Is line voltage of 250V safe for use with computers?

kxp2000

Recruit
Recently i bought a new ups viz the APC be700y-IND.However after purchasing it i discovered that it has an output voltage of 190-250V ie the ups does not attempt to regulate the voltage to safe levels unless it drops below 190V or exceeds 250V.

This caused me some concern as its over-voltage threshold appears a bit on the higher side-i previously had a BE650Y-IN ups which had a tighter output voltage range of 200-240V.It used to "trim" the input voltage to ~200V whenever it reached 240V or more.However my new ups outputs the line voltage as-is until it crosses 250v mark(even when configured to run at the "highest" sensitivity)

Most devices today(esp. computers) are designed to work within a voltage range of 100-240V.So is such a device likely to sustain any damage if it experiences voltage in excess of 240V ie between 240-250V?

Is it a good idea to continue using this particular ups ie the BE700Y-ind or should i revert back to my older ups and return the new one?

I wonder why they have set the over voltage threshold to 250V in the new model when it was 240V in my older BE650Y-in ups.Despite being one of the largest UPS vendors in the market,do they not know what the safe input voltage levels are for delicate electronic devices like PCs?!
 
If you are getting 250v at mains, tell your power company to reduce the voltage. All the things in your house will be at risk. Most stuff in India have wide working voltage range of 190-270v but it would be safer to run them between 200-240v max.
 
Ups companies like apc must be aware of the safe tolerance limits of ac utility voltage for electronic goods(200-240v).Despite that i wonder why do they allow a higher output voltage of upto 250v in even some of their costlier models like br1000g-in-it seems like a tremendous design fallacy which is likely to put any connected equipment at risk.

The reason they are able to get away with things like this is that most people don't take such matters too seriously and don't pay much attention to the output voltage range while buying an ups-they instead choose to focus on other less important factors like backup time and so on, thus ignoring the one vital aspect which could seriously compromise the longevity of their equipments.
 
That shouldn't be a cause for concern as ups should normalize the current else attach a stabilizer in between up and computer.
 
MODS - I'm new here, so apologies if putting in this question in an old thread is not ok. If that's the case, please move this to a new thread.


I've recently purchased a BR1000g-IN, and indeed, it seems to be perfectly happy giving output power of 250V (i've seen it go upto 254V too!).
I had mistakenly assumed that the BR1000G-IN would regulate the output voltage to 220-240V.
Most of the components on my PC are rated upto 240V, 50 Hz.

What's the solution to this problem here?
a. Is it to change the voltage sensitivity in the UPS?
b. Or to get a separate voltage stabilizer? In that case, APC recommends that the UPS be plugged directly into the wall, is there any workaround?
 
MODS - I'm new here, so apologies if putting in this question in an old thread is not ok. If that's the case, please move this to a new thread.


I've recently purchased a BR1000g-IN, and indeed, it seems to be perfectly happy giving output power of 250V (i've seen it go upto 254V too!).
I had mistakenly assumed that the BR1000G-IN would regulate the output voltage to 220-240V.
Most of the components on my PC are rated upto 240V, 50 Hz.

What's the solution to this problem here?
a. Is it to change the voltage sensitivity in the UPS?
b. Or to get a separate voltage stabilizer? In that case, APC recommends that the UPS be plugged directly into the wall, is there any workaround?
Not clear with your question & hope the below clarifies,

1. The UPS what you have has wide input range,
1604233988855.png

2. No need for any additional stabilizer
3. The output you mentioned about is not clear, do you say it gives 250V from UPS ? it wont & usually 230+/-V
how did u measured the output of 250V?
 
@TechFrost - The output voltage of 250v is as given by the front panel LCD. It supposedly shows both input and output voltages. Maybe I should get a multimeter reading for better accuracy before thinking abt a stabilizer...

@nRiTeCh - Regarding the voltage stabilizer - the sequence would be : mains outlet - stabilizer - ups ? Or the other way around?
Also, the stabilizer should be sized to be greater than max input for the ups I guess (max power output + peak charging load) ?
 
I've seen constant ~250V at the place i was living previously, for almost 3-4 years. PSUs are good at correcting and giving clean and steady output to the mobo and devices.

