LED Panel Driver Repair

LED Drivers tend to fail but surprisingly, most of them fail from the same culprit that originates from poor parts selection and trying to bring costs down.

The typical LED driver depends on two capacitors so it operates correctly and because usually these capacitors are exposed to the high heat of the driver and the panel itself, they tend to lose their capacity over time and bulge up.

When that happens, the circuit no longer works or it only works with periodic flashes and people will usually replace the entire driver or the entire panel even.

This creates some unnecessary waste so in this Instructable I will show you how you can repair an LED driver with failed capacitors and have a working light once again for just cents.

To repair an LED panel you will need:

• 6.8uF 400V Capacitor - https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_DDt1yG7
• Assorted 400V Capacitors - https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_DDKlw2R
• Assorted Capacitors - https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_DlCMruf
• Soldering iron - https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_DdBvdbd
• Desoldering Pump - https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_DdZdcKJ
• Helping hand - https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_DDLYbq7
• Multimeter - https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_Dl8Uz7z
• Wire snips - https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_Dci2oh9
• Quick connect terminals - https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_DFXNXf5

To open up the driver case, you can use a flat-head screwdriver and gently pry open the back cover.

The driver is usually held inside just by the wires so once the cover is opened, the driver circuit will be free.

Unless there are any visual burn marks or visually burnt components, the driver can be repaired.

When a capacitor fails, the top usually bulges upward and it is no longer flat. If you see that, then for sure the capacitors need to be replaced, and although not always necessary, I always replace both of them.

The larger one should be rated for 400V while the smaller one is typically rated for 250V and this is important that you replace them with at least the same values or higher if that is what you can find.

In the supplies section, I have a few links from where you can buy the ones I bought but double-check yours before ordering any.

To remove the old capacitors, I first add some fresh solder to the pads so I can mix up the unleaded solder on the board with some leaded solder and lower its melting temperature.

The added flux from the fresh solder also helps so once I have some new solder on the pads, I heat one after the other while pulling on the capacitor from the other side.

The capacitor will slowly come out just by wiggling it from side to side while heating up the pads.

It is important to note the capacitor polarity before removing it as these are usually polarized and when adding the new one you will need to add it with the same orientation.

Once the old capacitor is out, you can use a desoldering pump to remove the excess solder and free up the holes in the PCB.

Another option is a solder wick but I mostly use the pump.

With the holes clean, the replacement capacitors can be added in place with the same orientation as the old ones and they can be soldered in place.

Because one of the capacitors is folded above the regulator IC, it is important that you leave extra space on its leads so it can be bent.

Since I can never be sure of a repair, I've made myself a Dim Bulb Tester, where I can have a light bulb in series with the load being tested.

The light bulb will limit the current going into the tested device so even if it is shorted, the worst thing that can happen is that the light bulb will light up.

I highly recommend that you make one for yourself if you are looking into any repairs.

With the tester, I connected the repaired module to a known working panel and when turned on, it immediately started working so I knew that the repair worked.

One of the replaced panels that I have was not working so I opened it up to investigate what was wrong with it.

It turned out that the panel had a strip where several sections of 5 LEDs wired in parallel, were connected in series. All but one of these sections worked and on the section that was not working, there were visible black spots indicating that the LEDs have burned up.

Unfortunately, this is not an easy fix but if you have more panels like this, and if you can solder SMD components using hot air, then you can use one panel as a donor, and replace the LEDs on another one to repair it.

Currently, I only have one panel but I will definitely try this in the future.

So, just like that with replaced 8 capacitors I now have 4 working LED drivers that I can use in my home when the next one breaks.

It took me around 20 minutes to repair all of them and all of the capacitors cost less than $1 so I call that a great win.

I hope that you liked this Instructable and if you did then I encourage you to check my other ones. Also, check out my YouTube channel for more repairs and DIY projects.