posted on January 17, 2001 02:17:24 PM
Does anyone have any advice on a good battery backup system for my computer?
At this moment while I write this post California is going through rolling blackouts due to the energy crisis. Oregon, where I live, is sending electricity to California thus jeopardizing our supply. Cold weather is descending on my region and I can very well be blacked out also if Oregon doesn't have enough energy because of giving too much of it away. That is not my opinion, but the analysis of the experts.
I do not want to hurt my eBay sales and bids by being out of power. I think I should get a backup battery power system ASAP but don't know quite what to get.
Darcy
[ edited a typo ]
[ edited by darcyw on Jan 17, 2001 02:18 PM ]
I used a battery backup for if there's a power outage while I was on the PC, I'd be able to save and then shutdown without losing data.
It's been awhile since I've bought one, but the last one I had required a first time charge of 24 hours prior to actual use. The amount of time you get on them varies (with price, of course). If I was to go out and purchase one this week, I'd go to like CompUSA, check out the manufacturer, specs, and price on the battery, and then go home and research the quality.
If you're looking more into a generator, I know basically nothing about those, aside from providing power for longer than the 5 minutes needed to shut down a PC.
-Michelle
[ edited by mikeylou on Jan 17, 2001 02:45 PM ]
posted on January 17, 2001 02:47:17 PM
Hi, I don't have one personally, but when I was working at an office each desktop had one (relatively small, and very heavy)those were good for 15 minutes when fully charged.. Gives you enough time to finish a few things and close down, we had a larger one for our server which held up for 4 hours, that was our connection for our corporate office out of state, and we were a regional hub for 3 counties so if we went down they would too. I guess it depends on how long the roving blackouts last, if they're done on some type of schedule you could base your decision on that and give yourself a little extra time.
posted on January 17, 2001 02:51:59 PM
We just purchased an IBM surge protector that gives 30 minutes of battery power. We live in Idaho. We had a power surge that fried our monitor even with a regular surge protector. We bought this IBM so we will not lose anything else. I think my husband got it at staples.
.
posted on January 17, 2001 03:33:27 PM
I'm in CA. First off a sincere thanks for sharing your power with us . We are undergoing random rolling blackouts now. It was in the low 20's last night (that's cold for coastal CA) and I know we are using likely more than our share.
I have an APC 500 Backup UPS. We had a power outage last week during heavy rains and it saved me by giving me time to shut down. Mine only will last for a few minutes but it's enough. I've learned not to try and stretch the time you can stay on, as when it goes ... it's gone! When the power was restored last week a power surge fried all the wiring on one side of our home. The side my computer plugs into. Thank goodness that due to the surge capabilities of the Backup UPS my computer was okay.
They are heavy, so the shipping can be pricey if you purchase one online. I bought mine off the shelf at Office Max. I'm totally sold on one.
posted on January 17, 2001 03:47:07 PM
Thank you to everyone who responded. My game plan is now to go to one of the computer stores on the web, look at batteries, get info and prices, get in the car, go to someplace like Office Max and compare prices.
This energy crisis is serious. Perhaps I should get a battery backup that gives a couple of hours of power.
I can't imagine the cost in California this afternoon. I understand that San Franciso has been hit particularly hard. San Francisco is a shipping and financial center so the impact on the markets must be enormouss.
Regarding surge protectors, a few years ago I had an electrician install some pricey fancy thing at the control box in the basement that is guaranteed to keep spikes from frying any electronic equipment in the house, including the kithcen appliances. So far it has worked. Before that, every time some drunk motorist miles from my house drove into a transformer pole, the surge would wipe out anything not hooked up to a surge protector. Well it is difficult to hook up the built ins in the kitchen to individual surge protectors so the big thing in the basement meant for the entire house has been real effective.
posted on January 17, 2001 04:36:20 PM
I've used the "Blackout Buster" for a couple years now. They're available from Staples and mail order and are pretty reasonably priced. I'm pleased with it. They have a model out now that allows them to be daisy chained together for longer back-up time.
The last time we had a major outage was in a winter storm. When it hit, I did a shut down of the computer. A while later I got bored and decided to try something. I took the UPS into another room and connected the satellite receiver to it and used a 12 inch black and white television to conserve power. The Blackout Buster's power lasted 18 hours with that load. I'd say that's pretty good.
Since then we've put in a generator but I use it to run lights when I'm setting up the generator.
. We are undergoing random rolling blackouts now. It was in the low 20's last night (that's cold for coastal CA) and I know we are using likely more than our share.