Imagine that you are working on a very important project or task; essay for school, business meeting notes, or placing an order on Amazon for the last of an item; and there is a power loss. Your computer shuts down and you lose all the progress you made. Sometime later, the power comes back on but now your computer doesn’t want to turn on because the power outage fried the power supply of the computer or worse. If this has happened to you, you know the feeling and the stress caused by a broken computer. But, there is a way to prevent future power outages and to help prevent any damage to your computer.
Installing an uninterruptible power supply (UPS) can help you relieve the stress of a power outage. A UPS is an electrical apparatus that provides emergency power to a load when the power goes out. UPSs can be used to protect computers, servers, and even other electrical equipment when a power outage or power surge occurs. The UPS does this by acting as a surge suppresser for incoming power surges and also provides battery power to allow a safe shut down of the computer and to save any open files or data entry.
When choosing a UPS, there are several things you want to consider first. The most important thing you want to consider is what will be plugged into the UPS. Most UPSs only have 4-6 plugs at max. UPSs are designed for just PCs and servers to allow a safe shutdown before a complete power loss. UPSs also can only supply whatever power is on the battery and the more devices plugged into the UPS will drain the battery that much quicker.
The next thing you want to consider is how long do you need your devices to stay on. All UPSs have a Watt rating which tells you how much power the battery gives off in a power outage. However, just because a UPS says it can handle up to a certain amount doesn’t mean to plug in devices until you reach the max amount. If you run a UPS at the max, you would only get minutes for power.
Finally, the last thing you want to consider when choosing a UPS is the features it provides. With most residential UPS systems, you may get just basic features, like surge suppression, USB ports for mobile device charging, and power loss notifications (device beeps or flashes lights). However, some higher up models, like the ones designed for businesses and server support, you may get features like a software suite to manage the UPS and change the settings of the device, LED readout of battery level and remaining time, and hot-swappable batteries (the ability to disconnect the battery and replace it while power is still running to the computers connected to the UPS). Read over the description for the UPS and determine what you really need and want before making a purchase.
