JohnJohnson Posted September 27, 2022 Share Posted September 27, 2022 Hey everyone. I am using a Corsair RM850x v.2 PSU and wondering if it is safe to flip the PSU switch off after shutting down PC? I read some people say it can harm components because of the inrush current after each startup? Is that even true and there is a proof for that? Thanks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LeDoyen Posted September 27, 2022 Share Posted September 27, 2022 (edited) yes it's dangerous for the PSU. less for the components connected to it. You have one or several big capacitors right behind that switch on the primary side that will charge when you flip the switch on. it will pull a massive amount of current each time which will shock the input protection the PSU has. People who do that usually kill their PSU in 1.5 - 2.5 years from what i've seen on the forum when they come complain their new PSU is dead. We're talking of power supplies that Corsair puts 8 to 10 years warranties on... They are not made to be switched off constantly as it was done before ATX in the 90's. If you are worried about power usage, there are energy saving options in your motherboard bios to power down the system even further. Usually there's a lot of stuff powered by the standby 5V, sometimes even RGB ram sticks, motherboard LEDs can stay on. You can disable all that by activating ErP and other energy saving options. If memory serves, it takes your PC down below 1W power at the wall when off. It's not worth it to kill a 200+$ PSU to save pennies on a dime 🙂 Edited September 27, 2022 by LeDoyen 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Corsair Employee jonnyguru Posted September 29, 2022 Corsair Employee Share Posted September 29, 2022 On 9/27/2022 at 4:07 PM, JohnJohnson said: Hey everyone. I am using a Corsair RM850x v.2 PSU and wondering if it is safe to flip the PSU switch off after shutting down PC? I read some people say it can harm components because of the inrush current after each startup? Is that even true and there is a proof for that? Thanks. Why are you flipping the switch off all the time? Should probably only do that if you plan to move the PC or work on it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnJohnson Posted September 30, 2022 Author Share Posted September 30, 2022 (edited) 9 hours ago, jonnyguru said: Why are you flipping the switch off all the time? Should probably only do that if you plan to move the PC or work on it. Since it was the first PC I've ever build, I did get obsessed with it and thought I was shutting it down properly and I also thought that i was saving energy by doing so. I did this practice for 6-7 months then I read people are telling not to do it which I stopped doing it. Did i harm my PSU too much in that 6-7 months because I did it everyday albeit I didn't do it constantly as I've wait for 30 minutes-1 hour after each shutdown but most of the time my PC stayed on throughout the day. I've asked Corsair Customer Service about it plenty of times aswell and they all told me that it is fine to do and won't cause any problems so I am literally torn apart about this matter. I've also asked this question on many websites and the answers were always mixed, some people said nothing is wrong with it and other people said that inrush current would greatly reduce the lifespan of my PSU and that some people killed their PSUs that way. I just couldn't reach a conclusion about this question. I've stopped doing this practice for months and would only flip off the PSU if I need to do a mainteance or need to move my PC but still I wonder if i weared out my PSU too much in that 6-7 months span and it kinda pisses me off aswell that I used the PSU like that... Edited September 30, 2022 by JohnJohnson Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnJohnson Posted September 30, 2022 Author Share Posted September 30, 2022 31 minutes ago, JohnJohnson said: Since it was the first PC I've ever build, I did get obsessed with it and thought I was shutting it down properly and I also thought that i was saving energy by doing so. I did this practice for 6-7 months then I read people are telling not to do it which I stopped doing it. Did i harm my PSU too much in that 6-7 months because I did it everyday albeit I didn't do it constantly as I've wait for 30 minutes-1 hour after each shutdown but most of the time my PC stayed on throughout the day. I've asked Corsair Customer Service about it plenty of times aswell and they all told me that it is fine to do and won't cause any problems so I am literally torn apart about this matter. I've also asked this question on many websites and the answers were always mixed, some people said nothing is wrong with it and other people said that inrush current would greatly reduce the lifespan of my PSU and that some people killed their PSUs that way. I just couldn't reach a conclusion about this question. I've stopped doing this practice for months and would only flip off the PSU if I need to do a mainteance or need to move my PC but still I wonder if i weared out my PSU too much in that 6-7 months span and it kinda pisses me off aswell that I used the PSU like that... Also even if i did is it possible for PSU to damage the other PC components aswell? I mean let's say my PSU stopped working in the future because of this reason, would it affect the other PC components as it has been pointed out in the first comment in this thread? