Modding a PC Power Supply into a 12 Volt Supply for your DC charger

[xiteamxi]

SO.. does this charges the battery's? like say i have a 7.2v packs can you just hook up say 10v from this to charge them or is this only to get 12v and people are using 12v(car)chargers to charge there battery? if thats the case is-ant there 120v ad to 12v dc adapters cheaper ? any clarification is appreciated thanks

[Charlie-III]

Originally Posted by xiteamxi

SO.. does this charge the batteries? Say I have 7.2v packs, can you just hook up the 10v from this to charge them? Or is this only to get 12v and people are using 12v(car)chargers to charge thier battery? If thats the case, isn't there 120v AC to 12v DC adapters cheaper? Any clarification is appreciated, thanks

It "could" be used to charge batteries, but you have no good way to regulate the current (amps) nor is there a way to stop the charge when the pack is full.
This thread is how to make a regulated 12VDC power supply for use with battery chargers, dischargers, etc.
A good 30A+ DC power supply can be over $100, this mod can be done for a few dollars.
My battery charger is dual input, I can charge froma 120VAC wall outlet or a 12VDC battery/power supply.

[98sahara]

So in theory I could hook my leads up to the 12+ and 12- ports on my modded power supply and it would be the same as hooking it to a car battery? Or no? Electronics confuse me

[Charlie-III]

Originally Posted by 98sahara

So in theory I could hook my leads up to the 12+ and 12- ports on my modded power supply and it would be the same as hooking it to a car battery? Or no? Electronics confuse me

I would double check the voltage with a meter first, but yes, it would work like a car battery, only it will be more stable.

[98sahara]

Ok haha ill do that thanks

[Charlie-III]

Originally Posted by 98sahara

Ok, haha, I'll do that, thanks

Soooo....any progress??

[98sahara]

Originally Posted by Charlie-III

Soooo....any progress??

haha well...... i put my multimeter leads to the 12v+ and the 12v- to test it and it just shut off??? soooo im not sure what happened ill prolly just make another one unless someone knows why it did that.

[PaulSR]

If you put your meter across the +12v and the -12v you will get 24 volts!! If your meter was not set for checking voltage, it would shut off the PS.

+12 to ground should give you +12v -12v to ground should give you -12v

Paul

[98sahara]

So why won't it turn back on then is it fried??? Or is there a built in safety u can reset

[Charlie-III]

Originally Posted by 98sahara

So why won't it turn back on then is it fried??? Or is there a built in safety u can reset

They normally either reset, or clear a fuse.

[98sahara]

Talking about the power supply right. Just want to be on the same page

[Charlie-III]

Originally Posted by 98sahara

Talking about the power supply right. Just want to be on the same page

Same library, same aisle, same shelf, same book......same page......

[PaulSR]

If you have a PS that has 2 wires shorted together to turn it on (as well as a power switch) try disconnecting the 2 wires, then turn on the power, then connect the 2 wires.

The other option is a blown fuse inside the PS.

Paul

[Ola]

I just converted 2x HP DL380g4 575 Watt PSU`s, and run them in serial Based on descriptions on rcgroups..

Now they run bump`d up to 27v total, and still should be able to push it`s 47A max amps..

That should do the job feeding my Powerlab PL8 when it gets here

[bowtieuser]

I used a power supply from a lap top. It works great.

[Charlie-III]

Originally Posted by bowtieuser

I used a power supply from a laptop. It works great.

While that may work, they are usually 8A max, sometimes even less. Not quite sure what the output waveform is like.
Hey, if you're happy, then I'm happy.

[scaryclownguy]

Anybody use a Delta electronics model dps-300pb-3b? It says max power is 300 watts, and the +12v is 18a.

[kurtus]

Hoping someone can shed some light here, I have a 660w power supply that I want to use for my build, its a very heavy duty unit that came from a gaming tower a friend gave me. I can post a picture of the specs but I'm not in front of it atm. My question is that I know I should use a 10ohm 10watt resistor but I can only get 12ohm 10watt units from my supplier. Do you think or can you tell me how much of a voltage drop having 2 extra ohms can cause? I have to special order these and only want to do it once or it will set me back a month waiting on parts. Thanks for the input guys

edit: specs are Enermax atx ges, model# eg851ax-vh(w)
+3.3v 38a 240w
+5v 42a 240w
+12V1 14a 480w
+12v2 18a 480w
+12v3 16a 480w
+12v4 14a 480w
-12v .8a 9.6w
+5vsb 2.7a 13.5w

im guessing there are 4 bars in this ps? do I wire them seperatly to there own 12v output or can they be bundled together to get the most amperage possible?

[The CrAwLL BLACK]

Originally Posted by Heavy

Here's my problem. I had a wire coming off the pcboard labled "usb" so I taped if off and ordered a usb jack. Today the jack came in. I found a pinout online. 4 pins, from left to right, pin1 is your positive, pin 4 is your ground. 5.16 volts coming off the board.

Everything checks out, BUT, When I plug my phone in it doesn't recognize a charger. Is there something you are supposed to do with the other 2 pins on the jack to "tell" the phone it's hooked to a charging source?

Heavy

Originally Posted by MonkeyRiver

I posed that question on another forum and one respondent seems to think it needs data to charge. I sorta question that as phones charge on car adapters, so where's data there?
My solution would be to use a powered hub, screw it to the top and run it from a 5v lead.

From what I've read, you just short the other two pins together on the USB jack (pins 2 & 3).

Source = USB pinout and wiring @ pinouts.ru

Once I've finished modding my PSU I'll be testing the USB charging on my phone.

Cheers,
Mike

[kurtus]

Originally Posted by RcBro

I just did this mod to a power supply. All the outputs show correct voltage. But once I hook a lathe to the outputs the power supply shuts off. Any ideas?

Originally Posted by RcBro

I ended up finding out that mine would only work if I left it off, plugged in my desired electronics then turned it on.

I assume my resistor is not pulling enough wasted energy for the PS to see a drain. For now it works, I may fix it later.

Have you ever found a solution here? I saw that one guy posted that most ps will do this but a number of guys I've asked are able to connect their devices while the ps is powered on without it tripping into protection. What brand is your ps?

Does anyone know if there is a fix because it will be rather annoying when I'm in the middle of a charge and someone wants to add their charger to my ps to charge their batteries and I loose the mah info on the balance charge I'm currently doing.

Thanks Kurt