[ale] OT need 600-1000W power protection for 3 minutes - cheap
Ron Frazier (ALE)
atllinuxenthinfo at techstarship.com
Tue Jul 9 16:09:01 EDT 2013
Hi Solomon,
Thanks for the note.
(see inline)
On 7/9/2013 12:38 PM, Solomon Peachy wrote:
> On Tue, Jul 09, 2013 at 11:45:13AM -0400, Ron Frazier (ALE) wrote:
>
>> The more I think about my loads, the more I think I need a 1500 VA /
>> ~ 900W unit. A 1200VA/~700W unit might do it, but most product
>> lines seem to jump to 1500 VA after 1000 VA.
>>
> I used to have big deep-cycle batteries hooked up to low-end UPSes. The
> inverters weren't actively cooled and ended up overheating themselves
> during even moderate outages.
>
> I replaced that pair of 325W units with with a single 950W/1400VA APC
> Smart-UPS, which I purchased secondhand (sans batteries) for $150. I
> kept my old 35aH batteries, which ran me about $80 each when new.
>
> My server closet sucks about 400W; during the last prolonged outage I
> suffered, that pair of (two-ish year-old) 35aH batteries lasted just
> under an hour before the low-battery-iniated shutdown occured.
>
>
The idea of getting more run time is appealing.
>> Based on prior discussions and my experience, I know APC is a good
>> brand. I also understand that, for the "smart" units, it can be
>> hard to get linux to talk to it, if you want to use the auto
>> shutdown software like apcupsd. I think you guys told me before
>>
> Controlling modern APC units is no problem (they use USB). Older ones
> were only tricky because they required funky non-standard serial cables.
>
>
See my note to Alex about compatibility problems with certain Smart APC
units and apcupsd. This may not be a showstopper, as I think you still
have basic control. Otherwise, I'm sure you are correct.
>> Charles, thanks for the links. I'll keep the buy batteries local
>> idea in mind. Might not be necessary with Amazon's free shipping.
>>
> I used to live a mile from an Interstate Batteries retail location; I
> highly recommend that route as it usually worked out noticably cheaper,
> especially with the larger batteries.
>
> Oh, if you want to use oversized batteries that live outside your UPS's
> enclosure, make sure you use appropriately heavy cabling -- my 950W unit
> at full load will draw over ~50 amps out of the batteries, so 6-gauge
> (or larger) wires were necessary.
>
>
This local battery / different battery concept does sound interesting.
I may cruise by the local Batteries Plus store. I'll have to check
where the nearest Interstate Batteries is. By the way, I calculate that
if you're pulling 950W and 12V, that would be 79A. It would be 40 A at 24V.
Good point about the big external wires though.
Hmm ... I do have a mostly unused deep cycle boat motor battery sitting
in the basement. I can barely lift it.
>> http://www.amazon.com/APC-BR1500G-BACK-UPS-10-Outlet-1500VA/dp/B003Y24DEU/ref=sr_1_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1373381258&sr=1-1&keywords=br1500g
>>
> I've used the 1000VA versions of this unit, they're pretty solid, but I
> never had a very high load on them.
>
> The enclosures aren't as robust as they used to be (ie plastic instead
> of literally bulletproof heavy-gauge steel) but the electronics (and
> inverters) are smarter and more efficient than ever. Not to mention a
> usable control panel.
>
> - Solomon
>
>
That BR1500G is looking pretty appealing at this point, compared with $
500 for an SMT-1500. I still might have to do some tripp lite research.
Sincerely,
Ron
--
(PS - If you email me and don't get a quick response, you might want to
call on the phone. I get about 300 emails per day from alternate energy
mailing lists and such. I don't always see new email messages very quickly.)
Ron Frazier
770-205-9422 (O) Leave a message.
linuxdude AT techstarship.com
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