Relay Contents?

**Breakage** · 10-19-2016, 10:30 PM

I was doing some exploratory tear downs, today, and I cut into an oscillating air purifier. Not much to say for it, aside from a brown board, a few feet of wire, and a motor weighing a couple pounds. But inside was also a blue and black component, free from the board, with two plug like pins on it. I thought it to be a relay and so I smacked it open to see if I could identify the contacts. Instead, I found two copper plugs on either side of a weird metallic brick, the size of a matchbook, which was firm but brittle like graphite. I couldn't pull it out because it kept crumbling.

Tomorrow, I'm going to research the part number. Any idea what I might have found?

**eesakiwi** · 10-21-2016, 06:10 AM

Peltier device?

**Breakage** · 10-21-2016, 08:47 AM

I checked the part number. It's actually a capacitor, a polyester metal film type. The gray stuff is a small blob of shrink-wrapped zinc.

**Breakage** · 10-21-2016, 08:50 AM

I did find one of your Peltier devices, a small square the size of a cheese cracker. I forget what it was I found it in (portable speaker?) but it was covered in too. I'm not sure what to do with it.

**eesakiwi** · 10-22-2016, 06:36 AM

Originally Posted by Breakage

I did find one of your Peltier devices, a small square the size of a cheese cracker. I forget what it was I found it in (portable speaker?) but it was covered in too. I'm not sure what to do with it.

It will be from a water chiller unit or some sort of fridge/cooler.

There's plently of things to make from them on YouTube.
Like this battery charger that uses fire to generate electricity.
And from there on there's plenty of links for other projects.

I like the peltier powered fan for log burners, free power and free heat and something to watch as well as a visual tempature indicator.
Made from 4 easy to find recyclable parts.

**Breakage** · 10-23-2016, 11:15 PM

Huh. I haven't broken down any coolers, lately, so I am not sure where I found it.

Also, the one I found appears to have edges sealed by some kind of silicone caulking, not the "gills" you show in your pictures. Have I mistaken yet another part in this thread?

**eesakiwi** · 10-24-2016, 07:14 AM

Nah, it will be the same part but made by a different company. It'll work exactly the same.

Yesterday, by coincidence, I find a electric yogurt maker in the supermarket. I expect it will have one too, maybe. (Not 100% sure it will have one now, a heating element would do the same job, but it could cool it down after making it too though.)

I have found them in benchtop water chillers. After taking 2 apart and seeing what's in its tank....I'd never use one in my life..yuk!