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Computer keeps blowing power supplies... Why?

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MarkS:
I built my niece a computer about 6 years ago. Over the past year, my sister has had to replace the power supply multiple times and is about to do so again. The computer works fine before the PSU blows. The house they live in is very old and the wiring is outdated and not up to code. Could faulty wiring cause this? What are some typical causes? My niece is severely autistic and uses the computer as an outlet. She cannot be without it for long, so this needs to be fixed promptly and completely.

bdunham7:
Is your PSU a universal voltage input or do you have to select 115/230V?  Is it PFC?  Is it derated at least 50%?  What brand/model is it?  Does the computer have a powerful video card?

wraper:
What PSU models were used? Have you ever measured mains voltage? I was repairing stuff at one remote location once in a while and they had repeated motor AC motor failures in certain type of device. Then I measured 280V mains voltage at certain time of the day. So I found that one of three phases their location was powered with often was wildly out of spec, switched stuff to sockets with different phase connected and no such failures since then.

Foxxz:
Weak/old/dried caps on the motherboard may be causing additional load on the PSU

amyk:
Definitely seems like bad power. The Repair forum here may help figure out what happened to the old ones, and even fix them.

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