Author Topic: Unusually long-lived electrolytic capacitor  (Read 2151 times)

Offline MRMILSTAR

  • High Voltage Senior
  • *****
  • Posts: 535
  • Karma: +20/-0
  • Cedar Rapids, Iowa
    • View Profile
Unusually long-lived electrolytic capacitor
« on: February 26, 2020, 05:43:34 AM »
I have a project that I built in 1969 that still operates normally. It is a small vacuum tube tesla coil (VTTC) but that is not important. One of the components is a 10 uF electrolytic capacitor rated for 450 volts which sees a maximum voltage of 350 volts. The capacitor is used to smooth the output of a full wave bridge rectifier for driving the plate of a 6L6 tube. The VTTC is used very infrequently.

My question concerns the lifetime of this capacitor. This capacitor is still functioning after 50 years! I measured its capacitance and it is within tolerance. From my reading I was under the impression that this capacitor should have dried out and died many years ago. Is it unusual to have an electrolytic capacitor last this long? Should I replace it or should I follow the "if it ain't broke don't fix it" rule?
Steve White
Cedar Rapids, Iowa
Retired electrical engineer

Offline T3sl4co1l

  • High Voltage Technician
  • ***
  • Posts: 174
  • Karma: +9/-0
    • View Profile
    • Seven Transistor Labs
Re: Unusually long-lived electrolytic capacitor
« Reply #1 on: February 26, 2020, 05:51:48 AM »
Capacitors age much more in use than in storage.  As long as it's reformed, it's fine.

Tim

Offline ritaismyconscience

  • High Voltage Technician
  • ***
  • Posts: 164
  • Karma: +4/-0
    • View Profile
Re: Unusually long-lived electrolytic capacitor
« Reply #2 on: February 26, 2020, 06:08:05 AM »
Did you measure the ESR? Bad capacitors may look good to a multimeter but it might have too high internal resistance to be usable.

Offline John123

  • High Voltage Engineer
  • ****
  • Posts: 238
  • Karma: +5/-0
  • All the gear, no idea. UK
    • View Profile
Re: Unusually long-lived electrolytic capacitor
« Reply #3 on: March 25, 2020, 06:52:05 PM »
I'd be tempted to leave it in and see how it goes, it'll soon let you know if its on its way out!

For ESR measurements you can get those cheap all purpose testers these days for about £10, once calibrated they're right on the money.

Offline Hydron

  • Administrator
  • High Voltage Engineer
  • *****
  • Posts: 487
  • Karma: +25/-0
    • View Profile
Re: Unusually long-lived electrolytic capacitor
« Reply #4 on: March 26, 2020, 01:04:52 PM »
I've just recommissioned a 60's vintage Heathkit IP-20 PSU, complete with mostly or all original electrolytics (had to open it up because the power indicator bulb had come loose and it's actually part of the regulator circuit).

No obvious issues with any of the electrolytics, which is very handy as I'm in lockdown away from my normal kit and most of my spare parts, and am using it out of necessity for paying work!

High Voltage Forum

Re: Unusually long-lived electrolytic capacitor
« Reply #4 on: March 26, 2020, 01:04:52 PM »

 


