A typical computer with a 15-21 inch LCD monitor will be well
protected with a 500VA UPS. A larger monitor and extra peripherals
such as powered speakers, cable modem, wireless router or external
DVD, CD or hard drives, require increasing the UPS to 650VA or larger.
To protect just the computer, excluding any peripherals, a 350VA is
acceptable. You can expect to pay around $40 for a 350VA UPS and
upwards of $400 for a 1500VA UPS.
--
Men occasionally stumble over the truth,
but most of them pick themselves up and hurry off
as if nothing ever happened.
On Mon, 25 Jun 2007 22:56:21 -0800, Steve <hde@wbn.inv> wrote:
>
>Ran across this info, does it seem about right?
>
>
>http://www.visitinggeeks.com/press_room_heatwave.html
>
>A typical computer with a 15-21 inch LCD monitor will be well
>protected with a 500VA UPS. A larger monitor and extra peripherals
>such as powered speakers, cable modem, wireless router or external
>DVD, CD or hard drives, require increasing the UPS to 650VA or larger.
>To protect just the computer, excluding any peripherals, a 350VA is
>acceptable. You can expect to pay around $40 for a 350VA UPS and
>upwards of $400 for a 1500VA UPS.
I've got several ups's but I don't claim to be any guru on the
subject. That said I have read that 350VA is probably the minimum you
want. I seem to recall seeing most often 500VA to 750VA on sale so I
gather this is the sweet spot for typical users. Of course there are
others but I don't see them advertised as much. I haven't kept up on
prices so I can't say for sure but my guess is your numbers seem
reasonable. Of course you can shop on line to get up to date costs.
Do keep in mind that you don't have to have all your stuff plugged
into it and excessive VA will give you more battery time which you may
or may not need. One other thing I'd consider is whether the battery
in it can easily be found so when it comes time to replace it, you can
do so easily. Also you might want to know ahead of time, what the
battery cost will be (just for peace of mind; cost might change years
later and don't be surprised if the battery cost is 50% or greater vs.
the entire unit cost). Last, I've read that the typical ups battery
lasts about 3 or 4 years (of course ymmv; mine are too new yet to tell
you but I noted the date on them).
One question I have for someone else is, how do you know when your
batteries are going down? Do you begin to see less reserved battery
time or do they suddenly just show zero reserved battery time??
"RnR" <rnrtexas@gmail.com> wrote in message
news:gi5283pnje5mhdgt7ggmlq1u7p8p3vp4k6@4ax.com...
> On Mon, 25 Jun 2007 22:56:21 -0800, Steve <hde@wbn.inv> wrote:
>
>>
>>Ran across this info, does it seem about right?
>>
>>
>>http://www.visitinggeeks.com/press_room_heatwave.html
>>
>>A typical computer with a 15-21 inch LCD monitor will be well
>>protected with a 500VA UPS. A larger monitor and extra peripherals
>>such as powered speakers, cable modem, wireless router or external
>>DVD, CD or hard drives, require increasing the UPS to 650VA or larger.
>>To protect just the computer, excluding any peripherals, a 350VA is
>>acceptable. You can expect to pay around $40 for a 350VA UPS and
>>upwards of $400 for a 1500VA UPS.
>
>
> I've got several ups's but I don't claim to be any guru on the
> subject. That said I have read that 350VA is probably the minimum you
> want. I seem to recall seeing most often 500VA to 750VA on sale so I
> gather this is the sweet spot for typical users. Of course there are
> others but I don't see them advertised as much. I haven't kept up on
> prices so I can't say for sure but my guess is your numbers seem
> reasonable. Of course you can shop on line to get up to date costs.
> Do keep in mind that you don't have to have all your stuff plugged
> into it and excessive VA will give you more battery time which you may
> or may not need. One other thing I'd consider is whether the battery
> in it can easily be found so when it comes time to replace it, you can
> do so easily. Also you might want to know ahead of time, what the
> battery cost will be (just for peace of mind; cost might change years
> later and don't be surprised if the battery cost is 50% or greater vs.
> the entire unit cost). Last, I've read that the typical ups battery
> lasts about 3 or 4 years (of course ymmv; mine are too new yet to tell
> you but I noted the date on them).
