Raymond Camden's Blog Rss

Recommend a good UPS?

31

Posted in | Posted on 04-10-2007 | 8,627 views

Well, I just lost an email I had been working on for the past 2 hours due to one second power outage. (Louisiana's power grid is made of swiss cheese.) Can someone recommend a good UPS?

p.s. And yes, Thunderbird does have an auto-save option. I would have assumed it was turned on by default. Guess what - it isn't. :)

Comments

[Add Comment] [Subscribe to Comments]

Kyle Hayes said on 04-10-2007 at 10:47 AM #
I have had great success with my Belkin:
http://catalog.belkin.com/IWCatSectionView.process...

Even has software to automatically shut down your Mac or PC at the appropriate time. It has an alarm when the power does go out to notify you. They are also less expensive then the APC alternatives.
Nick said on 04-10-2007 at 10:51 AM #
We've been using the APC Powerchute for over 2 years now. Hasn't let me down yet.

http://www.apc.com/products/family/index.cfm?id=12...
Robert Owen said on 04-10-2007 at 11:00 AM #
I use APC.. Depending on how many PC's.. I'd start with an APC 1300. Hey.. They are a Coldfusion site so they should be great, right?!

http://www.apc.com/products/category.cfm?id=13
John Ramon said on 04-10-2007 at 11:00 AM #
For the money this one rocks I it hasn't failed me yet.

http://www.apc.com/products/family/index.cfm?id=21...

For $40 you get 2 min of backup to turn you system off and save anything you have.
Raymond Camden said on 04-10-2007 at 11:02 AM #
Ugh:

http://www.apc.com/products/category.cfm?id=-3

Ok, lets take a bet. I'll email them right now. I am willing to bet my XBox, my car, my flat screen tv, that I will NEVER hear back from them.
Matt Osbun said on 04-10-2007 at 11:07 AM #
So, what you're saying is that if I get ahold of someone at APC and offer them an XBox and a car if they just email you, I get a new flatscreen TV? ;)

Cool...
Jim Priest said on 04-10-2007 at 11:11 AM #
What kind of PC do you have - monitor(s), etc. I'd probably go with Robert's suggestion if you have the money get a bigger one than you think you need (at least 1000Va).


I'd also look and see if it has CAT5 and modem protection. You can plug in all your PC stuff and lightening can come in and zap your PC through the CAT5. I lost a router once this way - luckly the router bit it before the surge hit my PC.

I have a 2400 or something like that at home. It's way more than I need (esp. since I got rid of my CRT) but it also comes in handy during power outages - I've plugged my TV and a lamp into it before.
Raymond Camden said on 04-10-2007 at 11:12 AM #
I've got on PC and 2 monitors. I've already got a nice surge protector. Could I attach that to the UPS? Ie,

Wall - UPS - Surgeprotect/multiplugin doohicky.
Lance said on 04-10-2007 at 11:16 AM #
A lot of people are suggesting APC. I have a Powerchute but for some reason it has been strangely shutting itself down every morning around the same time (7:00 a.m.). Isn't a battery backup supposed to <i>prevent</i> that?!

Maybe I have a faulty backup...
Robert Owen said on 04-10-2007 at 11:16 AM #
Yes you can do that... Only.. if you have a laser printer don't put that on the UPS.. It pulls more power at the beginning of a Print job and (if you don't get a big enough UPS) can overload the battery.
Robert Owen said on 04-10-2007 at 11:18 AM #
Lance-- Hold old is the battery.. It may be at the end of it's life. The Powerchute software should have a battery test in it... run that and see what it says.
Jim Priest said on 04-10-2007 at 11:26 AM #
Ray - that should be fine - I usually hook my stuff up with 2 powerstrips - one plugged into the 'battery backup' side of the UPS - for PC, monitors, etc.

Then I have another powerstrip plugged into the 'surge only' side for routers, speakers, etc...
Jim Priest said on 04-10-2007 at 11:30 AM #
I usually get 3-4 years out of the cheaper UPSs. Usually places like Batteries Plus will have replacement batteries for a reasonable fee (and will take the old battery)...
RobW said on 04-10-2007 at 11:44 AM #
I recommend this:
http://www.buy.com/prod/Belkin_1500_VA_Dual_Form_F...

We have a few running our network equipment in our office and they seem to last longer than most of our similarly sized APCs. Plus the price is pretty good from here.
DK said on 04-10-2007 at 12:43 PM #
I've gotta give another nod to APC. I've had the personal 550 up to the server big dogs and outside some battery issues that were more due to my laziness at replacing.... they've been solid for years. Powerchute lets you gracefully exit and save etc when neccessary and I've never fried out a part so far (fingers crossed) from dirty power (or had to put that mail in claim for a bazillion dollars to the test either lol).

