What UPS?

Since living where i am now which i moved to in Nov 2008 there have been 4 power cuts and atleast 6 power spikes that have caused a system reboot.

I am considering a UPS, nothing flash just something that will kick in if power is lost.

Anyone have any recommendations?

Try a search through the archives. I think there was a thread about UPS within the last year or so but can't remember which forum.

I have a Belkin one - reasonable price and gives about an hour of use followed by an auto shutdown of the PC. The battery is a standard sealed lead acid which can if necessary be changed easily - but after about 8 years it is still going. There is basic surge supression and four non-backed outputs and four with UPS power. The only criticism is that the outputs are IEC connectors - so save space.

You're going to need at least a minimum of 500VA(300W) UPS. I highly recommend APC's UPSs as they use easy to replace sealed lead acid batteries. Also make sure you get one that can connect to you pc via either USB or serial as these will tell your computer to shutdown should power be lost.

bare in mind UPSs are not designed to keep your computer / devices running for long, just long enough for you to save what your doing and shut them down.

In reply to a post by JimKirk363:

Since living where i am now which i moved to in Nov 2008 there have been 4 power cuts and atleast 6 power spikes that have caused a system reboot.

Nothing says you had any power spikes. Every shutdown and reboot is a power loss. Spikes means you are replacing damaged parts.

If your system is properly constructed, then incandescent bulbs can dim to less than 50% intensity - and every computer calls that ideal and normal power.

Are incandescent bulbs dimming that much? That is what a UPS is for. Its only function is to provide power when bulbs dim even more. When AC voltage drops so low as to be potentially harmful to motorized appliances such as the refrigerator. Your voltage must not drop that low.

If minor voltage dips are causing computer crashes, then probably a computer problem - maybe a problem in the power system - which is more than just a power supply. Normal is for a defective supply to power a computer. Then when normal but lower voltages occur, a defective computer finally starts crashing. So do you cure the symptom with a UPS? Or fix the problem?

Plug that incandescent bulb in the same receptacle that powers the computer. Watch light intensity.

In reply to a post by Anonymous:

In reply to a post by JimKirk363:

Since living where i am now which i moved to in Nov 2008 there have been 4 power cuts and atleast 6 power spikes that have caused a system reboot.

Nothing says you had any power spikes. Every shutdown and reboot is a power loss. Spikes means you are replacing damaged parts.

Not necessarily...... you can get spikes which can corrupt the memory without doing any physical damage. The switches used in electrical distribution are crude copper contacts which cause a "splash" and a back-EMF pulse which can be higher than the mains voltage.

As someone else said, the primary function of a UPS is to hold up the power long enough to do a proper shut-down (and many UPS's will do this automatically), but if you buy a big enough UPS, it can power the PC for the duration of many short cuts of 20 minutes or less. In the past I've used Belkin UPS's, but in the last couple of years the quality of the batteries seems to have suffered, so now there is only one make that I go for...... APC. Fortunately the prices have dropped low enough to make these supplies viable for the home user, like this 800VA one for less than £120. This will power a moderate-sized PC and LCD screen for more than 20 minutes.

I like APC, but compared to some they are a bit expensive, but I think the extra is worth it.

I agree, that's why I use a laptop which comes with a built-in UPS (some call it a battery).

Yep, I have a Belkin too - had it about 4 years.. The supplied software can configure the UPS functionality and auto shutdown as necessary..