>
> One question I have for someone else is, how do you know when your
> batteries are going down? Do you begin to see less reserved battery
> time or do they suddenly just show zero reserved battery time??
Many of them have an audible warning and those with installed software will
tell you battery condition and remaining life. At least my APC 1200, 1000
and 350 all do that.
On Tue, 26 Jun 2007 10:53:08 -0400, "ol****" <ol****65@excite.com>
wrote:
>
>"RnR" <rnrtexas@gmail.com> wrote in message
>news:gi5283pnje5mhdgt7ggmlq1u7p8p3vp4k6@4ax.com.. .
>> On Mon, 25 Jun 2007 22:56:21 -0800, Steve <hde@wbn.inv> wrote:
>>
>>>
>>>Ran across this info, does it seem about right?
>>>
>>>
>>>http://www.visitinggeeks.com/press_room_heatwave.html
>>>
>>>A typical computer with a 15-21 inch LCD monitor will be well
>>>protected with a 500VA UPS. A larger monitor and extra peripherals
>>>such as powered speakers, cable modem, wireless router or external
>>>DVD, CD or hard drives, require increasing the UPS to 650VA or larger.
>>>To protect just the computer, excluding any peripherals, a 350VA is
>>>acceptable. You can expect to pay around $40 for a 350VA UPS and
>>>upwards of $400 for a 1500VA UPS.
>>
>>
>> I've got several ups's but I don't claim to be any guru on the
>> subject. That said I have read that 350VA is probably the minimum you
>> want. I seem to recall seeing most often 500VA to 750VA on sale so I
>> gather this is the sweet spot for typical users. Of course there are
>> others but I don't see them advertised as much. I haven't kept up on
>> prices so I can't say for sure but my guess is your numbers seem
>> reasonable. Of course you can shop on line to get up to date costs.
>> Do keep in mind that you don't have to have all your stuff plugged
>> into it and excessive VA will give you more battery time which you may
>> or may not need. One other thing I'd consider is whether the battery
>> in it can easily be found so when it comes time to replace it, you can
>> do so easily. Also you might want to know ahead of time, what the
>> battery cost will be (just for peace of mind; cost might change years
>> later and don't be surprised if the battery cost is 50% or greater vs.
>> the entire unit cost). Last, I've read that the typical ups battery
>> lasts about 3 or 4 years (of course ymmv; mine are too new yet to tell
>> you but I noted the date on them).
>>
>> One question I have for someone else is, how do you know when your
>> batteries are going down? Do you begin to see less reserved battery
>> time or do they suddenly just show zero reserved battery time??
>
>Many of them have an audible warning and those with installed software will
>tell you battery condition and remaining life. At least my APC 1200, 1000
>and 350 all do that.
>
thanks for the info. I'll check my APC installed software for the
same.
I think that those recommendations are on the light side. I'd go for
600 to 800VA for a full system (computer and monitor). That said, I've
grossly overloaded some lower power UPS' and never had them shut down
because of it.
I usually get 350VA UPS' for $30 or less (less right down to "free after
rebate"). I've usually been able to buy 500 to 750VA units. I did
manage to pick up a 1,500 VA unit for $50 after rebate (Office Depot in
February ... I'm having trouble getting the rebate). These things do go
on sale, and you can get great prices.
Another option, buy a unit on E-Bay that needs a new battery, and
replace it yourself (have it shipped without the old battery to save
shipping cost).
Steve wrote:
> Ran across this info, does it seem about right?
>
>
> http://www.visitinggeeks.com/press_room_heatwave.html
>
> A typical computer with a 15-21 inch LCD monitor will be well
> protected with a 500VA UPS. A larger monitor and extra peripherals
> such as powered speakers, cable modem, wireless router or external
> DVD, CD or hard drives, require increasing the UPS to 650VA or larger.
> To protect just the computer, excluding any peripherals, a 350VA is
> acceptable. You can expect to pay around $40 for a 350VA UPS and
> upwards of $400 for a 1500VA UPS.
>
>
>
Pull the plug and test it. I don't think that any of the "no load"
indications are worth much. I test with incandescent lamps that have
150 watt bulbs in them (or two such lamps, sometimes, for higher rated
units).
