Quote:
Originally Posted by skodajag
I know this has been discussed before, but I’ve never been successful in using the search facility on this forum. So, eg, searching the title above brings up numerous unrelated posts. I'm sure it’s me. So, can you please direct me to the info on this invaluable forum which tells the best way to rest for leaky non-electrolytic caps both in and out of circuit? Advice on using the search facility would also be appreciated.
Thankyou.
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I find the search function pretty good. I think it works on basic keywords rather than natural language, so I use a variety of keywords, but the more you have the more you have to search through them. Remember search modifiers: using "quotation marks" searches for the whole phrase within them. Using + before a phrase, i.e. "leaky caps" +test would search for the phrase 'leaky caps' but only include posts with the word 'test' in as well.
For your query, I would have tried two words: 'capacitor testing', which throws up a variety of threads (using proper nouns rather than slang/abbreviations usually gets better results, along with the smallest number of keywords). Try several different searches with different terms and you can often narrow things down, or sometimes I find a thread with a link to a further thread which gives you a more field-specific keyword from one of the real experts.
I made a capacitor tester using a board bought from Everyday Practical Electronics magazine, which is great for measuring leakage at up to 630V. You can set the time to apply the voltage and see if the leakage current decreases to an acceptable value (whether the capacitor 'reforms'). It's proven useful with every project. I've attached the relevant pages - boards are still available.
In general, with my limited experience,
I use the information from the vintage-radio.com part of this very website to identify capacitors likely to be troublesome before power is applied (look under the 'components' heading - grid coupling waxed paper types etc.) and replace them. I put them on the tester anyway and am gratified by their failure to hold charge.