Leaky capacitor = dead PSU?

[Balt]

While I can assemble a system, truthfully I know absolutely nothing about the electrical side of things so I thought I'd get some feedback.

A couple of days ago my system abruptly shutdown and would not reboot properly. I assumed it was either the CPU, video card, motherboard, or PSU that had failed. Reseated everything and checked all connections. Also inspected the CPU and it appeared to be fine. I don't have enough parts around to swap out anything but memory, so I'm trying to narrow it down as much as possible.

Basically, after everything else had been checked I removed the PSU and after unscrewing the fan I noticed the visible capacitors appeared to have been leaking. For a computer that is a couple of years old, is this typical or pretty much a sure sign that the PSU is at least one of the causes of the boot problems?

I already have a pretty good idea (I've ordered a replacement), but as I said I'd like to be sure that it's the culprit. On the bright side, I haven't noticed any damage to the motherboard so I'm hoping the PSU didn't destroy it when it failed.

Thanks in advance.

 

[pkme2]

Here's some good info on PSUs
http://www.psuinquisitor.com/
And after reading what leaky capacitors can do to your rig on AT, consider yourself fortunate.
I recommend Enermax and Seasonic
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductLi...it=ENE&Manufactory=1400&SubCategory=58
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16817151024

 

[potato28]

Which company was it made by? Is it still under warrenty? O yea... dont run your pc on that PSU for the time being.

 

[Zepper]

Unknowledgeable people look in thru the holes or slots in the PSU and see some white or yellowish goop around the caps and think they are leaking when it's just high-temp silicone goop to keep the caps from vibrating. Go to http://www.badcaps.com to see some pix of really bad caps so you'll know what you're looking at.

.bh.

 

[Balt]

I cannot get a very good view of the base of the caps without disassembling more than I would be comfortable with, but the caps do not appear to be standing very straight (if that's any indication). Anyhow, I will update in a few days when I get it replaced.

The old PSU was an Antec SL350, which I thought at the time I installed it was a safe bet. Some of the opinions I've seen expressed here have now led me to believe otherwise.

 

[GalvanizedYankee]

What you might see will be found in pics posted here http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,14116577

These units, your's included, were made by CWT to Antec's price point :disgust: and can/will kill HDD logic chips with 5V spikes at boot.

http://www.theflyingpenguin.com/ >Blog>9/05.

In the future. If you must unplug the main line to reset a PSU, never shrug it off with ease...Investigate Ppl have killed hardware by forcing a system to boot with a dieing PSU. IIRC, JEDEC specs desktop PSUs for 5 years service and server grade for 10 years. This does not mean it happens, just what they want.
I hope you didn't order another Antec PSU. There are some real bargains on a FSP-400W GLN and several Enhance ENP units at eWiz.com.


...Galvanized