A massive industry defect affecting consumer electronics and computer motherboards manufactured between 1999 and 2007. Millions of aluminum electrolytic capacitors were produced using a flawed electrolyte formula that generated hydrogen gas during operation. The pressure caused the capacitor vents to bulge or burst, leaking corrosive fluid and destroying the host equipment.
This old motherboard won't POST because it's a victim of the capacitor plague, just look at those bulging caps near the CPU.
A bulging top vent or brown crusty residue at the base is a dead giveaway. Replacing the bad caps often brings the dead hardware back to life.
Also heard as
- bad caps
Related terms
Electrolytic capacitor
A polarized capacitor that uses a chemical electrolyte to achieve high capacitance.
Capacitor
A passive two-terminal component that stores electrical energy in an electric field.
Motherboard
The main printed circuit board in a computer or complex electronic system routes power and data between major components.