Wiring a PC Power supply for fans??

G

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Guest
I have a nice, spare PC power supply (An ATX 400 watt) that I would like to use to power some fans and LEDs for the tank. I know that the PS will not turn on without a motherboard so I went in search for a wiring diagram, cant find it... I also ran a search on the forums but I also couldnt find any help. Does anyone know how I can do this or find a write up?

Travis
 
well ok, I feel stupid now but I found it. Guess I will share. Sorry for the pointless post...

"While we're at it, you can power up an ATX power supply by shorting the green wire with any black ground wire. As you know, the ATX power supply will not turn on normally without a motherboard connected to it. There are times when you may want to test an ATX power supply or use the voltage from one but don't really want to hook up a motherboard. There's only one green wire and there are plenty of ground wires so it's easy to do. To use a bent paper clip and insert one end in the green wire connector and bend it around and put it into a black wire connector."

Thanks for looking anyways.
Travis
 
For what it's worth, you can use an AC to DC transformer, such as one used to charge a cell phone, to accomplish the same thing. Just about everybody has at least one or two sitting around someplace.
 
Using a computer power supply is a bit of overkill for just fans and LEDs.
a simple used adapter would work much better. if it's a 12V DC adapter you can power the fans at full speed and tap off of it to run the LEDS.
it's a Much smaller, cheaper idea. Also... inside of a computer power supply, there are voltages that are around 420-480 Volts, not exactly what you want near water, especially salt water.
 
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