Safe Handling of AC/DC Power Adapters — Desktop & Wall-Mount, Part 2: "Do Not Overcool"

As the full-fledged winter begins, the operating environment for AC/DC Power Adapters — Desktop & Wall-Mount is also getting colder. We are introducing safe handling tips for AC/DC Power Adapters — Desktop & Wall-Mount. The second installment features "Do not overcool." It summarizes the effects of low-temperature environments on AC/DC Power Adapters — Desktop & Wall-Mount. We invite you to take a look.

AC/DC Power Adapters — Desktop & Wall-Mount and switching power supplies by Unifive.
This issue of “Unifive Adapter NEWS (No. 9)” is...
The second part of the “Don'ts” series for AC/DC Power Adapters — Desktop & Wall-Mount is “Do not overcool”.

Be cautious about the operating temperature of AC/DC Power Adapters — Desktop & Wall-Mount

Among the investigations requested by our customers, we sometimes encounter phenomena such as “no output in the early morning (won’t start)” during the winter season. ...Yes, the cause is cold temperature.

Previously, a customer from the Shinshu area reported that “sometimes AC/DC Power Adapters — Desktop & Wall-Mount do not start”, which led to an on-site meeting. The scenery from the train window on the way from Tokyo showed that the autumn leaves had already ended, and it was early winter... Yes, mornings and evenings in Shinshu were quite cold.

In the winter, if the environment is completely cold...

To make matters worse, the AC/DC Power Adapters — Desktop & Wall-Mount at that time were being used in locations without heating, operating the devices only 3 to 4 times a day for about 5 minutes each time. The AC/DC Power Adapters — Desktop & Wall-Mount left in a completely cold environment suffered most in the morning... or rather, were vulnerable to the cold.

To prevent such troubles, we kindly ask our customers to take the following points into consideration when using AC/DC Power Adapters — Desktop & Wall-Mount:

  1. Please use them within the specified temperature range (general electrical devices operate between 0–40°C)
  2. When using after being left in low temperature, allow them to reach the operating temperature before starting
  3. To prevent condensation, avoid rapidly heating up from a cold state

Components vulnerable to cold include semiconductors

By the way, did you know that components such as aluminum electrolytic capacitors and ICs used in AC/DC Power Adapters — Desktop & Wall-Mount are especially susceptible to low temperatures?

In particular, aluminum electrolytic capacitors in cold environments tend to have significantly higher impedance compared to normal temperatures, and if used in temperatures beyond the specified range, the output ripple voltage may become extremely large, resulting in abnormal behavior of the AC/DC Power Adapters — Desktop & Wall-Mount. Please be cautious.

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