UPS

[bwana]

Quick question about UPS's - how much time would a 600va UPS give a standard PC and LCD before shutting it down gracefully (they do that right?) as compared to a 1000va model?

Also - am I right in thinking that a UPS will help refine the power coming from a generator? We're having regular power cuts for the next few months and we've got a pretty crappy generator.

 

[spiderz]

UPS definatly delivers cleaner power to the pc.
I would recon 10-15min.
1Kva 15-25min

If you can afford a online UPS, they are even better (They run permanently from battery so there is no switch over when power fails)

 

[The_Techie]

Quick question about UPS's - how much time would a 600va UPS give a standard PC and LCD before shutting it down gracefully (they do that right?) as compared to a 1000va model?

Also - am I right in thinking that a UPS will help refine the power coming from a generator? We're having regular power cuts for the next few months and we've got a pretty crappy generator.

It's definitely a good idea to have a UPS when running a generator, I wouldn't risk it

I only get about 5 minutes from my cheap 600vA model. If you buy a proper one then expect 10 to 15 minutes. A 1000vA should last you between 20 and 25 minutes, depending on draw of course. Rough estimates of course, could be more or less

 

[bwana]

Thanks - I think I'm just looking for something to shut down the computer gracefully if the generator runs out of petrol (or to cover it while I'm refuelling) so the 5 mins offered by the 600va might well be ample for my needs.

 

[bwana]

Anyone use the Sahara Electra 600VA Plus Ups . . . or know if it will automatically shut down an unattended PC for me in the event of a power cut?

 

[slayerza]

UPS FTW! With the crappy power from eskom my 600VA UPS triggers several times a day to filter spikes and voltage drops. Running a Core2Duo 8Gig RAM 6HDD 19" LCD I can get about 12min without the screen ~17min. Got the UPS mostly for filtering and having time to save etc.

My PowerCom can trigger a shutdown on the PC, but I'm not sure if all models have this functionality

 

[PsyWulf]

My 600VA's ( running 2 on 1 PC ) die after 3 seconds

I do have to note that I am running a Huge 800w monster with 5 HDD's,2 optical drives and 2 very very big screens

 

[HavocXphere]

I'd go for a APC branded UPS...replacement batteries for those are easier to track down than other brands. If you do get one of those then try to get one that also has a port for the network cable...my last PC got fried via LAN cable.

Make sure its either line-interactive or online....else it won't help improve the quality of the power. Online could get expensive though.

 

[bekdik]

get yourself a small apc, they work well and are extremely reliable. The up time is dependant on the battery rating, some of the cheaper solutions do not use specially purposefully designed ups batteries which then don't perform.

 

[detritus]

I have an APC 800VA unit, the software estimates 30 minutes with a load of 140-145w (my machine at idle) and around 20 minutes at around 200w load. Of course I have not tested it to see if it goes the distance.