* Recent Topics and Posts

post Re: Big Coil Build Log
[Dual Resonant Solid State Tesla coils (DRSSTC)]
flyingperson23
Today at 05:47:34 AM
post Re: capacitor and diodes. Voltage values for a CW
[Voltage Multipliers]
davekni
Today at 04:45:07 AM
post Re: capacitor and diodes. Voltage values for a CW
[Voltage Multipliers]
MRMILSTAR
Today at 04:18:27 AM
post Push Pull VTTC
[Vacuum Tube Tesla Coils (VTTC)]
janno288
Today at 01:10:08 AM
post Re: capacitor and diodes. Voltage values for a CW
[Voltage Multipliers]
Alberto
March 27, 2024, 10:54:52 PM
post Re: CM400 Induction Heater
[Electronic Circuits]
markus
March 27, 2024, 11:53:42 AM
post Re: OCD Triggering Early + Low Output
[Dual Resonant Solid State Tesla coils (DRSSTC)]
davekni
March 27, 2024, 05:14:36 AM
post Re: Is the UD2.7C under voltage lock out basically worthless?
[Dual Resonant Solid State Tesla coils (DRSSTC)]
davekni
March 27, 2024, 04:47:48 AM
post Re: DRSSTC Questions
[Dual Resonant Solid State Tesla coils (DRSSTC)]
davekni
March 27, 2024, 04:41:59 AM
post Re: DRSSTC Questions
[Dual Resonant Solid State Tesla coils (DRSSTC)]
alan sailer
March 27, 2024, 12:04:34 AM
post Re: Super flat QCW simulation (does this look reasonable?)
[Dual Resonant Solid State Tesla coils (DRSSTC)]
toooldforthis
March 26, 2024, 11:08:14 PM
post Re: DRSSTC Questions
[Dual Resonant Solid State Tesla coils (DRSSTC)]
Benjamin Lockhart
March 26, 2024, 11:07:20 PM
post Re: Is the UD2.7C under voltage lock out basically worthless?
[Dual Resonant Solid State Tesla coils (DRSSTC)]
Benjamin Lockhart
March 26, 2024, 10:46:29 PM
post OCD Triggering Early + Low Output
[Dual Resonant Solid State Tesla coils (DRSSTC)]
Saattvik24
March 26, 2024, 09:03:43 PM
post Re: DRSSTC Questions
[Dual Resonant Solid State Tesla coils (DRSSTC)]
alan sailer
March 26, 2024, 08:46:59 PM
post Re: DRSSTC Questions
[Dual Resonant Solid State Tesla coils (DRSSTC)]
flyingperson23
March 26, 2024, 05:02:18 PM
post Re: DRSSTC Questions
[Dual Resonant Solid State Tesla coils (DRSSTC)]
alan sailer
March 26, 2024, 03:16:03 PM
post Re: CM400 Induction Heater
[Electronic Circuits]
Anders Mikkelsen
March 26, 2024, 01:41:49 PM
post Re: Benjamin's DRSSTC 2 in progress
[Dual Resonant Solid State Tesla coils (DRSSTC)]
Benjamin Lockhart
March 26, 2024, 04:48:22 AM
post Re: Re-chargeable 1.5 volt lithium ion AAA batteries
[General Chat]
MRMILSTAR
March 26, 2024, 04:16:37 AM
post Re: DRSSTC Questions
[Dual Resonant Solid State Tesla coils (DRSSTC)]
davekni
March 26, 2024, 04:16:24 AM
post Re: Smoke Screen Machine Protect 950 XP - Teardown of a Smoke Cannon!
[Electronic Circuits]
davekni
March 26, 2024, 04:13:02 AM
post Re: CM400 Induction Heater
[Electronic Circuits]
davekni
March 26, 2024, 04:00:43 AM
post Re: Re-chargeable 1.5 volt lithium ion AAA batteries
[General Chat]
davekni
March 26, 2024, 03:19:18 AM
post Re: Benjamin's DRSSTC 2 in progress
[Dual Resonant Solid State Tesla coils (DRSSTC)]
thedoc298
March 26, 2024, 01:50:42 AM
post Re: DRSSTC Questions
