An Uninterruptible Power Supply (UPS) is vital to protect your office and personal equipment from damage that may be caused by a sudden power outage. Most companies already have this in their office. There are also a number of home-based employees and freelancers who have this in their homes. Whichever of these groups you belong to, there are a number of factors you need to look into when purchasing UPS. You can’t just go to a store and grab the first UPS you see. There are several factors you need to consider to ensure you get the best one suited for your needs. These are the things you should consider whether buying UPS for office or home use:
Factors to Consider When Buying UPS
1. Equipment
Determine what equipment you will need to connect to the UPS. With a personal computer, you need to take into account both the monitor and the CPU. If you are connected wirelessly through the Internet, you may also want to include the modem and the router. In an office setting, the equipment used for servers, networks and data centers need to be included. With the number of equipment noted, you can then proceed to identifying the UPS that can accommodate these. There are UPS systems with up to eight outlets. Make sure you get the right one for your office or home.
2. Power
With the number of equipment you know you need to be plug into the UPS, you’ll also know how much power you’ll be needing. You’ll just need to add up the total electrical load of all the equipment identified. The rule of thumb is to get a UPS with a power capacity that is 25% higher than your total power needed.
3. Backup Runtime
You also need to identify how much backup runtime you will need for your UPS. Generally a UPS is needed to have enough time to properly save files and shut down the equipment before a power outage. This will not take more than five minutes. And usually this is enough time to switch to an alternate source of power. In buying a UPS, you can check the power rating to give you an idea of how much runtime is provided.
4. Types of UPS
There are three types of UPS you can choose. Each offers different features that are best for different types of equipment. The standby or offline UPS is the most commonly used UPS and is also the most economical. This is best used for desktop computers and is ideal for short blackouts. The line-interactive UPS is also an offline type of UPS but is a slight upgrade to the standby UPS offering faster switching from utility to battery power. It is best for small businesses with only a few number of office networks and servers. The online UPS, although the most expensive, is the best type of UPS ideal for big companies with delicate and critical equipment. This type of UPS offers a perfect sine wave power without any down time for switching powers.
5. Where to Install
It is also important to identify where you will have your UPS installed. There are two kinds of UPS: the tower UPS, which is usually used for desktop computers and the rack-mount UPS, used for servers and networks. In knowing where the UPS will be placed, you’ll know which kind to get.
6. Warranty
Various companies offer different types of warranties for the UPS system and batteries they provide. Be sure to carefully check these. Some companies offer up to three years warranty plus preventive maintenance and onsite repairs. These onsite services are very useful as you won’t need to ship your UPS network or batteries. The provider will have someone visit your site to do the check-up and necessary repair.
In making sure these six factors are covered, you can ensure you have the most ideal UPS that matches your needs. And with the right UPS system for your home or office you can be assured that your equipment will be protected in the best possible way.
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