PC Peripherals Do I need a ups?

So, just built a fairly expensive gaming pc. I have a Su Kam 3kva ups that covers my entire house. When the power fails, my pc does not switch off. It runs fine on the central ups.

So, two questions.

1. Do I need a computer specific ups at all?

2. If I do, is it just for the transition from mains to the house ups? Or should I never run the the computer on the house ups?

I ran a mac on this ups for years with a no damage.
 
So, just built a fairly expensive gaming pc. I have a Su Kam 3kva ups that covers my entire house. When the power fails, my pc does not switch off. It runs fine on the central ups.

So, two questions.

1. Do I need a computer specific ups at all?

2. If I do, is it just for the transition from mains to the house ups? Or should I never run the the computer on the house ups?

I ran a mac on this ups for years with a no damage.
Yes, of course you need a UPS.
Go with APC 1000VA Smart-UPS.
 
To ask a very dumb question - why?

Is the power from the main UPS not good/clean enough? Or, is the switchover time what affects the computer?
 
Yes thats the truth because some like to troll others or simply act innocent.


I didnt understand the troll bit, but the question again.

Is the UPS needed only for the switchover time, and can I then run my computer on my home UPS? Or will I need to shut down the computer during long power outages?

Like I said, I've run a Mac desktop on this UPS for 8 years without an issue though.
 
Since it is a Sine wave inverter that you are using and it seems to have a UPS mode that is working perfectly fine for you, I see no need for spending money again on a computer specific UPS unless the current UPS gets overloaded while using the computer as the inverter has to handle other loads as well.
 
Since it is a Sine wave inverter that you are using and it seems to have a UPS mode that is working perfectly fine for you, I see no need for spending money again on a computer specific UPS unless the current UPS gets overloaded while using the computer as the inverter has to handle other loads as well.
As for as I am concerned APC is the best UPS and Inverter as well but considering price Luminous is the best.
 
As for as I am concerned APC is the best UPS and Inverter as well but considering price Luminous is the best.


I've had really bad experiences with APC. One caught fire in my office, and thankfully the fire alarm went off. Another one which is connected with my server has had the battery fail within 4 months, and the replacement battery never lasts more than a few minutes. It's a different matter that I need it only for the 10 seconds or so that it takes for the genset to come on.

Then again, I have no experience with any others.
 
I've had really bad experiences with APC. One caught fire in my office, and thankfully the fire alarm went off. Another one which is connected with my server has had the battery fail within 4 months, and the replacement battery never lasts more than a few minutes. It's a different matter that I need it only for the 10 seconds or so that it takes for the genset to come on.

Then again, I have no experience with any others.
Since 19 years I am using APC UPS no probs what so ever. If at all battery discharges fully then I raise a ticket with APC CC and they come & replace the battery.
If it's in warranty they replace for free or else for the battery pack only I pay if it goes out of warranty.
 
To ask a very dumb question - why?

Is the power from the main UPS not good/clean enough? Or, is the switchover time what affects the computer?
If you PC does not reboot when it switches over then you are fine. How much power does it draw ? have you attached a power meter

The power supply of a PC is more forgiving of the waveform. Square waves as put out by APC are perfectly fine but will not be appreciated by other electronic items which prefer sine wave. This whole sine wave business remains to be confirmed as i've never seen any oscilloscope screen grabs of how well these sine wave inverters perform under load. One indication people use is if the ceiling fan does not make a buzzing noise then its sine. Oscilloscopes are pricey and complicated to use. I've been tempted to pick up USB oscillopes something that hooks up to a PC such as the ones from picotech but not got round to it. There are cheaper more compact ones in mobile phone form factor available too by Chinese startups like this

Come to think of it some time back people were saying APC did not work well with some computer power supplies and were recommending some thing else than APC.

Reason for a separate UPS is it allows to add capacity. And its very specific in its purpose. Cheaper too with maintenance free batteries.

People have a UPS for the PC because the home UPS cannot handle the load. Most people have 600 - 800 VA one battery systems for lights & fans only. Now if you add a rig on top of that then it clearly won't be enough to power the rest of the house.
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I've had really bad experiences with APC. One caught fire in my office, and thankfully the fire alarm went off. Another one which is connected with my server has had the battery fail within 4 months, and the replacement battery never lasts more than a few minutes. It's a different matter that I need it only for the 10 seconds or so that it takes for the genset to come on.

Then again, I have no experience with any others.
I got my 1000VA APC Back UPS in 2006, it has worked over three battery changes. What surprises me these days is the high number of negative reviews i see for successors to this model on amazon. Back then APC meant no stress and to be fair i've never had any problems with this model in all these years

The problems were mainly with replacement batteries that these APC people brought over. The replacements worked for less than the original set. The first set lasted 6 years until it went flat. After that i never managed to go past 3 years. I have half a mind to get my own batteries, tape them up and use them. The APC ones are rubbish. The reason is lead acid batteries should never be left flat. Well these batteries sat on a shelf for months maybe even years and have lost full capacity by the time they were installed

20151130_142126.jpg20151130_140208_2.jpg

No manufacturing date on the battery that i could discern but the box says Jan 2014. I ordered it in Nov 2015. That is too long for a lead acid to retain its charge. There is no capacity mentioned on the individual batteries either but i suspect its 7AH each
 
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When the power cuts, and the PC continues running, there is no need to buy a UPS. In fact, UPS acts strange when connected to inverter power many times. I have had my PCs running well on central inverter UPS and APC UPS over the years. Both have been just fine, never had any problems. The problems come only when they are used together.

As one more test, you can have your PC running at full load (e.g. start a graphically intensive game and keep it running for 10 minutes). Then switch off your mains. If the PC still remains on, after the UPS takes over, I'd say there is absolutely no need to get one specially for the PC.

If you still end up getting a UPS only for PC, then connect it in such a way that it receives power from mains directly bypassing the central inverter.
 
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