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnJohnson Posted September 30, 2022 Author Share Posted September 30, 2022 On 9/28/2022 at 2:42 AM, LeDoyen said: yes it's dangerous for the PSU. less for the components connected to it. You have one or several big capacitors right behind that switch on the primary side that will charge when you flip the switch on. it will pull a massive amount of current each time which will shock the input protection the PSU has. People who do that usually kill their PSU in 1.5 - 2.5 years from what i've seen on the forum when they come complain their new PSU is dead. We're talking of power supplies that Corsair puts 8 to 10 years warranties on... They are not made to be switched off constantly as it was done before ATX in the 90's. If you are worried about power usage, there are energy saving options in your motherboard bios to power down the system even further. Usually there's a lot of stuff powered by the standby 5V, sometimes even RGB ram sticks, motherboard LEDs can stay on. You can disable all that by activating ErP and other energy saving options. If memory serves, it takes your PC down below 1W power at the wall when off. It's not worth it to kill a 200+$ PSU to save pennies on a dime 🙂 Hey there. Thanks for the answer. Could you please tell me how it can affect the other components aswell? I thought quality PSUs were able to protect the other components when it comes to that? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LeDoyen Posted September 30, 2022 Share Posted September 30, 2022 when you flip the switch you are stressing the primary side (the mains voltage side) of the PSU. As long as you don't start the PC, all the secondary (except the 5v standby one) are completely off. So you can't really damage your components. But you sure will end up damaging all the primary side protections. Switching off the PSU is like unplugging your TV when you turn it off, pulling your smartphone charger out of the mains socket when you don't use it, or unplugging a laptop power supply. Everytime you plug those back in, the socket lugs spark because of the inrush current and you end up killing the power supply or charring your mains sockets contacts. it is extremely bad 🙂 And you are not saving any power really. It's worse for the environment to generate more e-waste by massively shortening components life than saving a couple of watts here and there. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
middydj Posted October 10, 2022 Share Posted October 10, 2022 On 9/30/2022 at 5:13 AM, LeDoyen said: when you flip the switch you are stressing the primary side (the mains voltage side) of the PSU. As long as you don't start the PC, all the secondary (except the 5v standby one) are completely off. So you can't really damage your components. But you sure will end up damaging all the primary side protections. Switching off the PSU is like unplugging your TV when you turn it off, pulling your smartphone charger out of the mains socket when you don't use it, or unplugging a laptop power supply. Everytime you plug those back in, the socket lugs spark because of the inrush current and you end up killing the power supply or charring your mains sockets contacts. it is extremely bad 🙂 And you are not saving any power really. It's worse for the environment to generate more e-waste by massively shortening components life than saving a couple of watts here and there. ouch you mean there is no real benefit to remove my phone charger? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LeDoyen Posted October 10, 2022 Share Posted October 10, 2022 (edited) none. it draws pretty much nothing when it's plugged to nothing. If it has a LED, that's what will draw current 😛 a few mA Edited October 10, 2022 by LeDoyen 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pocah Posted October 23, 2022 Share Posted October 23, 2022 On 9/28/2022 at 12:42 AM, LeDoyen said: yes it's dangerous for the PSU. less for the components connected to it. You have one or several big capacitors right behind that switch on the primary side that will charge when you flip the switch on. it will pull a massive amount of current each time which will shock the input protection the PSU has. People who do that usually kill their PSU in 1.5 - 2.5 years from what i've seen on the forum when they come complain their new PSU is dead. We're talking of power supplies that Corsair puts 8 to 10 years warranties on... They are not made to be switched off constantly as it was done before ATX in the 90's. If you are worried about power usage, there are energy saving options in your motherboard bios to power down the system even further. Usually there's a lot of stuff powered by the standby 5V, sometimes even RGB ram sticks, motherboard LEDs can stay on. You can disable all that by activating ErP and other energy saving options. If memory serves, it takes your PC down below 1W power at the wall when off. It's not worth it to kill a 200+$ PSU to save pennies on a dime 🙂 That really is an exaggeration. You actually think that Corsair would put a 10 year guarantee on something that can't be switched on and off? There are plenty of situations where power supplies are switched off daily and they suffer no consequences. I have worked in companies were it is a policy to turn PC's off at night, and they haven't suffered significant failures. They sure used to, old power supplies were less reliable, but a modern power supply really have no problem. