TAZ 5 Power supply failure

This morning my TAZ 5 power supply failed due a filter capacitor failure (one of the two big ones near the transformer). This mode of failure is concerning. The printer was turned off and had not been used recently. Off should mean off - INCLUDING the power supply. The room filled with smoke and now my house REALLY stinks with that rank burned electronics smell. I believe there was a real risk of fire. The house circuit breaker blew, but I noticed that the fuse in the power supply did not. I’m not going to risk another Lulzbot power supply. I want to buy a heavier power supply, but need a pinout on the connector. Can anyone help with this?

I have too noticed that my power supply stays on when the printer is turned off. I can hear the fan power itself on every few hours. Which I find odd. Maybe I’ll get in the habit of shutting off the power supply as well.

This is just the way this power supply works and I have never liked the idea.

The fix though is easy and simple, plug it into a power strip and turn it off, this is what I did and I plugged in my camera and LEDs to the same strip so I can turn them all on or off with one single switch.

+1 on the power strip.

My strip is plugged into a ZigBee plug integrate into home automation (Smartthings hub). A motion sensor under the print bed monitors movement. When the bed stops, the plug shuts off after 20min. In addition to conserving the PSU, it prolongs the life of the little heatsink blower which would otherwise stay on til the morning… for those prints that end at 4am. As an added precaution, a smoke/fire detector shuts off the plug and doubles to report temp in the printer enclosure.

Hi Brian Walker,

I understand the concern with receiving another power supply like the one you already had. We are no longer using that vendor for the current power supplies that we have. The new ones are very much what you are looking for and need, to get you back up and printing.

Go ahead and send an email to support@lulzbot.com and we can send one of our newest power supplies to replace the one that is no longer working.

My apologies for not getting back to you sooner. The new TAZ power supply seems to be very good. It has its own on/off switch, runs cool, and, as a bonus, it feet are placed such that the unit fits securely on the top of the TAZ (5) frame. I’m quite pleased with it. Thanks Lulzbot!

How can I tell if I have the older power supply or not?

There are actually a couple versions. The newest one has an on off switch and is a large rectangle inside a black aluminum housing with a plastic end rectangle thingy. The older ones look like an oversize plastic laptop power supply. The oldest ones are aluminum rectangular ones and may not have ever shipped on the 5.

Is the new power supply for sale? I didn’t see it on the website.

I have built a housing for a Meanwell 24v power supply and assembled a working power supply. If you still have questions, please let me know, the power supply pinout is pretty simple.

Looking for a new power supply also… is this the Meanwell power supply? Pretty straight forward to wire up with cords from the TAZ PSU?

You really want more watts to run the 360 watt bed and 25 watt extruder:

http://www.amazon.com/Meanwell-Enclosed-Approved-Switching-Transformer/dp/B00GPWTMUQ/ref=pd_sim_sbs_328_5?ie=UTF8&dpID=51QrZYaQEHL&dpSrc=sims&preST=AC_UL160_SR160%2C160&refRID=0A0P9P5HKEXHTCWZ2RTN

Plus any possible ‘accessories’. :wink:

Makes sense to me… can always do with more wattage. :slight_smile:

Thanks!

Real simple, it really can’t get any easier.

Also, who came up with 360 watts? I’m seeing 240 watts…

The one in the link is a 350 watt PSU with a 120-240 volt range.

Thanks, I wired up the 350W version… it came in two days with Prime. The 450W is on the way.

Couldn’t agree with you more… I de-soldered the wires and IEC connector from the stock PSU. Cleaned up the wires and crimped some spade connectors on that fit the terminals.

I probably need to grab one of the 450s as well. In holding out for a stock lulzbot pus cover though, and itw never has any (or leadscrew nuts for that matter)

With the 350W, I’m noticing a slight dip on the hotend temp when I’m heating the bed. All the temps are stable when everything is at temp… A bit surprised because the stock PSU, I think, is lower wattage.

Regardless, I can get through until next week when the other PSU gets here… no more printing withdrawal.

With a 350 watt PSU mine didn’t do that and seemed to heat everything up faster. IIRC the stock psu is 360 watts but of a lower quality.

Yeah… it could be my RAMBO board…