“Exploding Capacitors in High Speed” is the EEVblog episode #42.

Dave blows up some tantalum and electrolytic capacitors in front of his new 300fps Sanyo Xacti high speed camcorder!

I’ve found this video very interesting and particularly relevant about power supply designing and its dangers.
Power supplies use a lot of big electrolytic capacitors, while some of them use in addition tantalum capacitors.
I’ve used tantalum capacitors in the past, but I stopped. Mostly because they fail in the worst possible way: they end shorted. Now, I have one more reason not to employ them: I don’t want to burn my house!

When you buy electrolytic capacitors, choose the renowned brands! Choose vented capacitors!
Remember that the maximum reverse voltage is quite low: only -1 or -1.5 volt only!

If you have to work with tantalum capacitors, choose models with x3 maximum voltage rating. For example, if you run a circuit at 5 volts, choose 16 volts rated capacitors, minimum.

Thanks Dave for this video.