since they connect to large capacitors or ground.

 

[Smoove910]

if it's plugged in there's virtually no risk of damaging it since it is grounded through the power outlet. When building PC's, that's how I discharge any ESD I may have (touching the powersupply).

 

[VirtualLarry]

I had a client installation of a custom PC I had built for them. I walked across a carpeted floor, with a case side-panel, that I was going to attach to the PC, which happened to be on at the time. When I made contact with the chassis, ZAP, the whole computer shut down.

I was a bit surprised. The case is supposed to be screwed into the PSU's case, which is supposed to be connected to ground. It shouldn't have shut off the PC. I asked the client if that ever happened before, they said "all the time".

Is it any wonder that the PSU "exploded" on the client? Not while I was there, and I don't recall whether if was that PSU that died after giving of the magic smoke, or if that was the replacement PSU that got static-zapped.

I suspect that the ground wiring in their apt was faulty.

Edit: My moral to the story? Yes, PSUs can be destroyed by static.

 

[mfenn]

if it's plugged in there's virtually no risk of damaging it since it is grounded through the power outlet. When building PC's, that's how I discharge any ESD I may have (touching the powersupply).

Please don't. It's unnecessary because the case is a sufficiently massive hunk of metal to act as repository for all that charge. All it takes is one improperly wired outlet to turn your "grounded through the outlet" into "barbecued my fingers via the outlet".

 

[VirtualLarry]

Please don't. It's unnecessary because the case is a sufficiently massive hunk of metal to act as repository for all that charge. All it takes is one improperly wired outlet to turn your "grounded through the outlet" into "barbecued my fingers via the outlet".

Yeah, been there, done that, got the t-shirt.

 

[axlrose87]

But don't ever forget your anti-static strap!