Re: [OT] Home UPS (was Filesystem recommendations)
Kelly Clowers put forth on 4/29/2010 12:07 PM:
> Furthermore most almost all power outages here are very brief,
> and I end up not having to shutdown at all, which is just pure
> convenience. For me, my Back-UPS XS 1000 was one of my
> best computer-related purchases.
I've got an old APC RM1400NET in the bottom of my home rack backing just one
server at the moment, a rarely used CRT, and my comms gear. I get about an
hour out of it during a total outage. I bought it used from a local "off
lease equipment" reseller/liquidator. Gave just over $100 USD for it. The
battery pack lasted 6 months. Bought a replacement pack from batteries.com
for a little over $100 with shipping. I've got over 4 years on the current
battery pack. Average lifespan on the 1400 pack is 5-7 years depending on
the number and duration of inverter cycles. As with you, this is one of the
smartest hardware purchases I ever made. The electronics and electrical
parts in UPSes very rarely fail, so as long as you replace batteries every 5
years or so you'd got reliable power backup, and cheap--$20 per year
basically for batteries. This level of power (and piece of mind) protection
costs less per year than one trip to the movie theater to see Avatar.
I've got an equally old MinuteMan 650 floor model backing my home
workstation. Again I purchased this one used from a liquidator (different
one in this case) for around $40 back in 1998. I've replaced the battery
once after 6 years and am about ready to replace it again. The battery for
this one runs around $40.
Today you can buy a 700kva class consumer UPS for $100. If the battery
lasts you 5 years, you've paid $20/year for power/surge and data protection.
Not to mention convenience.
I can't imagine ever going without a UPS, whether server or workstation.
Laptops are great because, for all practical purposes, you get a free UPS
built in.
--
Stan
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