UPS Recommendations

[Jason]

What brand and model number UPS systems do you own and recommend?

Are UPS systems used for computers identical to the ones needed for PVRs?

What is the minimum amount of backup time that you recommend?

[P Smith]

APC pretty good; yes - identical; min time depend of your local periods of outage - should cover longer blackout.

[Mark Holtz]

Also, if you have a SW-44 or SW-64, you need a UPS on the power inserter.

[bolco]

Originally posted by Z'Loth
Also, if you have a SW-44 or SW-64, you need a UPS on the power inserter.

Yes...don't forget this. I got burnt on this one...racked my brains off of the wall for 10-15min before i figured out exactly why my TV displayed Acquiring Signal during the power outage. So, I bought another one.

[firephoto]

I've got a couple of Powercom UPS's from www.newegg.com and the work great. KIN-625AP
http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProduct.asp?submit=manufactory&catalog=72&manufactory=1350&DEPA=1&sortby=14&order=1

They have some models there with lots of outlets that will work great with your satellite system.

[jcrash]

Originally posted by Z'Loth
Also, if you have a SW-44 or SW-64, you need a UPS on the power inserter.

I'm not so sure this is right. I live in Tulsa, and we have had a lot of thunderstorms lately. Our power has flickered many times. I have a UPS only on the 721. The SW64 inserter has no UPS. We have not had any problems with "acquiring signal" when our power has flickered. Previously, we would miss several minutes as it caused the 721 to reboot, but now no problems whatsoever.

Perhaps it is only needed if you try to change channels while the power is off?

[Jason]

Do you think this is a good deal for $81?

BELKIN COMPONENTS
Home Office 650VA UPS - Dell Only
UPS, 0.65 kVA/0.36 KW, 8 Outlets, USB Interface, 35 Min Back-up

[gcutler]

I had a APC's battery go dead on me after a really bad thunderstorm with lots of power surges and they were very easy to deal with in getting support and getting a replacement battery. Belkin is a well known brand but don't know how good their support is???

[Kerry High]

When my house was hit by lightning, my APC UPS didn't survive it, but it protected my computer that was plugged into it, and they replaced the UPS at no charge. I've had no problems with them in normal use, and would stongly recommend APC.

[jcrash]

Not sure how big you want, but the 1200VA Belkin is on sale cheap now at staples.

http://www.fatwallet.com/forums/messageview.cfm?catid=18&threadid=180900&highlight_key=y&keyword1=UPS


One other thing I would mention - a UPS can have a pretty huge magnetic field, at least the one I got does. I have a 350VA APC, I believe, and I have to have it about 3 feet from my 36" XBR or I get discoloration on the screen.

[Nick]

Be sure you provide surge suppression for your incoming RG6(s) and your tel line. I have my tel line protected at the interface which protects the tel lines throughout the whole house.

[Jason]

I am just looking for a UPS to use only for my 721 for now. Once I get the 921 then I will use the UPS on that unit.

Do you think the APC Back-UPS ES 500 would be a good choice for my situation or do you recommend that I go with the Back-UPS ES 725 Broadband?

I need at least 15 minutes of backup.

Thanks.

[Jason]

Quick question about the APC Back-UPS ES 350. It says that it has 8.1 min (100 Watts) at Half Load / 1.6 min (200 Watts) at Full Load backup. The 721 is 65 Watts but wouldn't it always need the full load backup? Assuming that, I estimate that the 350 would only power the 721 for about 5 minutes. Is that correct?

[Rick_EE]

They mean that the 100 watts is half the load of the 200 watts. It seems backup capability is not linear, but it looks like the 721's 65 watts would mean that you have at least 8.1 min and probably quite a few more.

[Rick_EE]

I looked it up on their site. It looks like 50 watt load gives you 21 minutes. 65 will give you 15-20 minutes, I guess.

http://www.apc.com/products/runtime_by_family.cfm?upsfamily=21

 

Also note that the 65 watts of the 721 is the maximum draw that you will see.  I would guess that if you are recording, though, you are probably will be using almost all of that.

[Jason]

The Back-UPS ES 725 has One Coax Input/Output on it which the cheaper ones do not have. But if I am using this on a 721 or 921 which both have dual coax inputs/outputs, having one coax hooked up really won't do much good, will it? Wouldn't you have to have a UPS that has dual inputs/outputs to truly take advantage of the coax protection?