RnR wrote:
> On Mon, 25 Jun 2007 22:56:21 -0800, Steve <hde@wbn.inv> wrote:
>
>
> One question I have for someone else is, how do you know when your
> batteries are going down? Do you begin to see less reserved battery
> time or do they suddenly just show zero reserved battery time??
Steve wrote:
Barry Watzman wrote:
> I think that those recommendations are on the light side. I'd go for
> 600 to 800VA for a full system (computer and monitor). That said, I've
> grossly overloaded some lower power UPS' and never had them shut down
> because of it.
>
> I usually get 350VA UPS' for $30 or less (less right down to "free after
> rebate"). I've usually been able to buy 500 to 750VA units. I did
> manage to pick up a 1,500 VA unit for $50 after rebate (Office Depot in
> February ... I'm having trouble getting the rebate). These things do go
> on sale, and you can get great prices.
>
> Another option, buy a unit on E-Bay that needs a new battery, and
> replace it yourself (have it shipped without the old battery to save
> shipping cost).
>
>
> Steve wrote:
>> Ran across this info, does it seem about right?
>>
>>
>> http://www.visitinggeeks.com/press_room_heatwave.html
>>
>> A typical computer with a 15-21 inch LCD monitor will be well
>> protected with a 500VA UPS. A larger monitor and extra peripherals
>> such as powered speakers, cable modem, wireless router or external
>> DVD, CD or hard drives, require increasing the UPS to 650VA or larger.
>> To protect just the computer, excluding any peripherals, a 350VA is
>> acceptable. You can expect to pay around $40 for a 350VA UPS and
>> upwards of $400 for a 1500VA UPS.
>>
>>
>>
> Ran across this info, does it seem about right?
>
>
> http://www.visitinggeeks.com/press_room_heatwave.html
>
> A typical computer with a 15-21 inch LCD monitor will be well
> protected with a 500VA UPS. A larger monitor and extra peripherals
> such as powered speakers, cable modem, wireless router or external
> DVD, CD or hard drives, require increasing the UPS to 650VA or larger.
> To protect just the computer, excluding any peripherals, a 350VA is
> acceptable. You can expect to pay around $40 for a 350VA UPS and
> upwards of $400 for a 1500VA UPS.
>
>
>
I picked up a APC Back-UPS Pro 500 from Fry's for about $30 (no mail-in
rebate), and I am happy with it. It's currently connected to an
ultra-low power desktop which runs 24/7, a 20" display, an external HDD,
and I use Network UPS Tools (NUT) in Linux to automatically shutdown the
PC if on battery for more than 5 minutes. Be sure to test the battery
out every few months (I usually bring the PC down to a low run level
with the volumes unmounted and pull the plug, but if you're running
Windows, you might not want to use your PC in the test).
On Tue, 26 Jun 2007 21:53:21 -0800, Steve <hde@wbn.inv> wrote:
>Ok, here's a stupid question - other than being a better surge
>protector, what does a UPS do? Does it come into play only if you
>happen to be working at the computer when a surge hits? Then you get
>a couple minutes to save your work and log off? Any other benefits?
I haven't purchased one yet (I will soon), but I won't buy one unless
it has auto-shutdown software in case of a power outage. I leave my
desktop on all the time and it's likely that in case of an outage I
wouldn't be home.
Ok, here's a stupid question - other than being a better surge
protector, what does a UPS do? Does it come into play only if you
happen to be working at the computer when a surge hits? Then you get
a couple minutes to save your work and log off? Any other benefits?
--
Men occasionally stumble over the truth,
but most of them pick themselves up and hurry off
as if nothing ever happened.
On Tue, 26 Jun 2007 21:53:21 -0800, Steve <hde@wbn.inv> wrote:
>Ok, here's a stupid question - other than being a better surge
>protector, what does a UPS do? Does it come into play only if you
>happen to be working at the computer when a surge hits? Then you get
>a couple minutes to save your work and log off? Any other benefits?
At this point I think you need to either use dictionary.com or Google
to look up UPS and let them explain what it does/doesn't do.
UPS recommendations? 
Linear Mode
