Silverstone 600W power supply trips circuit breaker

[rob1234]

I have a Silverstone Strider 600W power supply. I recently moved into a new home and after setting up my computer when I turned on the power supply the circuit breaker tripped.

I've narrowed it down to the power supply by removing it from the computer, disconnecting all the cords, and making sure it was the only thing using the circuit i.e. unplugged everything else in the house using outlets on that circuit. Still, as soon as I turned on the power supply the circuit blew. I also tried using different outlets on the same circuit with the same result.

I tried using a 1200W hair dryer and a 520W OCZ power supply on the same outlet and neither of them would trip the breaker. This leads me to believe I have a faulty power supply. However, I tried the power supply in a different room that uses a different circuit and it did not trip that breaker. So, I don't know what's going on. It sounds like I have a faulty power supply because I've tried tons of other appliances and nothing else trips the circuit but that doesn't explain why the power supply works on the other circuit. Any advice?

 

[GalvanizedYankee]

Well, if it was working fine before the move, I'd look to the house wiring first.

The Silverstone might have higher inrush current than the OCZ. I looked for the specs for both, but...Nada.

I bet the breaker needs replacing. Once they have tripped alot, they tend to trip easyer..or so has been my experiance.
Buy a slow trip breaker of the same amperage


...Galvanized

 

[Mark R]

Is it a standard breaker (detects excessive current), or is it a combined overload and earth fault breaker?

If the first, then it sounds as if the PSU is either taking excessive start-up current, or the breaker is excessively sensistive to the current surge when the PSU is switched on. (Most breakers are designed so that they allow very brief switch-on surges). The fact that it works on another circuit suggests that it is the breaker that is excessively sensitive. It may need replacing, because repeated trips and faults do cause breakers to degrade - it's not unknown for breakers to become more sensitive as they wear out (better that then the breaker fails to trip for a genuine fault).

I'd normally recommend replacing the breaker with one of the same rating and of normal speed. However, you can get 'slow' trip breakers that are more likely to ignore brief switch-on surges. I wouldn't recommend such a breaker unless the PSU simply doesn't work with a brand new 'normal' breaker of the correct current rating.

If the latter, then you need to find out what the breaker is tripping on. Most combined breakers pop up some sort of flag to show what caused the trip. If the breaker is tripping on earth-leakage, then you may have a faulty PSU.

 

[rob1234]

Thanks for the advice.

I looked at the breaker and it is a little different than all the rest. It's 15amps like a bunch of the other ones but the text on the breaker is a different font so maybe it's a different brand or something that is more sensitive. I'll try replacing it.