Does anyone know of any UPS units that offer dual coax protection?

[Rick_EE]

Just get a normal surge supressor for them. They don't need to be in the UPS.

[Jason]

Rick,

Thanks for the response! So do you think that the APC Back-UPS ES 350 is the way for me to go for just a 721 or 921?

[Rick_EE]

I don't know what your goals are. As an electrical engineer, I was able to answer your questions. What do you want when the power goes out?

 

I don't have a PVR, so I have no direct experience.

[Jason]

I want to have about 15 minutes of backup so that if I am recording a show on my PVR and the power goes out, the PVR will keep on recording it and not have any power interruptions at all.

I am basically trying to prevent my PVR from rebooting, which it does whenever there is a power outage, so that I get the full recordings all of the shows that I tape and don't lose minutes during a power outage.

Also, my PVR always acts up and misses timers after a power outage and I am trying to prevent that too.

[jcrash]

I use the 350, and haven't had any problems so far. In our area at least, the power either goes out for less than 5 seconds or more than 15 minutes with the greater than 15 minutes issues being about 1 a year and unlikely in Primetime.

[Bob Haller]

Buy the one you want bring home charge for at least a day then plug in your system and pull the power plug on the UPS, it will alarm saying the power is off, then ALARM saying the battery is about to die. You will then know how long it will run your system.

I use a APC 600 and it works fine.

[scooper]

One suggestion on the UPS's - buy one with end-user (that's you) replacable batteries, and don't be surprised if the first ones have a shorter life than your subsequent ones. They typically sit in the warehouse for some time before they're sold, and this shortens your initial battery life accordingly. I got this straight from Tech Support from one of the UPS's we have .

[firephoto]

Line interactive UPS would be better too because it regulates the voltage coming in and keeps it at a constant level. This will let it run longer when you are having just a brown out too because it will only have to partially run off of the battery. My KIN-625AP's are line interactive, 650VA, user replacable batts, and they're only $64. They run really cool too.

I was going to buy an APC a couple of months ago, but was leary due to the mixed feedback I've heard about them and then there was the big recall on a model(s). The Powercoms are only being sold by Newegg and a few others in this country, but are really popular in other countries. They've been around for awhile too apparently and sell them under another name too that I can't think of right now.

[Jason]

Anybody else with comments?

[gcutler]

Buy as large VA (350VA, 500VA, 650VA, etc) as you can afford, the bigger will either give you longer time on battery or more to put on the battery. I originally had a TV, VHS, 508 and SW-64 switch on my UPS, but I since I rarely use the VHS anymore and figure I don't need to be watching TV during a blackout. I now only have the 508 and SW64 power inserter on the UPS (to prevent recordings from being interrupted or problems related to powerloss on a PVR's hard drive) and the battery will last alot longer than before.

I've had good luck with APC (both home and office units). I have also used Tripplite and BlackoutBuster with no problems, but the Tripplite does not have a replacable battery and the Blackout Buster has a fuse that might need to be replaced (hard to find). I would probably replace them with APCs if they ever failed.

[Chris Blount]

I just got a heck of a deal on a APC 500VA (300 watt) UPS for $29.99 after rebates ($39.99 - $10 mail in rebate) at CompUSA. This is the best deal I have seen in a long time. Here is the info:

http://www.compusa.com/products/product_info.asp?product_code=294980&pfp=ADPRODUCTS

[Monty]

I replaced a Cyberpower 500 VA UPS (dead battery) with an APC Backups Pro 500 for my PC. The battery in the Cyberpower was not easily replaced by the user. I managed to take the Cyberpower apart, but was unable to find a new battery for it. Had I found a battery, it would have been somewhat difficult to put the unit back together.

The battery in the APC is extremely easy to replace. I get about 20 min runtime for the pc (pIII 600), monitor (14” tube), a bookshelf stereo system, and a cordless phone. I can’t tell you what that adds up to as far as total load goes, but the monitor draws a maximum of 80W so I’m sure it would hold a 721 up for longer than 20 minutes. Keep in mind that the batteries in larger UPS’s have more capacity, hence the longer runtimes. Buying a larger UPS will give more runtime for the 721 (and 921 when you get it) in addition to giving you room to add more load.