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LeDoyen Posted October 23, 2022 Share Posted October 23, 2022 (edited) it's not an exageration. People coming in the forum with dead PSUs because they switched them off daily usualy had them last that short. that's just what happens when you charge the primary caps from empty everyday. you pump way too many amps through the protection circuits. Johnnyguru himself reminded on another post some time ago that ATX power supplies are not made to be turned off regularely. in that regard they last more than 10 years. A company computer with a 250 - 300W psu, that will get changed after 2 or 3 years anyway may be okay. but still, that's outdated policies. they save pennies on a dime. I bet their policy was to not let the PC turned on.. but not flip the PSU off. Anyway today, everyone uses laptops and those lenovo all in ones.. no PSU switches to be found 😛 Edited October 23, 2022 by LeDoyen Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LeDoyen Posted October 23, 2022 Share Posted October 23, 2022 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DougCube Posted October 24, 2022 Share Posted October 24, 2022 I agree, don't touch the PSU's on/off switch unnecessarily. It's bad for the PSU life. The amount of power it saves is not worth it. Credentials: I have a background in electrical engineering, do circuit design, collect tons of PSUs as a hobby, do lots of custom cable sleeving, do PSU mods, and routinely open up PSUs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pocah Posted October 26, 2022 Share Posted October 26, 2022 (edited) I'm sorry, but I don't think either of you know what you are talking about. Of course switch on is a dangerous time for any electronics, but that doesn't mean you don't do it. It's just irrational fear. When the thing has a ten year guarantee, it's just fine. And you can't use single instances of failure or videos from youtube to prove your case. Anyone with a background in science should know that one instance does not make a rule. You are cherry picking to prove a case where there are no real statistics. And you can't quote electronic or electrical qualifications, either, I have them too. Again - Corsair would not offer a ten year guaranteed on a product if you can't turn it on or off, and who cares anyway as long as you have the guarantee? Edited October 26, 2022 by Pocah Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LeDoyen Posted October 26, 2022 Share Posted October 26, 2022 (edited) Have you red the link i've posted? I believe Johnyguru, the head of Corsair PSU R&D kind of knows what he talks about. It's not cherry picking and i don't know why Corsair should destroy a few hundred of PSUs just to prove that doing something the PSUs are not intended to do can destroy them. It just doesn't make sense. And the fact that you don't understand how slamming 40 or 50A spikes at mains voltage through a switch and a few PTC and MOVs can damage them after a few months also shows that you do not know what you talk about. Open a PSU that has been turned on and off every day for 2 years and you'll see without the need for a multimeter what it does. Edited October 26, 2022 by LeDoyen Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tuantran7489 Posted June 25, 2023 Share Posted June 25, 2023 (edited) It's helpful to be here. In my case, my mobo is always rebooting at code 69 if I flip on/off PSU. Don't know if this issue come from my mobo or PSU. Edited June 25, 2023 by tuantran7489 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LeDoyen Posted June 25, 2023 Share Posted June 25, 2023 could it come from your monitor? It's an old post but who knows, it may be a clue, about that code 69. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tuantran7489 Posted June 25, 2023 Share Posted June 25, 2023 1 hour ago, LeDoyen said: could it come from your monitor? It's an old post but who knows, it may be a clue, about that code 69. I dont think so because if I don't flip (or just let PSU on all the time) then everythings work fine. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LeDoyen Posted June 25, 2023 Share Posted June 25, 2023 then don't flip the PSU switch off? 🙂 Still it's annoying when doing any kind of maintenance that requires to switch off the PSU.. Still this code is related to the motherboard so i would probably reach to Gigabyte support. If there's something wrong with the PSU, the PC will not start to boot as the PSU can't send the "power good" signal to the CPU, and the CPU will not allow the boot sequence to start. If the PSU is OK, then the boot sequence starts. anything beyond that shouldn't be impacted by the PSU. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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