OK to use an ac adapter with wrong amperage?

Dave wrote on Thursday (22/01/2004) :

You may eventually find the 1amp unit burns out. 5amp does sound to be rather a lot for a small router though. Check the temperature of the

Why would it overheat with less current and the same voltage?

I'm sure it has more to do with how much the router draws than how much the power supply can put out? You should find out how many amps (at 5 volts) the router requires (should be on a label on the router), and as long as that is less than 1.0 amps, you should be fine.

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Pablo wrote on Thursday (22/01/2004) :

The manufacturers provided power supply was described as 5amp. I assume it was supplied with a 5amp supply because it needed something approaching 5amps, however the OP suggests it works with a 1amp supply.

The is that the 1amp supply may well be overstressed and be trying to supply more current than it is designed to or capable of. Thus the tendency will be for it to overheat and perhaps eventually burn out.

I do appreciate both power supplies and the router are rated for 5v, but the voltage is just one of the critical elements of a power supply, current capability is the other.

If its transformer is overloaded, the core will saturate magnetically and cause it to draw excessive current (input current, not current supplied to the device)

maybe the power supply was specified by someone who used to work on power supplies for Digital Equipment. (I say this because of the DEC HSC70 I helped disconnect a few days ago (ancient disk controller). Its power cord was to a 30A three phase plug - and was overrated for that (I don't think its total thickness was much less than the 200A feed that services my house!) Judging from the heat from the thing I bet it drew less than

Anyway, look at the label on the switch itself. I'd be quite surprised if it needed 5A, my Netgear NAT router/4 port switch has a 300mA power supply, I think.

Are you sure the label didn't say .5 amp? If it does, 1 amp should be fine.

Top posting dunce, I believe..

sQuick..

Thanks for all the responses - I double checked, and yes, the device itself says 5 volts _and_ 5 amps. The old dead AC adapter says the same. So is it safe to use the 1 amp adapter long term?

On 23/01/2004 Dave opined:-

That is impossible to say and it will probably aslo depend on the number of ports actively in use.....

The manufacturer has specified 5amps for a reason, however 5amps seems to be rather a lot for a router. My own router (4 port) has a 1.5amp.

If the 1amp power supply is reasonably cool to the touch and a possible failure would not be a problem, then continue to use it. The risk is yours and only you can assess how serious that risk is.

Well, I wouldn't say 'it's safe' though I'd say 'you would probably get away with it'. You are potentially using it well beyond its ratings. If you consider the cost of a new 5V adapter, maybe you could bite the bullet.

BTW, you'll want to make sure you buy an adapter with 5Vdc output (assuming your original one is 5Vdc out). Sorry if this underestimates your electrical know-how, I just never noticed AC or DC mentioned.