[Dual Resonant Solid State Tesla coils (DRSSTC)]
flyingperson23
March 25, 2024, 08:05:02 PM
post Re: Smoke Screen Machine Protect 950 XP - Teardown of a Smoke Cannon!
[Electronic Circuits]
Mads Barnkob
March 25, 2024, 07:41:29 PM
post Re: DRSSTC Questions
[Dual Resonant Solid State Tesla coils (DRSSTC)]
alan sailer
March 25, 2024, 06:45:46 PM
post Re: DRSSTC Questions
[Dual Resonant Solid State Tesla coils (DRSSTC)]
flyingperson23
March 25, 2024, 05:44:25 PM
post Re: CM400 Induction Heater
[Electronic Circuits]
Anders Mikkelsen
March 25, 2024, 04:47:17 PM
post Re: DRSSTC Questions
[Dual Resonant Solid State Tesla coils (DRSSTC)]
alan sailer
March 25, 2024, 04:27:22 PM
post Re-chargeable 1.5 volt lithium ion AAA batteries
[General Chat]
MRMILSTAR
March 25, 2024, 03:57:34 PM
post Re: CM400 Induction Heater
[Electronic Circuits]
markus
March 25, 2024, 02:06:41 PM
post Re: Odd MOSFET Driver Behavior
[Solid State Tesla Coils (SSTC)]
KrisPringle
March 25, 2024, 04:43:25 AM
post Re: Odd MOSFET Driver Behavior
[Solid State Tesla Coils (SSTC)]
davekni
March 25, 2024, 02:39:40 AM
post Re: Odd MOSFET Driver Behavior
[Solid State Tesla Coils (SSTC)]
KrisPringle
March 25, 2024, 12:47:09 AM
post Re: capacitor and diodes. Voltage values for a CW
[Voltage Multipliers]
Alberto
March 24, 2024, 07:36:32 PM
post Re: My completed 14-stage Cockroft-Walton voltage multiplier
[Voltage Multipliers]
Alberto
March 24, 2024, 07:27:24 PM
post Re: capacitor and diodes. Voltage values for a CW
[Voltage Multipliers]
MRMILSTAR
March 24, 2024, 04:25:23 AM
post Re: capacitor and diodes. Voltage values for a CW
[Voltage Multipliers]
Alberto
March 23, 2024, 10:47:35 PM
post Re: capacitor and diodes. Voltage values for a CW
[Voltage Multipliers]
MRMILSTAR
March 23, 2024, 09:30:21 PM
post Re: capacitor and diodes. Voltage values for a CW
[Voltage Multipliers]
Alberto
March 23, 2024, 04:34:31 PM
post Re: capacitor and diodes. Voltage values for a CW
[Voltage Multipliers]
MRMILSTAR
March 23, 2024, 03:04:25 PM
post Re: capacitor and diodes. Voltage values for a CW
[Voltage Multipliers]
Alberto
March 23, 2024, 01:38:34 PM
post Re: capacitor and diodes. Voltage values for a CW
[Voltage Multipliers]
MRMILSTAR
March 23, 2024, 04:20:03 AM
post Re: Welcome new members, come say hello and tell a little about yourself :)
[General Chat]
davekni
March 23, 2024, 12:54:30 AM
post Re: Smoke Screen Machine Protect 950 XP - Teardown of a Smoke Cannon!
[Electronic Circuits]
davekni
March 23, 2024, 12:05:57 AM
post capacitor and diodes. Voltage values for a CW
[Voltage Multipliers]
Alberto
March 22, 2024, 11:45:03 PM
post Re: Welcome new members, come say hello and tell a little about yourself :)
[General Chat]
OmGigaTron
March 22, 2024, 11:30:09 PM
post Smoke Screen Machine Protect 950 XP - Teardown of a Smoke Cannon!
[Electronic Circuits]
Mads Barnkob
March 22, 2024, 10:20:35 PM
post Re: Where's all this voltage coming from?
[Spark Gap Tesla Coils (SGTC)]
Benbmw
March 22, 2024, 09:21:13 PM
