zener diode? ceramic capacitor? What is this?

Thread Starter

ryanjohnlenz

Joined Mar 18, 2015
4
Hi everyone-

A bit out of my league here. Trying to figure out what this blue part is so that I can repair it--it's obviously been zapped (220 is a lot different than 120, it appears....).

I thought maybe it was a ceramic capacitor, but the PCB board definitely shows a different symbol. A friend suggested a zener diode, but a quick image search showed nothing even close to this. Screen Shot 2015-03-18 at 6.41.16 PM.png Screen Shot 2015-03-18 at 6.41.39 PM.png
 

Thread Starter

ryanjohnlenz

Joined Mar 18, 2015
4
Thanks, both of you. Spot on.

Guess it's not much of a surge protector then, eh Dick? :)

I'll fumble around with my multimeter and see if I can find any other damaged parts...
 

alfacliff

Joined Dec 13, 2013
2,458
probably a lightning strike near. static dosnt usually smoke thm like that. probably not a direct hit with lightning, a lot more would have been burnt.
 

Brevor

Joined Apr 9, 2011
297
The MOV is there for protection from voltage spikes. Your device should work without it. if not something else has been damaged.
 

Thread Starter

ryanjohnlenz

Joined Mar 18, 2015
4
Well you guys are going to love this: Yes, there was fuse (F1) in there, which was blown from the first time the coffee grinder was plugged into 220 (instead of 110). I couldn't find a fuse, so I temporarily bypassed the fuse with an alligator clip (yes...I know...boy-genius here). Turns out the aligator clip must have also been bridging some other connection, because when I powered it up--poof, magic smoke.
 

Thread Starter

ryanjohnlenz

Joined Mar 18, 2015
4
:oops: Yes it was very exciting. My wife, feeling responsible for plugging it into 220v, even got to witness it. She's not an electrical whiz, but she did know enough to recognize that it was no longer her fault that the grinder may now be a very overpriced paperweight. Whoops.​
 

PlasmaT

Joined Feb 19, 2015
61
I do not think it was due any shorting of the alligator clips. Perhaps the MOV might have been rated just above 110V. But how did the other parts survive? :)
 

MaxHeadRoom

Joined Jul 18, 2013
28,619
This is one problem with MOV's they are often destroyed in the act of protecting the circuit, if tucked away out of site you may be not aware of it, and the next spike that comes along is not suppressed.
It is usually a result of the MOV under rated or the energy of the surge voltage exceeds the MOV rating.
Max.
 
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