Someone mentioned the lil $40 one and while they work well I wouldn't suggest that if you have more than a simple comp, monitor, speaker etc plugged in or you may have problems. I'd plunk down the $100 and get the next one up to leave less room for disappointment. (aka I've maxed out the 550 and the previous $50 models heh) :)
Todd Sanders said on 04-10-2007 at 12:47 PM #
Battery Backup is only half the problem, you need to get a line regulator also,
specially for things like laser printers that can suck up allot of juice. I have one of these and a battery backup on all my workstations.. 50 bucks a pop isn't bad when you are talking about a 3k -5k editing bay.

http://www.apc.com/products/family/index.cfm?id=67...
Justice said on 04-10-2007 at 12:54 PM #
Or you can just get a Prius and run it as a power generator while its parked at your house. =)
Raymond Camden said on 04-10-2007 at 1:01 PM #
@Justice - We have the Highlander. :)
darrell said on 04-10-2007 at 1:33 PM #
Ray
for about 40% off belkin enter "12345" for the promotion code. How about that for a discount code!!

http://catalog.belkin.com/IWCatSectionView.process...
Stephen Cassady said on 04-10-2007 at 1:33 PM #
Most any backup should do, just get enough battery to make it worth while. I've actually got the APC designed to let me get off my computer, then I'll move the APC over to the fishtanks to keep the pumps going!
Rick Curran said on 04-10-2007 at 2:54 PM #
Yep, definitely make sure it's powerful enough to run everything you have. I bought a 550va APC UPS for my Dual G5 Tower, I never realised how much power this machine can use when at full tilt! It pushed the UPS over it's limit fairly frequently and got too annoying with the 'beeeeeeeeep' each time! Now it's running a couple of PC boxes and a backup hard drive. Just check the range of the power consumption on any devices you want to attach!
Raymond Camden said on 04-10-2007 at 3:35 PM #
Ok, I'm going for this one: http://catalog.belkin.com/IWCatProductPage.process...

With the 40 dollar rebate it looks nice.
Robert Blackburn said on 04-10-2007 at 6:46 PM #
Awesome! I just won Ray's XBox, car, and flat screen TV....
I work at APC, and I will personally fix that error ASAP.

I'll email my mailing address once it is fixed :o)

I'm glad to see all the APC supporters :o)
Wana see some of the other cool things you can buy from us, while checking out one of my team's newest CFML tools (uses some CFAjax too): http://www.apcc.com/tools/wizard/home/index.cfm?IS...
Sorry, couldn't resist such a prime opportunity to promote my company :o)

And hey, does Belkin use Flex?
http://www.apcc.com/tools/selector/pdu

OK, I'm done now :o)
Rick Root said on 04-10-2007 at 9:36 PM #
Ray,

I have a really nice APC Back-UPS XS 1500 that I've been very happy with. Got it on a ridiculously good sale at Best Buy.. I know I didn't pay $200 for it, which seems to be the low price on Froogle...

Is it just coincidence that my anti-spam key is "XS", which is also in the model of the UPS that I just mentioned?

Rick
jim collins said on 04-11-2007 at 1:39 PM #
It's hard to go wrong with NewEgg:
http://www.newegg.com/ProductSort/SubCategory.asp?...
Here's the one I have, works great:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82...

You should never plug a surge protector into a UPS, very bad idea unless you like sparks, smoke and flames. This will also void the warrenty. I wouldn't even plug a power strip into it...

http://www.xyzcomputing.com/index.php?option=conte...
Chris L. said on 04-11-2007 at 1:46 PM #
This one from Belkin is pretty good:

http://www.buy.com/prod/belkin-1500-va-dual-form-f...

I have been running on it for a couple months and its been stable. Load is good, price is pretty cheap considering. I haven't run into any problems yet.
Raymond Camden said on 04-11-2007 at 1:48 PM #
Ok guys - stop suggesting new things. I've bought one and I don't want buyers remorse. ;) (No its ok. Others might want to know good ideas as well.)
jim collins said on 04-11-2007 at 2:03 PM #
This is the one I use for my clock radio:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N8...
Tero Pikala said on 04-11-2007 at 4:53 PM #
One more vote for APC. My Linux box has been behind one for about 2 years now and kept it running over couple of short power outages.
Paul said on 06-07-2007 at 2:55 AM #
I've heard it isn't a good idea to plug an extension cord or surge protector into a UPS, but I have for over a year now and my UPS is just fine. The main thing is not to overload the UPS by plugging too many devices into the extension cord or surge protector.

I have a UPS that is rated 600VA. I have a 17" monitor, Altec Lansing speakers (2.1) and the computer. There are only two outputs on the back of the UPS, so I put a surge protector into one out of outlets on the UPS and plugged my computer and monitor into that and the speakers into the other UPS outlet.

When the power goes out, all my equipment stays on, for 15 minutes at least.

Yeah, you shouldn't plug a surge protector in, but if you do, do NOT overload it. My setup doesn't overload my UPS though.
Paul said on 06-07-2007 at 2:56 AM #
I've heard it isn't a good idea to plug an extension cord or surge protector into a UPS, but I have for over a year now and my UPS is just fine. The main thing is not to overload the UPS by plugging too many devices into the extension cord or surge protector.

I have a UPS that is rated 600VA. I have a 17" monitor, Altec Lansing speakers (2.1) and the computer. There are only two outputs on the back of the UPS, so I put a surge protector into one out of outlets on the UPS and plugged my computer and monitor into that and the speakers into the other UPS outlet.

When the power goes out, all my equipment stays on, for 15 minutes at least.

Yeah, you shouldn't plug a surge protector in, but if you do, do NOT overload it. My setup doesn't overload my UPS though.

[Add Comment] [Subscribe to Comments]