What a battery backup can do for your business?... a lot!

2005-01-26T10:30:00.000-08:00

We all have experienced the frustration of working for hours on a file and losing it because of an electrical spike that froze our computer. Battery backups or UPS’s (Uninterruptible Power Supply Systems) prevent electrical disturbances and power outages to affect our computers and other sensitive or critical equipment.

At a minimum, they should be installed on all computers, POS’s, servers and phone systems.Expensive enterprise would you say, not necessarily. Not everything requires the best UPS’s and there is a broad range of products out there to fit your specific needs and budget.

This article should help you select the right unit for your application.

1.- Standby UPS’s: Inexpensive, these units switch to batteries each time the power goes out or the voltage drops. They are not very sophisticated and should only be used on non-critical computers and in locations where the power supplied by the utility is reliable and clean. In other words, buy them only if you cannot afford a better unit like a line interactive UPS.

2.- Line interactive UPS’s: These units are more common and are used extensively to backup desktop computers and POS’s. They are simple, not very expensive and provide some voltage regulation (they boost the voltage output when the utility/input voltage is low and trim down the output voltage when the utility/input voltage is too high), plus they typically offer 10 to 20 minutes of battery backup.

Since many brands are available, look for the following features when selecting your unit:

Unit should be line interactive (look for AVR units – AVR means Automatic Voltage Regulation and indicates that the unit will boost and trim the output voltage when the input voltage is too low or too high)
Check the number of outlets. A minimum of 3 outlets is recommended for proper backup of a PC: one for the CPU unit, one for the monitor, one for a small accessory like an inkjet printer.
All outlets should be surge protected (even if this will not protect your computer against a lightning strike or a high energy surge, it will take care of small surges that represent 98% of all surges your computer is subjected to daily).
Check the " VA" value. This number defines the acceptable load that can be connected to the UPS. For example, a 600VA unit is perfectly adequate to protect a desktop computer plus monitor and inkjet printer. If you are not sure, check your owner’s manual and look for the maximum wattage consumption of all the equipment you intend to plug to the UPS (for example 50 watts for a small inkjet printer), sum up and divide by 0.7 , it will give you the minimum VA value you need.
Verify that the unit comes with software for unattended shutdown. This is a great feature that too many users ignore totally. If a power outage occurs, the UPS will continue to provide power to your computer (through the batteries), then after a certain time (that can be programmed using the software), it will automatically start the shutdown process: saving all your files and then shutting down your computer. With this feature, you will never lose a file again.
Check how many minutes of battery time will be available in case of an outage. Look for 10 to 20 minutes but be aware that this value depends heavily on how loaded the UPS is (higher load means less battery time) and how old the batteries are at the time of the power outage (batteries degrade with age and will keep your load powered for less minutes as they age. As a rule of thumb, batteries have to be replaced after 3 to 5 years, sometimes earlier) .
Check the warranty, 2-year warranty is recommended (1-year for the batteries)
Additional feature: surge protected phone/modem line. This feature is useful if you intend to connect your phone line through the UPS for surge protection.
Check pricing. A 600VA line interactive UPS with the above features should not cost you more than $150- $200.

3.- Power conditioned UPS’s: For more critical loads, a simple line interactive UPS is not good enough. Sensitive POS’s, critical computers or phone systems, and servers need better protection against electrical noise, electrical surges and other disturbances.

Power conditioned UPS’s improve drastically the reliability of these system(s) by eliminating all electrical pollutants. On the other hand, they are more expensive (a 300VA unit to protect a POS could range between $300 and $500; a 700VA unit for a server would be priced around $800).

Look for the following features:

Line interactive with AVR and isolation transformer
Pure sine wave output
Software for unattended shutdown and monitoring
Ability to add battery cabinets to extend the battery run time
Automatic monitoring of battery condition
Warranty: 3 to 5 years for the UPS, 2-year minimum for the batteries

4.- True on-line double conversion UPS’s: They are the best UPS’s and are typically used in mission critical applications (data centers, banks, hospitals, computer rooms and servers, airports, control centers, correction centers…).

The technology involved and the type of applications they are used for make them best to be discussed with your provider directly. They should be able to recommend the proper unit based on the application and its criticality for your business.

Bernard de Brunier

Keyitec, Inc.

Keyitec is a leading provider of power backup and power quality equipment and solutions (surge protectors, UPS’s, generators, filters, power conditioners, solar systems, energy meters, Power Quality monitors, AC & DC drives…) www.keyitec.com - tel.: 480-563 4172

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What a battery backup can do for your business?... a lot!