You can also extend runtime when you’re at home with a small generator. Visit some of the sites below before you make a final decision. Not that it would be a viable option (high cost), but if you’re curious, check out the Ferrups FE series by Powerware just to get an idea of the possibilities out there. These are available from 500 VA to 18 kVA (enough to run most houses minus any devices with heating elements). In addition to the batteries, the boards in these can also be replaced, although I wouldn’t recommend that the user try to do so.

http://www.powerware.com/
http://www.alwaysonups.com/
http://www.cyberpowersystems.com/
http://www.belkin.com/
http://www.falconups.com/
http://www.mgeups.com/
http://www.mhpower.com.au/index1.html
http://www.tripplite.com/

DISCLAIMER: Don’t try the following unless you are absolutely sure you know what you are doing.

If you’re feeling adventurous and don’t care about the warranty or connected equipment guarantee that most manufacturers offer, you can always add more batteries to extend runtime. If you choose to do so, add batteries identical to the one included (in both voltage and capacity) with the UPS, and MAKE SURE YOU WIRE THEM IN PARALLEL.

Monty

[Jason]

Chris,

Did you buy the APC 500VA (300 watt) UPS at your local CompUSA? It doesn't seem like it is worth it if you cannot pick it up locally and have to order it online, the price really jacks up with $15 shipping plus sales tax...$58 or $48 after the rebate.

I ended up ordering the APC Back-UPS ES 725 Broadband for $89 without having to deal with any rebates and including all shipping and taxes.

I am going to check with my local Comp to see if they have anymore of the 500's in stock which I doubt they will. Thanks for bringing the deal to my attention.

[pjm877]

Gang,

What I have is a Best FERRUPS full time 15 amp 1.1kva ups on the TV, Dish rec, Denon 5800, and all the other stuff.  I think the UPS will run my 721 for hours (maybe a day).  Now the computer room has a 2.1kva 20 amp and in the car port I have a 220/240 volt 3.1 30 amp (output is 120), just waiting for a 220 line run to the living room. 

These UPS's are made for use in Industrial server farm rooms, and the batteries are about the size of car batt's.. I got the units for about $88 used each, and had to put in about $300 in batt's, but the units new cost from 2,000 to 4500.

I get very clean power, and when the power goes down I do not have to worry about the transfere time from Grid to Bat.

The inversion coil one these thing are about 8" round.  No these are not ment to be placed under your desk. The unit with batt's is around 100 lb.  I have them on plywood carts.

That is what I have been using for about the last 2.5 years, and they have served me well.  I know this is not what most would use, but I wanted Industrial strength to protect all my equ. 

I had two APC smart ups 600's, but they would "smoke" after about 2 years of use.  Not sure why, but a 1/2" cap would turn to ash and fill the room with smoke.  I am sure glad that the units did this while I was here.  For this reason I went with the Best. 

[Chris Blount]

Originally posted by Jason
Chris,

Did you buy the APC 500VA (300 watt) UPS at your local CompUSA? It doesn't seem like it is worth it if you cannot pick it up locally and have to order it online, the price really jacks up with $15 shipping plus sales tax...$58 or $48 after the rebate.
You are right about the shipping cost. I picked mine up locally which is probably the best deal. When I was there, they had an entire pallet full of them so you might get lucky. If they don't have any left, you might try and ask for a rain check.

[Mike123abc]

I have a Best Ferrups too, it is a 1.5KVA/1.05Kwatt unit. It is a great UPS, I have 3 computers on it and it can keep all 3 of them up for at least 45 minutes. They are pretty much industrial units. They have a lot of fan noise, I keep mine in the basement and ran a special plug up to the office. It has the ability to attach extra batteries for extended uptime.

[jcrash]

For those that one a free UPS (after rebate):

http://www.fatwallet.com/forums/messageview.cfm?catid=18&threadid=183497

[gcutler]

Originally posted by jcrash
For those that one a free UPS (after rebate):

http://www.fatwallet.com/forums/messageview.cfm?catid=18&threadid=183497

I have that one, it does the job nicely.

[Bob Haller]

If your into long backup times buy a used UPS with junk battery. Then put it on a marine battery and backup times skyrocket.

UPS with junk battery is also a EXCELLENT power inverter changing 12 volts to 120.

Best part is used UPS are free!

[gcutler]

I plug my ups into a nuclear reactor, backup time is 50,000 years :p