Hi, this is Wayne again with a topic “Computer Power Supply Adapter”.
This week, i’m going to show you how you can make a simple adapter that can turn an old computer power supply into a bench power supply for your workshop. The computer power supply outputs, 3.3, volts 5, volts, 12 volts and negative 12 volts. All the wires are conveniently color coded most power supplies follow the atx convention. The easiest way to connect to a power supply is with a female, 20 pin or 24 pin atx connector. You can purchase these online or salvage one from an old motherboard to help keep track of the pins. I colored each one to match the connecting wire.
Then i soldered a matching wire to the pins on the other side and insulated them with heat shrink tubing. You only need one wire of each color. Now you need to mount the connector to the side of the project.
Enclosure start by cutting a slot in the side of the housing to secure the connector in place. I used jb weld, combine an equal amount of both parts and mix them together thoroughly then apply the mixture all around the connector. Let it sit overnight to fully cure. Next, we need to drill one hole for the power switch and eight holes for the output terminals. Insert the power switch through the hole and solder the green wire to one of its terminals, then solder. A second green wire to the other terminal insert the output terminals into the remaining holes and tighten them in place with their screws to connect the wires to the output terminals.
I crimped a spade connector onto each one. First, i connected the black wire to one of the black terminals. Then i connected the other black terminals to the first one with short, jumper wires. I also connected the wire from the power switch to the nearest black terminal.
I connected the rest of the wires in ascending order. According to their voltage when you press the switch the green wire is connected to ground. This should turn on the power supply, use a multimeter to verify that each output terminal has the correct voltage. Some power supplies have a minimum output requirement without an adequate load, they’ll automatically shut off. If this happens, you can attach a 10 watt, 10 ohm resistor between the 5 volt terminal and ground. You may also need to add vent holes to help keep the resistor cool.
In addition to the four pairs of output terminals. You can also add other connectors. You can add a 12 volt dc power outlet by connecting to the 12 volt terminals, or, you can add, a usb outlet by connecting to the 5 volt terminals. The last step is to add labels to each pair of terminals, and your power supply converter is complete. Thanks for watching and check back soon for more diy hacks and how to’s .