Measuring the 12 volt line on old PC power supply

I am using an old PC power supply for powering the monitor and other 12 volt things on a computer in stead of the usual wall-warts . I measured the 12 volt line and it was pretty low - actually a little below 11 volts . I figured it was bad so I dug others out of the junk box and found that all measured way below 12 VDC .

Any of you use these cheap supplies ? Have you ever measured the output voltages ? I just can't believe that all meters are bad or that all my old pc supplies have gone bad. Is it possible that this is a normal condition on the gillions of computers out there ? 

I just connected a small auto tail light bulb to the 12 volt line on a 250 watt unit which is labeled to deliver 10 amps of 12 volts and the measured voltage dropped from 11.35 to 10.56 volts while drawing way less than 3 amps. Anyone here ever checked these ? 

The way these power supplies work, the 5V or 3.3V line is regulated and the 12V line just comes out near 12V due to the relative number of windings. Put an automotive 12V taillight bulb on the 5V line, now measure the 12V line. There are mods online to shift regulation to the 12V output and get even more power out of it. They are not for those who are not already fairly experienced.

I'm learning things I never knew about - right now I'm placing smaller and larger wattage bulbs on the 5 volt line and the 12 volt line while measuring the 12 volt line - trying to see if anything keeps the voltage at 12 or above - nothing so far.

At your mentioning that online mods can be found that regulate and allow increased current , I'm googling around in search of what I want - maybe even adding variable voltage. Actually I do almost what I want to do now using a variac and a diode bridge . This idea of using some of my old computer supplies seemed like a good possibility to replace that un-handy setup.

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traveling to Asia again

I will be in Singapore for three days, and Malaysia for two days on business. I will have little time to see anything but the office. I have been to China many times. I like it because the children do not outnumber the adults! I guess I will find out if the same is try in Singapore and Johr Bahru, Malaysia.

When are you travelling singapore? We don't many children here. And it is a city.

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Freezing greens

I know that lettuces do not freeze well, but I'm wondering if it would be feasible to wash, pat dry and freeze romaine, kale, etc. for VitaMix purposes? I usually do not eat up (or drink up!) a head of romaine or bunch of kale before it goes bad. So I'm thinking that even though washing, freezing, then eating lettuc would taste yucky, it probably wouldn't make much of a difference if you're blending it into a smoothie.

Your thoughts on this?

*Don't know about the other greens, but I freeze kale all the time (grow my own) w/excellent results. I simply pack in ziplocks, squeeze to remove as much air as possible, No par boiling for me. Works great.*

I've not tried it with Romaine(I'm gonna now),But I always have frozen Kale on hand, as well as chard and collards. I wash them, pat them dry and stem them, then place- as flatly as possible in ziplock bags. No idea how long they'ed keep as I go through them fairly quickly.

I used to lay them out on a baking sheet in the freezer to 'flash freeze' them before bagging them up, but I do not notice a difference by skipping that step.

I'm doing this when I buy my next bunch of Kale. Now here's my question. I like to cook Kale, not vitamix it. 

Can I still cook the Kale after freezing it and will it turn out the same way it does now?

Why would it matter if the consistency changed when the kale was frozen, if it is going to be pulverized in the VM anyway? (Oh, I see that Melody cooks hers, so question is for Rob, I guess)

I dehydrate raw kale (also raw spinach). It dries out completely overnight in my dehydrator, and then I crumble it, and store it in an airtight container, in the refrigerator. I add a heaping spoonful to my smoothies, and also to soups, etc.

It doesn't take up any room at all when it is stored this way. :)

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