These cheap UPSs are absolute trash. I bought a cheap apc and it's unbelievable how shit the build quality is. It was actually better made in China. Does the job of giving backup till the building generator kicks in so I'm not too bothered. But if you want perfect output you need a double conversion online UPS which will cost big bucks. Like more than 25k.
 
I've seen constant ~250V at the place i was living previously, for almost 3-4 years. PSUs are good at correcting and giving clean and steady output to the mobo and devices.

These cheap UPSs are absolute trash. I bought a cheap apc and it's unbelievable how shit the build quality is. It was actually better made in China. Does the job of giving backup till the building generator kicks in so I'm not too bothered. But if you want perfect output you need a double conversion online UPS which will cost big bucks. Like more than 25k.
The APC is far better than other craps like numeric or luminous, i agree with online UPS, which are specially made to regulate without using backup source. But they are very expensive!! I believe the AVR feature should work, if you change the sensitivity of the input voltage. rolling back, you need to check the output with DMM & dont rely on the UPS LCD output, some times they may be wrong.
 
Most of the components on my PC are rated upto 240V, 50 Hz.
These days you will not find components inside which are rated to just 240v, they are built to higher tolerance. But just that you know lets say a capacitor inside the PSU is rated at 300v, assuming hypothetically you have identical power supplies, one which is supplied a voltage of 240v and other supplied with a voltage of 270v. While both are within the capacitor tolerance, in terms of longevity in the long run the PSU which was receiving 240v throught its running its capacitors would last longer a by a few hundred hrs more. A good quality PSU fails when there will be sudden surges in electricity due to two live lines shorting giving 440v+ or getting a lightning strike, Overdrawing in one of DC rails, or failing to keep the PSU clean, which causes heating issue or even arcing if the dust is so much.
 
Thank you for all of your responses!
I will get hold of a multimeter and check what the actual voltages coming on the UPS output side are.
 
Concept of UPS - give battery power when input power is zero or higher than desired. APC UPS and many other branded UPS don't have inbuilt stabilizer (unless specifically mentioned having buck boost stabilizer) in them to lower or increase the mains voltage to 230V etc. So if you get 250V in mains supply, that 250V will be given to everything connected to the UPS if you have set the default ups cut off to 251 or higher like 255v. If you set it to 245V, once the mains voltage goes above 245V, the UPS will shift to battery for powering the connected components. It will not use the mains voltage till it goes below 245V. So your best bet is to get a whole house stabilizer (it will lead to 10+ units added to electricity bill every month) and get peace of mind from such high voltages.
 
@hadyp

IMO your Multi-meter will show exactly what your UPS is showing - namely 250V.

I faced a similar issue recently. For the past month, the input voltage from the power company (Govt. owned DHBVN) is anywhere between 241 and a whopping 259 Volts!

This started only after DHBVN changed the Transformer in the Park outside my house which feeds the whole block so its an obviously a fault in the new transformer. I called DHBVN, they came, saw the problem - and did absolutely NOTHING about it.

I have a 13+ year old APC Smart-UPS SUA-1500I. Here's what I have noticed in my case specifically WRT High Voltage.

The UPS does a "Power Trim" (reduces the voltage) only when the voltage hits 250-251 Volts.

Whats FAR, FAR worse is that when it does the "Trim" it appears to do so by decreasing the voltage by almost 15-20 Volts - AT ONE GO. In other words the voltage drops sharply from 251V to 230V. I have confirmed this with a Multi-meter on several occasions.

I am not familiar with the internal workings of UPS tech in general so this could possibly be by design and/or an inherent limitation of Offline/Line Interactive UPS's in general.

I have expensive equipment connected to the UPS and seeing the UPS "Trim" (ie. - drop) the voltage so sharply at one go made me VERY uncomfortable on how this could (potentially adversely) affect my equipment.

On Saturday I bought an APC Online Smart-UPS (a Double Online Conversion model similar to what was stated by Julian above). Yes it was expensive but at least now I get steady Voltage. These UPS's have an option to set the output Voltage to 220/230/240 Volts as per your requirement no matter what the input Voltage is (within reason of course).

There's no such option in my older APC Smart-UPS (being a Line Interactive model) and I doubt your model will be any different.

Lastly you asked about the "sensitivity" setting on the APC UPS.

