5 ms·

That used to be a good recipe for fixing radios back in the 1960s/70s as well! Used to just unsolder one lead and check the resistance of the capacitor. Quick k

That used to be a good recipe for fixing radios back in the 1960s/70s as well! Used to just unsolder one lead and check the resistance of the capacitor. Quick kick then fall back to infinity good/swing over to low bad

natch 9y ago
>Quick kick then fall back to infinity good/swing over to low bad What does all that mean? Quick kick = apply some voltage? So with a capacitor you are looking for infinite resistance (no current flow) as a sign that it’s good, or some current flow (low resistance) as a sign it’s bad? Did I get that right?
- namanyayg 9y ago
  Not OP but yes that is correct, capacitors work by building potential. A functioning capacitor starts at 0 and moves to ∞.
- deleted 9y ago
  [deleted]
- Doxin 9y ago
  You apply a multimeter on resistance mode. Generally if the cap grows in resistance it's good, if resistance goes down or stays steady it's bad.
digi_owl 9y ago
The increasing reliance on ICs seems to put a really big wrench in the system. Seeing a relative, that loved working on cars, swearing over a broken wiper because the engine is just fine but the IC studded control board clearly is not doing its job, is disheartening.
- userbinator 9y ago
  Seeing a relative, that loved working on cars, swearing over a broken wiper because the engine is just fine but the IC studded control board clearly is not doing its job, is disheartening. If it's windscreen wipers you're talking about, one solution would be to replace all the excessive electronics with something simple like a switch and relay.
- jimnotgym 9y ago
  In my experience IC's are really reliable, and the last place I look. As other have said, electrolytic capacitors and connectors are the biggest problem. The other reply is a good one, substitute a switch and a relay if you want!
jotm 9y ago
That's not really reliable, imo. Thankfully, capacitance multimeters are cheap these days.

natch 9y ago

>Quick kick then fall back to infinity good/swing over to low bad What does all that mean? Quick kick = apply some voltage? So with a capacitor you are looking for infinite resistance (no current flow) as a sign that it’s good, or some current flow (low resistance) as a sign it’s bad? Did I get that right?

namanyayg 9y ago
Not OP but yes that is correct, capacitors work by building potential. A functioning capacitor starts at 0 and moves to ∞.
deleted 9y ago
[deleted]
Doxin 9y ago
You apply a multimeter on resistance mode. Generally if the cap grows in resistance it's good, if resistance goes down or stays steady it's bad.

digi_owl 9y ago

The increasing reliance on ICs seems to put a really big wrench in the system. Seeing a relative, that loved working on cars, swearing over a broken wiper because the engine is just fine but the IC studded control board clearly is not doing its job, is disheartening.

userbinator 9y ago
Seeing a relative, that loved working on cars, swearing over a broken wiper because the engine is just fine but the IC studded control board clearly is not doing its job, is disheartening. If it's windscreen wipers you're talking about, one solution would be to replace all the excessive electronics with something simple like a switch and relay.
jimnotgym 9y ago
In my experience IC's are really reliable, and the last place I look. As other have said, electrolytic capacitors and connectors are the biggest problem. The other reply is a good one, substitute a switch and a relay if you want!

jotm 9y ago

That's not really reliable, imo. Thankfully, capacitance multimeters are cheap these days.