UPS Advisable ?

[Ext User(David Springthorpe)]

Just had some problems with my home PC (power supply, graphics card)
and the repair man (I'm too dumb to try and diagnose anything myself)
suggested that I may wish to consider getting an Uninterrupted Power
Suppy, and recommended an APC UPS 700VA or 1,000VA picked up on eBay.
Any thoughts if a UPS is really necessary ? I already have a power
surge protector.

Thanks.

[Ext User(mindesign)]

it has saved me too many times to mention - bloody godsend

Steve


"David Springthorpe" <david.springthorpe@idx.com.au> wrote in message
news:uf0es1lo7v5o0nmqn1qj87po89nrdu24ob@4ax.com...
> Just had some problems with my home PC (power supply, graphics card)
> and the repair man (I'm too dumb to try and diagnose anything myself)
> suggested that I may wish to consider getting an Uninterrupted Power
> Suppy, and recommended an APC UPS 700VA or 1,000VA picked up on eBay.
> Any thoughts if a UPS is really necessary ? I already have a power
> surge protector.
>
> Thanks.

[Ext User([BnH])]

700VA ? what are you running in your PC ?
a 340VA should do the job quite nicely for most home users.

=bob=





"David Springthorpe" <david.springthorpe@idx.com.au> wrote in message
news:uf0es1lo7v5o0nmqn1qj87po89nrdu24ob@4ax.com...
> Just had some problems with my home PC (power supply, graphics card)
> and the repair man (I'm too dumb to try and diagnose anything myself)
> suggested that I may wish to consider getting an Uninterrupted Power
> Suppy, and recommended an APC UPS 700VA or 1,000VA picked up on eBay.
> Any thoughts if a UPS is really necessary ? I already have a power
> surge protector.
>
> Thanks.

[Ext User(Rod Speed)]

David Springthorpe <david.springthorpe@idx.com.au> wrote:

> Just had some problems with my home PC (power supply, graphics card)
> and the repair man (I'm too dumb to try and diagnose anything myself)
> suggested that I may wish to consider getting an Uninterrupted Power
> Suppy, and recommended an APC UPS 700VA or 1,000VA picked up
> on eBay. Any thoughts if a UPS is really necessary ?

No its not.

> I already have a power surge protector.

You're get some mindless pig ignorant raving from that 'tom' fool, just ignore
it.

[Ext User(Xerxes)]

David Springthorpe wrote:
> Just had some problems with my home PC (power supply, graphics card)
> and the repair man (I'm too dumb to try and diagnose anything myself)
> suggested that I may wish to consider getting an Uninterrupted Power
> Suppy, and recommended an APC UPS 700VA or 1,000VA picked up on eBay.
> Any thoughts if a UPS is really necessary ? I already have a power
> surge protector.
>
> Thanks.

A UPS is always a good idea. Even if your power supply is stable, the fact
that a UPS smooths out your power supply can only be good for your computer.

[Ext User(Dan N)]

On Fri, 13 Jan 2006 12:32:15 +1100, David Springthorpe wrote:

> Any
> thoughts if a UPS is really necessary ? I already have a power surge
> protector.
>

Do you need your PC to stay running when the power goes down? I doubt it,
but if so, get a UPS.

Dan

[Ext User(RMD)]

On Fri, 13 Jan 2006 12:32:15 +1100, David Springthorpe
<david.springthorpe@idx.com.au> wrote:

>Just had some problems with my home PC (power supply, graphics card)
>and the repair man (I'm too dumb to try and diagnose anything myself)
>suggested that I may wish to consider getting an Uninterrupted Power
>Suppy, and recommended an APC UPS 700VA or 1,000VA picked up on eBay.
>Any thoughts if a UPS is really necessary ? I already have a power
>surge protector.
>
>Thanks.

David

I wouldn't waste my money unless you are doing some particularly
critical computing rather than just net surfing etc.

Ross

(To get email address ROT 13)
ebff_qnyl@lnubb.pbz

[Ext User(Damian)]

"Rod Speed" <rod_speed@yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:42ojp9F1k4n23U1@individual.net...
> David Springthorpe <david.springthorpe@idx.com.au> wrote:
>
>> Just had some problems with my home PC (power supply, graphics card)
>> and the repair man (I'm too dumb to try and diagnose anything myself)
>> suggested that I may wish to consider getting an Uninterrupted Power
>> Suppy, and recommended an APC UPS 700VA or 1,000VA picked up
>> on eBay. Any thoughts if a UPS is really necessary ?
>
> No its not.
>
>> I already have a power surge protector.
>
> You're get some mindless pig ignorant raving from that 'tom' fool, just
> ignore it.
>
I find it very interestin Rod. Always thought UPS can save the data and the
PC itself from power surges and frequent blackouts, depend on where the
person lives. Why do u say UPS isn't necessary(either for the person who
posted the original Q or generally)?