post Re: What actually kills MOSFETs?
[Beginners]
AstRii
March 22, 2024, 03:37:11 PM
post What actually kills MOSFETs?
[Beginners]
FPS
March 22, 2024, 05:09:20 AM
post Re: Benjamin's DRSSTC 2 in progress
[Dual Resonant Solid State Tesla coils (DRSSTC)]
Benjamin Lockhart
March 22, 2024, 03:57:54 AM
post Re: Benjamin's DRSSTC 2 in progress
[Dual Resonant Solid State Tesla coils (DRSSTC)]
davekni
March 22, 2024, 02:59:25 AM
post Re: Benjamin's DRSSTC 2 in progress
[Dual Resonant Solid State Tesla coils (DRSSTC)]
Benjamin Lockhart
March 21, 2024, 06:31:42 PM
post Re: 2x Panasonic Inverter Microwaves - what to salvage, dangers?
[General Chat]
rikkitikkitavi
March 21, 2024, 03:08:01 PM
post Re: [WTS] IGBT, Ferrite, Capacitors, Tools, PSU, Industrial components and parts
[Sell / Buy / Trade]
Mads Barnkob
March 21, 2024, 01:37:32 PM
post Re: Difference between these transformers
[Transformer (Ferrite Core)]
Alberto
March 21, 2024, 11:42:07 AM
post Re: Phase Lead Questions
[Dual Resonant Solid State Tesla coils (DRSSTC)]
davekni
March 21, 2024, 04:09:14 AM
post Re: Benjamin's DRSSTC 2 in progress
[Dual Resonant Solid State Tesla coils (DRSSTC)]
Benjamin Lockhart
March 21, 2024, 02:15:31 AM
post My Homemade Structural Analysis X-Ray Machine
[X-ray]
Luca c.
March 21, 2024, 01:35:40 AM
post Re: Phase Lead Questions
[Dual Resonant Solid State Tesla coils (DRSSTC)]
Saattvik24
March 20, 2024, 10:40:00 PM
post Re: Difference between these transformers
[Transformer (Ferrite Core)]
Mads Barnkob
March 20, 2024, 08:03:41 PM
post Re: 2x Panasonic Inverter Microwaves - what to salvage, dangers?
[General Chat]
Mads Barnkob
March 20, 2024, 07:51:57 PM
post Re: Benjamin's DRSSTC 2 in progress
[Dual Resonant Solid State Tesla coils (DRSSTC)]
Mads Barnkob
March 20, 2024, 10:39:47 AM
post Re: Phase Lead Questions
[Dual Resonant Solid State Tesla coils (DRSSTC)]
davekni
March 20, 2024, 04:09:59 AM
post Re: 160mm DRSSTC II project | Questions
[Dual Resonant Solid State Tesla coils (DRSSTC)]
Benjamin Lockhart
March 20, 2024, 01:13:23 AM
post Re: Phase Lead Questions
[Dual Resonant Solid State Tesla coils (DRSSTC)]
Keybored
March 20, 2024, 12:45:16 AM
post Re: Benjamin's DRSSTC 2 in progress
[Dual Resonant Solid State Tesla coils (DRSSTC)]
flyingperson23
March 20, 2024, 12:30:30 AM
post Re: Benjamin's DRSSTC 2 in progress
[Dual Resonant Solid State Tesla coils (DRSSTC)]
Benjamin Lockhart
March 19, 2024, 11:12:24 PM
post Re: 160mm DRSSTC II project | Questions
[Dual Resonant Solid State Tesla coils (DRSSTC)]
Late
March 19, 2024, 09:47:49 PM
post Re: 160mm DRSSTC II project | Questions
[Dual Resonant Solid State Tesla coils (DRSSTC)]
Late
March 19, 2024, 09:44:19 PM
post Phase Lead Questions
[Dual Resonant Solid State Tesla coils (DRSSTC)]
Saattvik24
March 19, 2024, 06:52:09 PM
post Re: 160mm DRSSTC II project | Questions
[Dual Resonant Solid State Tesla coils (DRSSTC)]
flyingperson23
March 19, 2024, 05:02:44 PM
post Re: Welcome new members, come say hello and tell a little about yourself :)
