[Tfug] UPS sizing

[johngalt1]

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Bexley Hall" <bexley401>
To: <tfug at tfug.org>
Sent: Wednesday, December 31, 2008 10:16 AM
Subject: [Tfug] UPS sizing


> Hi,
>
> When I lived in the midwest, power outages were a
> frequent occurrence (e.g., sometimes twice a month).
> As such, I relied on a *big* UPS (3.5KVA with just
> about an hour uptime at full load) since it would
> allow me to keep working *through* the outage.

Did you need 3.5 kva?

If someone else said that, I might think there is confusion
between power requirement and uptime requirement. Unless you
have little consumer grade units, it is pretty easy to add
more packs for longer uptime.

> That monster (it was almost the size of a washing
> machine) is no longer with me (it would have cost
> an arm and a leg to ship it!) -- and I probably have
> no place to *keep* it (since the garage would beat
> the hell out of it in the summer).

Sounds like old technology.

> Since power outages here seem to be relatively
> infrequent (I think less than one a year in my
> neighborhood), it seems silly to invest the $$$ and
> space in a similar beast.
>
> Rather, it seems like I'm better served by a small
> UPS at each machine that is just big enough to
> provide an orderly shutdown (saving work in progress)
> in the event of a power outage (and, to tide me over
> in those occasional dropouts).
>
> Does this seem in line with what others have done?

I settled on 1.5 kva smart UPSes at each place in the house
where uptime is needed. None of my equipment approaches that
power requirement.