[Ext User(amosf (Tim Fairchild))]

RMD wrote something like:

> On Fri, 13 Jan 2006 12:32:15 +1100, David Springthorpe
> <david.springthorpe@idx.com.au> wrote:
>
>>Just had some problems with my home PC (power supply, graphics card)
>>and the repair man (I'm too dumb to try and diagnose anything myself)
>>suggested that I may wish to consider getting an Uninterrupted Power
>>Suppy, and recommended an APC UPS 700VA or 1,000VA picked up on eBay.
>>Any thoughts if a UPS is really necessary ? I already have a power
>>surge protector.
>>
>>Thanks.
>
> David
>
> I wouldn't waste my money unless you are doing some particularly
> critical computing rather than just net surfing etc.

As long as you are running a decent filesystem (ntfs, ext3, rieser, etc)
then you probably can get by without a UPS. But they are handy if you are
worried about losing data in whatever you are working on at the time...

--
-
Leafnode. Making usenet a better place.
-

[Ext User(David Springthorpe)]

On Fri, 13 Jan 2006 13:04:58 +0800, Dan N <dan@localhost.localdomain>
claimed the following :\

>Do you need your PC to stay running when the power goes down? I doubt it,
>but if so, get a UPS.

No not really, that's why I asked.....

[Ext User(David Springthorpe)]

On Fri, 13 Jan 2006 13:53:23 +1100, "[BnH]" <b18[at]ii[dot]net>
claimed the following :

>700VA ? what are you running in your PC ?
>a 340VA should do the job quite nicely for most home users.

I'm just quoting what he said (local guy from The Manly Daily - seemed
to be fairly knowledgable).....

[Ext User(Damian)]

"David Springthorpe" <david.springthorpe@idx.com.au> wrote in message
news:6kles11mblkbm57uuno72u1srht6grfvin@4ax.com...
> On Fri, 13 Jan 2006 13:04:58 +0800, Dan N <dan@localhost.localdomain>
> claimed the following :\
>
>>Do you need your PC to stay running when the power goes down? I doubt it,
>>but if so, get a UPS.
>
> No not really, that's why I asked.....

If u dont hav the problem of power goin down frequently in ur area and dont
need the PC runnin when power goes down, then I would say u dont need a
UPS.

[Ext User(Graham Fountain)]

Xerxes wrote:

>>
>> Thanks.
>
> A UPS is always a good idea. Even if your power supply is stable, the
> fact that a UPS smooths out your power supply can only be good for your
> computer.
They only do that if it is an "online" ups (the most expensive type).
All the cheapish UPS's are "offline". This means they have the load
connected directly to mains power normally. When voltage goes
excessively high or low (usually nominal +/- 15%) they disconnect the
equipment from the mains and switch to the inverter. An online UPS
works a little differently in that they convert the mains to battery
voltage, then convert battery voltage back to 240V continuously. These
are the better sort because the device is totally isolated from the
mains. The inverters are usually higher grade delivering closer to a
true sinewave than the more basic squarewave or stepped wave outputs of
the cheap offline UPS's. Because their inverters are designed for
continuous use, online UPS's are also usually capable of being modified
to have more batteries for extended run, to deliver extended backup
times. A few years ago I was involved with an internet business in a
country town where blackouts of the order of 12 hours were frequent. We
put in an online UPS with a bank of deep cycle batteries to deliver this
type of backup time.

[Ext User(Graham Fountain)]

Rod Speed wrote:
> David Springthorpe <david.springthorpe@idx.com.au> wrote:
>
>> Just had some problems with my home PC (power supply, graphics card)
>> and the repair man (I'm too dumb to try and diagnose anything myself)
>> suggested that I may wish to consider getting an Uninterrupted Power
>> Suppy, and recommended an APC UPS 700VA or 1,000VA picked up
>> on eBay. Any thoughts if a UPS is really necessary ?
>
> No its not.
All depends on the OP's situation. Anyone with fairly frequent blackouts
will benefit from one. Most people in major cities don't come into
this category. A lot of country towns have terrible power however, and
they can become almost essential in these places.
>
>> I already have a power surge protector.
>
> You're get some mindless pig ignorant raving from that 'tom' fool, just ignore
> it.
>
>

[Ext User(Graham Fountain)]

David Springthorpe wrote:
> Just had some problems with my home PC (power supply, graphics card)
> and the repair man (I'm too dumb to try and diagnose anything myself)
> suggested that I may wish to consider getting an Uninterrupted Power
> Suppy, and recommended an APC UPS 700VA or 1,000VA picked up on eBay.
> Any thoughts if a UPS is really necessary ? I already have a power
> surge protector.
If you have frequent blackouts or brownouts then they are very useful.
If not, then you probably just need to get yourself a decent surge
protector. If you do decide to go the UPS course, 700-1000VA is
overkill. For most home PC's 350-500VA will suffice. 700-1000VA would
drive 2 PC's quite comfortably.
>
> Thanks.

[Ext User(Tsunami Australia)]

David Springthorpe wrote:
> Just had some problems with my home PC (power supply, graphics card)
> and the repair man (I'm too dumb to try and diagnose anything myself)
> suggested that I may wish to consider getting an Uninterrupted Power
> Suppy, and recommended an APC UPS 700VA or 1,000VA picked up on eBay.
> Any thoughts if a UPS is really necessary ? I already have a power
> surge protector.
>
> Thanks.