[General Chat]
Mads Barnkob
March 19, 2024, 05:01:41 PM
post Re: Benjamin's DRSSTC 2 in progress
[Dual Resonant Solid State Tesla coils (DRSSTC)]
Mads Barnkob
March 19, 2024, 04:31:02 PM
post Re: 160mm DRSSTC II project | Questions
[Dual Resonant Solid State Tesla coils (DRSSTC)]
Mads Barnkob
March 19, 2024, 03:59:54 PM
post Re: Benjamin's DRSSTC 2 in progress
[Dual Resonant Solid State Tesla coils (DRSSTC)]
Benjamin Lockhart
March 19, 2024, 06:41:39 AM
post Re: Welcome new members, come say hello and tell a little about yourself :)
[General Chat]
davekni
March 19, 2024, 04:05:49 AM
post Re: Welcome new members, come say hello and tell a little about yourself :)
[General Chat]
OmGigaTron
March 18, 2024, 09:08:35 PM
post Re: Can I Trust This Super Cheap Site?
[General Chat]
2020-Man
March 18, 2024, 09:07:35 PM
post Re: Can I Trust This Super Cheap Site?
[General Chat]
Twospoons
March 18, 2024, 08:57:06 PM
post Re: Can I Trust This Super Cheap Site?
[General Chat]
MRMILSTAR
March 18, 2024, 03:51:33 PM
post Re: 160mm DRSSTC II project | Questions
[Dual Resonant Solid State Tesla coils (DRSSTC)]
Late
March 18, 2024, 02:59:46 PM
post Re: 160mm DRSSTC II project | Questions
[Dual Resonant Solid State Tesla coils (DRSSTC)]
Late
March 18, 2024, 02:33:25 PM
post Can I Trust This Super Cheap Site?
[General Chat]
2020-Man
March 18, 2024, 11:02:12 AM
post Re: Where's all this voltage coming from?
[Spark Gap Tesla Coils (SGTC)]
Twospoons
March 18, 2024, 02:36:11 AM
post Re: Best forum for vacuum tube amplifiers?
[General Chat]
Mads Barnkob
March 17, 2024, 07:42:55 PM
post Re: 2x Panasonic Inverter Microwaves - what to salvage, dangers?
[General Chat]
Michelle_
March 17, 2024, 04:15:14 PM
post Re: 2x Panasonic Inverter Microwaves - what to salvage, dangers?
[General Chat]
Michelle_
March 17, 2024, 05:05:04 AM
post Re: Where's all this voltage coming from?
[Spark Gap Tesla Coils (SGTC)]
davekni
March 17, 2024, 04:50:51 AM
post Re: 2x Panasonic Inverter Microwaves - what to salvage, dangers?
[General Chat]
Twospoons
March 17, 2024, 04:45:17 AM
post 2x Panasonic Inverter Microwaves - what to salvage, dangers?
[General Chat]
Michelle_
March 17, 2024, 04:17:51 AM
post Where's all this voltage coming from?
[Spark Gap Tesla Coils (SGTC)]
Terry
March 17, 2024, 01:29:32 AM
post Re: DRSSTC Questions
[Dual Resonant Solid State Tesla coils (DRSSTC)]
flyingperson23
March 17, 2024, 12:33:06 AM
post Re: DRSSTC Questions
[Dual Resonant Solid State Tesla coils (DRSSTC)]
Keybored
March 16, 2024, 08:46:20 PM
post Re: Bleeder resistor for MMC
[Dual Resonant Solid State Tesla coils (DRSSTC)]
Hydron
March 16, 2024, 08:39:24 PM
post Re: DRSSTC Questions
[Dual Resonant Solid State Tesla coils (DRSSTC)]
Hydron
March 16, 2024, 08:21:44 PM
post Best forum for vacuum tube amplifiers?
[General Chat]
yourboi
March 16, 2024, 08:20:13 PM

Sitemap 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 
SimplePortal 2.3.6 © 2008-2014, SimplePortal