[ale] UPS

[Derek Atkins]

Mike Harrison <cluon at geeklabs.com> writes:

> Depending on the exact models and configuration, the difference
> is the Tripp-lite is live, the APC is in standby and must switch on.
> That 'cross over' from line to inverter is the flicker...
> that you won't get on the Tripp-lite because it is already live
> and powering your stuff.

Yep, this is why I chose the Tripp-lite. I often have very short
brown-outs which were long enough to kick into my UPSes but short enough
that it didn't fully kick over, and I had one server that didn't like
this.  I tried three different UPSes behind the server and while it
always survived a "pull the UPS from the power" test, the system's power
would always fail when I had a "real" power hit -- but the outage was
too short for the BIOS's "turn on when power restored" feature.

> I like the Tripp-lite's for places with dirty unsteady power
> but think it's probably overkill for most home use.
> You are burning some kWh in the running live mode, not much, but
> measurable.. and the expectation is the Tripp-lite electronics
> will be more reliable than the incoming power. A good bet, but the
> MTBF will eventually happen on either system.

Agreed that it's overkill for most things, but in my case I needed it.
Once I got the SNMPWebCard working it's been great.  Now I even have
MRTG monitoring the input and output power and the battery temp/charge.

> My home server config are now an Asus RT-16 router running DD-WRT
> with a small USB file share, and a repurposed Asus Atom based netbook
> that does everything else (now running Bodhi and may try XBMCbuntu soon).
> All the important computers are now laptops with their own batteries.

Can you set up a laptop to auto-turn-on after an extended power outage?

> I don't even have a UPS at home... but I think if I ran one, I'd put a
> big one in the garage wired into a couple of specific circuit
> breakers.
> I keep threatening to, even have the UPS's and never get around to it.
> But I do have a propane genset :)

yeah, I think my next big infrastructure purchase will be an NG Generator.

-derek

-- 
       Derek Atkins, SB '93 MIT EE, SM '95 MIT Media Laboratory
       Member, MIT Student Information Processing Board  (SIPB)
       URL: http://web.mit.edu/warlord/    PP-ASEL-IA     N1NWH
       warlord at MIT.EDU                        PGP key available