Thread: 12v power supply question.

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K, so I have a wiper motor, but the 12v power supply ad seems to be bad, so I checked the one on monsterguts, and it just looks like a laptop charger. So I took an old one I had, clipped the end off knowing it was just a wire, and a grounding braid in there and tried to power the motor... Nuthin... Has anyone tried to do something like this?

Are you sure that you have the wires connected to the right terminals on the motor? And what is the amperage rating on your 12VDC supply?

If you use anything less that a 12volt 5amp power supply, you will eventually burn out the power supply. Trust me, I have done it.
Touch one of the wires to one of the spades on the power connection on the wiper motor and the other to anything metal on the outside of the motor.
It should work.
You can get the spade connectors at Radio Shack if there is still one in you neighborhood.
Most of them have closed now.

another note.
One of the spades is for high speed and the one is for low speed.

I've used a 5 volt, 3.7A supply for many hours on a wiper motor (rocking chair) with no ill effects, so far. The supply doesn't even get a little bit warm. I'm pretty sure that as long as the load doesn't exceed the capability of the wart, it won't start pulling down the voltage and overheating.

If you use anything less that a 12volt 5amp power supply, you will eventually burn out the power supply.

It totally depends on what you're using the motor for, and how you're controlling it. A wiper motor working a light prop may never come anywhere near drawing 5 amps. On the other hand, using a wiper motor to lift or turn a heavy prop, or starting from a stationary position with a heavy load can cause it to draw a lot more than 5 amps. Using things like a light dimmer switch to control the motor's speed - by reducing the available power - can damage a motor. Use a cheap DC motor controller that controls motor speed without cutting power instead.

Can you post a picture of the motor, specifically the power hook up area? Maybe we could help better with the hook up if we saw what you have.

I have ( I think) a similair question....( & pic's) , can I hi-jack this thread,so it's going to be a combined thread,or shall I start my own thread....?

Edit: got it working,slowly,but it works
Now to find a good prop for it

The power supply on monster guts is not a laptop power supply. I know my laptop has a 19v power supply. You may damage your motor if you just took a laptop power supply and connected it without checking the voltage output.

I built these, YouTube- Evilusions_Animated_Book_Shelves.wmv , using one wiper motor on each shelf, and one power supply. In high speed they were drawing just barely over 5amps @ 12v, on low speed 3.9 amps @ 12v. Like everyone said, if your turning something light, it will take less amperage.

[QUOTE=gadget-evilusions;897606]The power supply on monster guts is not a laptop power supply. I know my laptop has a 19v power supply. You may damage your motor if you just took a laptop power supply and connected it without checking the voltage output.

Yeah smart enough to check the voltage, it was 12v, but I don't think the amps were sufficient.

a lot of flat screen pc monitors & flat screen tv's use what looks like laptop power supplies, but are mostly 12v & from 4-6 amps vs the laptop power supplies that are 14-16, etc volts.
You can always use a gutted pc power supply for 12v with more amps for those heavier amp load needs.....