Re: [gentoo-user] Any UPS recommendations?

[Daniel Frey]

On 01/08/2013 09:32 AM, Paul Hartman wrote:
> On Tue, Jan 8, 2013 at 11:27 AM, Paul Hartman
> <paul.hartman+gentoo@×××××.com> wrote:
>> On Tue, Jan 8, 2013 at 7:01 AM, Walter Dnes <waltdnes@××××××××.org> wrote:
>>>   I think my UPS is dying.  Time to get a new one.  It's been years, so
>>> there may be new tech out there I don't know about.  My normal usage is
>>> * 1 LCD monitor 24"
>>> * 1 (sometimes 2) "desktop" PCs connected to the monitor
>>> * 1 ADSL router/modem
>>>
>>>   What brand and VA rating would people recommend.  The stuff I'm
>>> concerned about is the 2 or 3 times a year I get power flickers, or a
>>> short outage.  And also, if power is out for more than 5 minutes, and
>>> the battery is running low, I want the PC to be able to sense that and
>>> execute /usr/sbin/hibernate
>>
>> I personally have a Cyberpower 1350VA (with fancy LED display to show
>> current load, estimated time remaining, etc.). It is supported by NUT
>> in linux so my box can do a clean shutdown when the UPS battery is
>> running low. Running my big PC (with 7 HDDs RAID) it gives me around
>> 30 to 45 minutes of life on battery before the shutdown kicks in. My
>> power outages at my house are generally either <5 seconds, or
>> hours/days with nothing in-between. :)
>
> I will also add I had an Ultra brand UPS before (actually made by
> Powercom), which was extremely cheap, I'm talking about $79 shipped
> for 1500VA UPS, and it spontaneously stopped working one day, just
> outside of the warranty period. It was not supported by NUT, the linux
> software required binaries instealled to /etc and also to write its
> logs to /etc and generally did not work well anyway. I will avoid
> Powercom/Ultra UPS in the future.
>
> At work we use APC brand UPS and they generally seem to work very
> well, though they tend to be quite expensive.
>

(Speaking from my own experience over the last 15 years)

If you have two desktop PCs plus monitor and switches I would try to get
1500VA or more.

I have tried Tripp-Lite, Cyberpower, and APC. So far, the best luck I've
had is with APC.

I started out with APC initially (small unit, 350VA) and paid the
premium price. The second and third time around (not replacing, needing
new UPSs) I tried other brands. First the Tripp-Lite, it was OK but a
year and a half later it just died with no warning. Got a replacement
battery and still no go. So I bought a Cyberpower UPS. This one lasted
almost two years, and when the power went out the first time it worked -
but the second time it went out when the power came back the UPS fried
and it unfortunately took out my PSU, motherboard, and hard drive. For
some reason the monitor survived... and no, I did not have any
high-amperage devices attached (printer is in a different room.)

Anyway, after that experience, I stuck with APC. I currently have four
of them, a little 350VA guy for my modem and switches, and 3 1200VA
models. These are old now, bought in 2004, and other than having to
change one battery in one of the units, they all still work. Nine years!

I also recommend APC based on my own experience. Yes, they're more
expensive (in some cases 50% more) than others, but longevity seems to
be great. Plus you can use apcupsd for monitoring in linux.

We also use APC at work. While a few have had their batteries changed,
most of the units themselves are at least 10 years old.

Dan