IIRC the sensitivity setting is linked to how often the UPS will switch over to battery operation based on certain conditions. So "High Sensitivity" means the UPS will be more "sensitive" to line conditions and switch to the battery more often when it encounters them wheres "Low" sensitivity would imply the opposite.

This is possibly useful for cases where people connect their UPS's to a Line that has a Diesel/Petrol Generator as a backup source.

All this setting will do is switch to the battery more or less often depending on what sensitivity setting you choose.

There is no option in my APC Smart-UPS to set the "Trim Target Voltage" - ie. "begin Voltage Trim at 245V" for example. The Voltage Trim (or Boost) Targets are per-determined by APC and hardwired into the UPS circuitry.

So in the case of my older Smart-UPS unit the begin "Trim" target Voltage is set to 250-251V. I cant change it. I doubt your model is any different.

My advice would be - if your equipment is over a lakh (or thereabouts), consider switching to a more expensive Online UPS. If its less than 50k just cross your fingers and contiune as is because its not financially viable below that point IMO.

Instead, consider investing in a good quality PSU as this may offer "some" additional protection to your PC (wont help other devices connected to the UPS though). In the end everyone needs to take a call on how important it is for you that your equipment gets clean, regulated power.

Hope that helps....
 
@hadyp

IMO your Multi-meter will show exactly what your UPS is showing - namely 250V.

I faced a similar issue recently. For the past month, the input voltage from the power company (Govt. owned DHBVN) is anywhere between 241 and a whopping 259 Volts!

This started only after DHBVN changed the Transformer in the Park outside my house which feeds the whole block so its an obviously a fault in the new transformer. I called DHBVN, they came, saw the problem - and did absolutely NOTHING about it.

I have a 13+ year old APC Smart-UPS SUA-1500I. Here's what I have noticed in my case specifically WRT High Voltage.

The UPS does a "Power Trim" (reduces the voltage) only when the voltage hits 250-251 Volts.

Whats FAR, FAR worse is that when it does the "Trim" it appears to do so by decreasing the voltage by almost 15-20 Volts - AT ONE GO. In other words the voltage drops sharply from 251V to 230V. I have confirmed this with a Multi-meter on several occasions.

I am not familiar with the internal workings of UPS tech in general so this could possibly be by design and/or an inherent limitation of Offline/Line Interactive UPS's in general.

I have expensive equipment connected to the UPS and seeing the UPS "Trim" (ie. - drop) the voltage so sharply at one go made me VERY uncomfortable on how this could (potentially adversely) affect my equipment.

On Saturday I bought an APC Online Smart-UPS (a Double Online Conversion model similar to what was stated by Julian above). Yes it was expensive but at least now I get steady Voltage. These UPS's have an option to set the output Voltage to 220/230/240 Volts as per your requirement no matter what the input Voltage is (within reason of course).

There's no such option in my older APC Smart-UPS (being a Line Interactive model) and I doubt your model will be any different.

Lastly you asked about the "sensitivity" setting on the APC UPS.

IIRC the sensitivity setting is linked to how often the UPS will switch over to battery operation based on certain conditions. So "High Sensitivity" means the UPS will be more "sensitive" to line conditions and switch to the battery more often when it encounters them wheres "Low" sensitivity would imply the opposite.

This is possibly useful for cases where people connect their UPS's to a Line that has a Diesel/Petrol Generator as a backup source.

All this setting will do is switch to the battery more or less often depending on what sensitivity setting you choose.

There is no option in my APC Smart-UPS to set the "Trim Target Voltage" - ie. "begin Voltage Trim at 245V" for example. The Voltage Trim (or Boost) Targets are per-determined by APC and hardwired into the UPS circuitry.

So in the case of my older Smart-UPS unit the begin "Trim" target Voltage is set to 250-251V. I cant change it. I doubt your model is any different.

My advice would be - if your equipment is over a lakh (or thereabouts), consider switching to a more expensive Online UPS. If its less than 50k just cross your fingers and contiune as is because its not financially viable below that point IMO.

Instead, consider investing in a good quality PSU as this may offer "some" additional protection to your PC (wont help other devices connected to the UPS though). In the end everyone needs to take a call on how important it is for you that your equipment gets clean, regulated power.

