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Problem:
You just bought a brand new computer. It is
top of the line, and you added all those extra features you've always wanted
and needed: a scanner, flat panel monitor, DVD burner, a high-end graphics
card, and a color laser printer. Suddenly, someone hits a telephone pole,
your power flickers on/off a couple times, and then comes back on. But now
your computer won't turn on! Not to mention that you didn't save your
document before the power outage!
Ok, now what? What could have happened? You
have your computer on a power strip with surge protection!
Well, I'm sure you are more than aware that
power surges (or spikes) in electricity aren't good for ANY electronics.
Although you may have had a surge in power during your power failure, your
surge protector most likely took care of protecting your equipment against
that type of failure. The problem is that surge protectors do not protect
against loss of power, power fluctuation, and what I like to call 'power
pulse'.
Electronics can be very touchy with power. Turning electronics on/off
rapidly (pulse) can be just as detrimental as a surge. The electricity
coming from your outlets in your home or office fluctuates, depending on
what other devices are running on the same circuits. Have you ever noticed a
light dimming as your refrigerator, furnace, or water heater kick on? This
is because those appliances are on the same circuit as the light fixture.
This fluctuation in power isn't good for electronics either. If a computer
is underpowered, your hardware can develop problems.
Solution:
A quick and cheap solution to protecting your
investment is to purchase an Uninterruptible Power Supply (UPS). A UPS is
actually a surge strip with a big battery in it. Depending on the model of
the UPS you purchase, it will have about 3-8 outlets in it for electronic
devices. If the power surges, it protects your equipment just like a surge
strip.
The bonus with the UPS is that it also
provides power for a limited time during a power failure. If the power goes
out, the battery automatically provides power to the computer without
interruption. This gives you enough time to shut down your computer safely
during long power outages. If the outages are short, then there is no need
to shut down your machine! Just keep working.
A typical UPS divides half of the outlets up
into surge only ports, and the other half into surge and battery backup. The
surge only ports do no provide power during power failures, while the
battery outlets provide both surge and backup power safety.
How long does the battery last? Good question.
Depending on the model of UPS you purchase, your battery can provide enough
power to run your computer and monitor for 3 to 75 minutes. The range is
dependent on the battery within the UPS. The batteries are rated in VA,
which is assigned a number of Watts. Although VA isn't something you need to
really know, you should know that the higher the VA rating, the more battery
life it will probably have. The watts associated with the VA rating is more
important. If your computer us using 250Watts, and your monitor is using
240Watts, you can see that you would need at least a 500VA UPS to maintain
power to your system. This is why I suggest a 500VA or 525VA UPS, and
precisely why I suggest NOT plugging in more than your monitor and computer
tower to your battery backup outlets!
Your standard UPS's start at about 350VA, they
provide about 200Watts of power, and last for 5-7 minutes at half load.
Almost ALL UPS's are rated at 'half load'. So typically, if it advertises a
20min protection, you are most likely looking at 10-12 minutes max,
depending on your equipment. I suggest buying no less than a 500VA UPS for
your system.
WARNING:
Do NOT plug more than your computer tower and your monitor into your battery
backup ports on your UPS. The main reason that UPS's are half battery backup
and half surge only is because the UPS can't maintain enough power to run
all of your electronics. If you have too many things plugged into the
battery backup outlets and the power goes out, the UPS will go into safety
mode and shut down ALL ports! If you have additional equipment you want to
safeguard, purchase a second UPS for the remaining equipment. Just make sure
that the power required is less than what the UPS can provide.
Printers: Before putting your printer on a
UPS, ask yourself what type of printer it is. If it is a bubblejet or inkjet
printer, you are probably ok. You will need to check the power requirements
of the printer and make sure the UPS can handle it. LASER printers do NOT
play well with UPS's. Laser printers heat up to apply the toner to the
paper. During this warm-up procedure, a laser printer draws a LOT of power.
Unless you buy a really large and high VA UPS, putting your laser printer on
a UPS usually isn't a good idea.
Models, Brands & Options: UPS's come in many
different flavors. Ranging in physical dimensions, power ratings, colors,
and connection types. Some of your most common UPS manufacturers are
American Power Conversion (APC), CyberPower, TrippLite, and MinuteMan. More
recently, even battery manufacturers themselves have been getting into the
market, like Energizer and Duracell. Any of these manufacturers will do, and
physical size and color are your choice. I have personally had great results
using both CyberPower and APC. APC is a little more expensive, but more
regularly available.
Choosing your power rating may be a difficult
choice. I would recommend a 500VA or higher UPS for your monitor and
computer tower. If you need to hookup your speakers, scanner, printer, palm
device, and other equipment to UPS power, buy a separate UPS. It is a lot
more cost effective to purchase another UPS than it is to upgrade to the
next higher VA rating range. The following is a list of standard pricing and
VA ratings at the time of this writing:
350VA UPS - $42.00
500VA UPS - $63.00
725VA UPS - $105.00
1200VA UPS - $183.00
Make sure you check the UPS options and what
wattage they provide with the VA rating. You can often find a large VA
rating with a low wattage for a great price. The problem is that it may not
have enough wattage to power your system. Sometimes you get what you pay
for. Some of the higher end UPS models have 'automatic power regulation'
with them, which actually filters the electricity and provides a consistent
and steady supply of power. This means that the power is considered
'cleaner' and is more safe for your system.
The best option that you should have with a
UPS is some type of 'auto shutdown' feature. If you aren't around to safely
shutdown your machine, the software from the UPS manufacturer can actually
shutdown the machine for you when the battery reaches a certain percentage
used. This is a great feature and I have yet to see a UPS ship without this
software/hardware solution. Just make sure you double-check the package
contents for this feature though.
Summary:
Buy a UPS for your computer, or ask for one
for Christmas. If you watch the circulars that come out in the newspaper
each Sunday, you will probably see a lot of great deals on UPS units from
your local office supply store for $20 to $50. I have even seen them for
FREE after mail-in rebates!
My business depends on computing, which of
course depends on electricity. All of our equipment is protected with UPS
protection. I've even purchased small 350VA UPS's for my home electronic
equipment. I've got my DVD player, VCR, and clock all hooked up. No more
resetting the time after a power outage! I had to buy a much larger UPS to
support my 700Watt stereo, and a really, really big one to protect my TV,
but it is worth the investment.
Simply put, no one should be without one.
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