A UPS can be exceptionally handy. Our UPS here is rather large (simply
because of the number of devices we have running off it) and has saved
our computers from lightning strike (as in hits around our house) a few
times. I mainly use UPS's because our power supply is unreliable and I
have a few machines that need to keep running. UPS's will filter the
surges etc and as for surge protectors, I've seen washing machines and
sewing machines blown up from surges even though they were using good
quality surge protectors.

As for what to go for depends upon how many devices you plan on powering
off it and how long you want the machine up for incase of blackout. For
most home users, a powerboard ups from Sola or APC (unsure of any others
doing these) is sufficient for 5-10 minutes and all that is needed, it
will even put your computer into suspend mode when the batteries get too
low. They just look like an oversized 5 or 6 plug (can't remember which)
powerboard.

[Ext User(Tsunami Australia)]

Graham Fountain wrote:
> David Springthorpe wrote:
>> Just had some problems with my home PC (power supply, graphics card)
>> and the repair man (I'm too dumb to try and diagnose anything myself)
>> suggested that I may wish to consider getting an Uninterrupted Power
>> Suppy, and recommended an APC UPS 700VA or 1,000VA picked up on eBay.
>> Any thoughts if a UPS is really necessary ? I already have a power
>> surge protector.
> If you have frequent blackouts or brownouts then they are very useful.
> If not, then you probably just need to get yourself a decent surge
> protector. If you do decide to go the UPS course, 700-1000VA is
> overkill. For most home PC's 350-500VA will suffice. 700-1000VA would
> drive 2 PC's quite comfortably.
>>
>> Thanks.

Yes I have found that 700/750va will run three computers (monitors,
speakers etc excluded) for up around 30minutes. (Taken from my old MGE
with batteries that were starting to deteriorate.)

[Ext User(Damian)]

"Graham Fountain" <ask@and.find.out> wrote in message
news:43c76f06$0$24743$5a62ac22@per-qv1-newsreader-01.iinet.net.au...
> Xerxes wrote:
>
>>>
>>> Thanks.
>>
>> A UPS is always a good idea. Even if your power supply is stable, the
>> fact that a UPS smooths out your power supply can only be good for your
>> computer.
> They only do that if it is an "online" ups (the most expensive type). All
> the cheapish UPS's are "offline". This means they have the load connected
> directly to mains power normally. When voltage goes excessively high or
> low (usually nominal +/- 15%) they disconnect the equipment from the mains
> and switch to the inverter. An online UPS works a little differently in
> that they convert the mains to battery voltage, then convert battery
> voltage back to 240V continuously. These are the better sort because the
> device is totally isolated from the mains. The inverters are usually
> higher grade delivering closer to a true sinewave than the more basic
> squarewave or stepped wave outputs of the cheap offline UPS's. Because
> their inverters are designed for continuous use, online UPS's are also
> usually capable of being modified to have more batteries for extended run,
> to deliver extended backup times. A few years ago I was involved with an
> internet business in a country town where blackouts of the order of 12
> hours were frequent. We put in an online UPS with a bank of deep cycle
> batteries to deliver this type of backup time.

Great info. U surely know ur stuff when it comes to UPS's. :-)

[Ext User(Ernest)]

On Fri, 13 Jan 2006 12:32:15 +1100, David Springthorpe
<david.springthorpe@idx.com.au> wrote:

>Just had some problems with my home PC (power supply, graphics card)
>and the repair man (I'm too dumb to try and diagnose anything myself)
>suggested that I may wish to consider getting an Uninterrupted Power
>Suppy, and recommended an APC UPS 700VA or 1,000VA picked up on eBay.
>Any thoughts if a UPS is really necessary ? I already have a power
>surge protector.
>
>Thanks.

The sort of protection you get in a powerboard surge protector
is very simple and basic and only protects against extreme
fluctuations in the power, whilst a quality UPS provides an
even power supply whilst protecting against much lower
fluctuations. A modern P4 with a few hard drives and a
monitor use a lot of power, but either the 700 or 1000VA
should do the job nicely - I use a 1,000VA myself.


Regards,

Deadly Ernest
(all typos fault of server or
other gremlins)

[Ext User(Rod Speed)]

Damian <damian_andrews75@yahoo.com.au> wrote
> Rod Speed <rod_speed@yahoo.com> wrote
>> David Springthorpe <david.springthorpe@idx.com.au> wrote

>>> Just had some problems with my home PC (power supply, graphics card)
>>> and the repair man (I'm too dumb to try and diagnose anything
>>> myself) suggested that I may wish to consider getting an
>>> Uninterrupted Power Suppy, and recommended an APC UPS 700VA or
>>> 1,000VA picked up on eBay. Any thoughts if a UPS is really necessary ?

>> No its not.

>>> I already have a power surge protector.

>> You're get some mindless pig ignorant raving from that 'tom' fool, just
>> ignore it.

> I find it very interestin Rod. Always thought UPS can save the data
> and the PC itself from power surges and frequent blackouts, depend on where
> the person lives. Why do u say UPS isn't necessary(either for the person who
> posted the original Q or generally)?

Basically because most dont get enough blackouts to warrant a UPS.