Hope that helps....
That's a very informative post.

I noticed something when i was researching to buy a UPS couple months ago. The APC models in the USA which are true online are line-interactive in India. The similar mode/price range i.e.
 
@Rickyk
Many thanks for your detailed post. Agree with Julian, very informative indeed.
There is no option to set the output voltage on the BR1000G-IN, you're spot on there.

Did you get the APC Smart UPS 1KVA Online|SRC1KUXI? I see that retailing for ~20k (but perhaps that is without batteries?)
I am considering what to do next - connected equipment is definitely high value.

Options I'm thinking of -
a. Get an online UPS @ ~25k. But this also involves losing out on a 10k investment on the BR1000G-IN made earlier this month. (Price of ignorance/lack of research on my part)
b. Get a voltage stabilizer to supply the BR1000G-IN with conditioned power. Questions then are - what're the rating/specs I should look at.

Any suggestions are welcome. :)
I really appreciate the feedback I've received so far from everyone, thank you very much.
 
If it's a steady 250V with minimal fluctuations, i would just leave it be.

Maybe try getting the electricity board to bring it to spec.
 
@hadyp

IMO your Multi-meter will show exactly what your UPS is showing - namely 250V.

I faced a similar issue recently. For the past month, the input voltage from the power company (Govt. owned DHBVN) is anywhere between 241 and a whopping 259 Volts!

This started only after DHBVN changed the Transformer in the Park outside my house which feeds the whole block so its an obviously a fault in the new transformer. I called DHBVN, they came, saw the problem - and did absolutely NOTHING about it.

I have a 13+ year old APC Smart-UPS SUA-1500I. Here's what I have noticed in my case specifically WRT High Voltage.

The UPS does a "Power Trim" (reduces the voltage) only when the voltage hits 250-251 Volts.

Whats FAR, FAR worse is that when it does the "Trim" it appears to do so by decreasing the voltage by almost 15-20 Volts - AT ONE GO. In other words the voltage drops sharply from 251V to 230V. I have confirmed this with a Multi-meter on several occasions.

I am not familiar with the internal workings of UPS tech in general so this could possibly be by design and/or an inherent limitation of Offline/Line Interactive UPS's in general.

I have expensive equipment connected to the UPS and seeing the UPS "Trim" (ie. - drop) the voltage so sharply at one go made me VERY uncomfortable on how this could (potentially adversely) affect my equipment.

On Saturday I bought an APC Online Smart-UPS (a Double Online Conversion model similar to what was stated by Julian above). Yes it was expensive but at least now I get steady Voltage. These UPS's have an option to set the output Voltage to 220/230/240 Volts as per your requirement no matter what the input Voltage is (within reason of course).

There's no such option in my older APC Smart-UPS (being a Line Interactive model) and I doubt your model will be any different.

Lastly you asked about the "sensitivity" setting on the APC UPS.

IIRC the sensitivity setting is linked to how often the UPS will switch over to battery operation based on certain conditions. So "High Sensitivity" means the UPS will be more "sensitive" to line conditions and switch to the battery more often when it encounters them wheres "Low" sensitivity would imply the opposite.

This is possibly useful for cases where people connect their UPS's to a Line that has a Diesel/Petrol Generator as a backup source.

All this setting will do is switch to the battery more or less often depending on what sensitivity setting you choose.

There is no option in my APC Smart-UPS to set the "Trim Target Voltage" - ie. "begin Voltage Trim at 245V" for example. The Voltage Trim (or Boost) Targets are per-determined by APC and hardwired into the UPS circuitry.

So in the case of my older Smart-UPS unit the begin "Trim" target Voltage is set to 250-251V. I cant change it. I doubt your model is any different.

My advice would be - if your equipment is over a lakh (or thereabouts), consider switching to a more expensive Online UPS. If its less than 50k just cross your fingers and contiune as is because its not financially viable below that point IMO.

Instead, consider investing in a good quality PSU as this may offer "some" additional protection to your PC (wont help other devices connected to the UPS though). In the end everyone needs to take a call on how important it is for you that your equipment gets clean, regulated power.

Hope that helps....
I agree to it, i found in other post, where the AVR upper limit is set to >250, which is suppose to be a *hit logic & may be they trying to save the battery here !!
 
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