Interesting Topic

[Mike S]

I wonder how many like myself have upgrade and added to their computer system with out giving a second thought to their UPS ...... well I'm guilty for sure .... when I first got here I bought an APC UPS as we were getting so many brown outs I lost count ..... at one time we had a scheduled one every other day with a few not scheduled just thrown in to keep us on our toes .... at that time I got a ES 500 which took care of 300W / 500VA .... but then after several years the brown-outs stopped and I then built my new rig .... well all was good in the world until about 2 months ago when we had a power glitch and my computer shut down even with the battery back up working (checked the output with my multi-meter) .... so I chalked it up as a strange occurrence and when I reset my UPS everything was OK ..... and then it happened again ..... same thing but this time my computer didn't want to restart and the alarm kept going off ..... finally it rest and all was well in Mike's world again ..... about 2 days ago while watching a web movie on my 32in. TV my computer shut down (no power glitch this time) and I couldn't get the computer to restart while plugged into the UPS ..... so I plugged it directly into the wall .... and all is well AGAIN ...... but .... I need my battery back-up and surge protector so I guess it's off to Cyber Gate again to find an APC UPS ...... decided on the CS 650VA model as you can change the battery and it stands upright ..... it runs 400w / 650VA ...... so I hope this will hold ..... my only other choice is a 1100 IEC 320 which runs 660W / 1100VA ..... which I'm sure will be a bit pricy and a bit of an over kill ...... oh well .... time will tell ....

Here is a neat little item I wish I had ..... anyone seen one of these here in the Phils or where to get one here

http://www.amazon.com/P3-International-P4400-Electricity-Monitor/dp/B00009MDBU/ref=pd_ybh_5

[FlyAway]

Brown outs are the primary reason I like running 110V on everything. Brownouts are by definition, a reduction in Voltage. So if you have 220V service coming in then your step down transformers will not really care if the incoming voltage is less than the 220V. As long as your incoming current does not change to much then there is no problem.

For a computer system I just use laptops. Their power supplies handle 110v ~ 220v. Then they are just supplying voltage to charge the battery which supplies another layer of protection to your hardware.

[retired]

Someone state side with experience in the Philippines told me years before i ever came here that if you measured the current at the wall socket it would most likely never read 220 or anywhere near it . Turns out they were right . Have seen everything from 198 - 210 but never 220 . :-) Some old geezers call it the " dribble" syndrone . If you can't relate to that then you aren't old enough yet .. :-)

[FlyAway]

Someone state side with experience in the Philippines told me years before i ever came here that if you measured the current at the wall socket it would most likely never read 220 or anywhere near it . Turns out they were right . Have seen everything from 198 - 210 but never 220 . :-) Some old geezers call it the " dribble" syndrone . If you can't relate to that then you aren't old enough yet .. :-)

Voltage and Current are two different things.

I used to hear people refer to a wall socket as either 110 current or 220 current. I was born in the mid 60's so I guess I am getting to the "old geezers" stage since I have heard that term :hystery:

[Mike S]

FlyAway ..... that may be the true definition of brown-outs in every other part of the world but here in the Philippines it means total loss of power from a few seconds to more than 8 hours ....... when I first moved here I too thought that it just meant a reduction in voltage but soon learned it meant loss of total power ..... which we would call a black-out in the US ..... I guess it is easier here to just call it brown out for everything ...... :hystery: :hystery: :hystery:

Oh by the way using my old APC UPS again ..... just have to be sure I don't max my CPU or video card out .... but strange as it may sound it works when playing my video games ...... maybe it just happens with a voltage drops for a second and comes right back on then the computer tries to reset itself ..... if I unplug the unit from the wall with the computer running it will operate correctly for the prescribed length of time before the battery dies ..... still gonna look at a bigger UPS

[Jake]

A long time ago I asked an electrical engineer from the Philippines why they use 220VAC. He basically explained

that it was a matter of a compromise between safety and economics. The economics part was not having too thick

of a copper transmission line using 220VAC.

OK, here's the secret formula: power(watts) = current X voltage. For example you have a toaster that is consuming

1000 watts. Under the Philippine electrical grid system, you're only pulling approx 4.5 amps (1000 divided by 220).

Whereas in the States, you need more juice, about 8.3 amps to burn your toast (1000 divided by 120).

The higher the amperage usage from the grid requires thicker copper wires to offset thermal, line resistance and

other factors. The Philippines and most European countries opted to go with the 220VAC for economic reasons

because copper can get so expensive.

And now the safety factor about 220 vs 120.......actually I'm going to cut it off here -- starting to fall asleep lecturing

to myself...he, he.

[FlyAway]

Yeah, 220 is actually more efficient to use. Part of the problem in Philippines is the distance they are running the 220 line.

The batteries need to be replaced in a UPS after a few years. That will cause a PC to freak out as well. I feel stupid now not mentioning that earlier. :th_th7:

[Mike S]

I agree ..... it is about two years old .....and the batteries can't be replaced in this model .... in fact APC doesn't even list the battery for this model .... the one I want has the ability to change batteries ... one unit has 1 and the other unit has 2 ..... gonna check it out next week in SM

[Steve & Myrlita]

I agree ..... it is about two years old .....and the batteries can't be replaced in this model .... in fact APC doesn't even list the battery for this model .... the one I want has the ability to change batteries ... one unit has 1 and the other unit has 2 ..... gonna check it out next week in SM

How many volts is the battery and also what is the rated A/H (Amp/Hours)? Maybe you can hard wire an external battery.

[i am bob]

I agree ..... it is about two years old .....and the batteries can't be replaced in this model .... in fact APC doesn't even list the battery for this model .... the one I want has the ability to change batteries ... one unit has 1 and the other unit has 2 ..... gonna check it out next week in SM

How many volts is the battery and also what is the rated A/H (Amp/Hours)? Maybe you can hard wire an external battery.

You can always replace any battery... You may have to cut the case or you might also find out that there is not battery that corresponds to your unit because - once you open the case you'll find this out - it's a bunch of batteries tied together. I used to have one that used 16 smaller batteries rather than just one larger battery but hey! I changed it over to just one battery that was almost exactly the same and it worked! Mind you 1980s technology wasn't all that advanced at the time... And you should have seen the beautiful walnut case I made for that battery!

:mocking: