Power backup and Conditioner

[pdwatermelon]

I am looking for a battery backup and power conditioner mainly for my server, but if I can fit other equipment on the same unit that would be great too. My Server will have a PSU at around 850w. Do i really need a backup that has that much wattage rating. I was looking at this
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16842106006

but have never heard of the company. I would like a rack mount. And maybe the possibility to attach my HTPC to the same unit. Any suggestions.

 

[[H]utch]

There are "offline" and "online" UPS systems. Offline systems only switch to the backup battery when there is a power failure or spike, while online systems run through the battery 24/7 giving a much cleaner and seamless power stream.

I personally use a 1500VA (~865 Watts). From my research when purchasing one, essentially volt amps = watts but due to power factors, watts are usually around 60% of volt amps. There is a conversion from VA (volt-amps) to W (watts):
True Power (watts) = Volts (RMS) x Amps (RMS) x Power Factor

I have a 750W power supply in my computer but it actually only draws about 350W (including monitor) most of the time which gives me about 20minutes of runtime when the power is off on my 1500VA APC UPS. If your server has an 850W power supply, that does not mean it is drawing 850W all the time, simply that that is the maximum power rated for that supply. I suspect you would be getting somewhere around 300W (depending on cpu/hard drives/graphics card etc.)

Here are some server UPS from APC which also has a drop down menu on the side to show runtime on battery:

http://www.apc.com/products/family/index.cfm?id=165

So depending on how much uptime you want to be able to get, 1500VA is not too much. With an "online" system as I described above, I don't think you will need a power conditioner since by it running through the battery it is regulated pretty well. However, to be on the safe side, you can throw in a power conditioner such as:

http://catalog.belkin.com/IWCatSectionView.process?Section_Id=202493

There are other ones out there but that is the one I use in my AV rack.

APC also seems to have some power conditioners with batteries in them although I have no experience with them:

http://www.apc.com/products/family/index.cfm?id=310

Hope this helped you.

 

[pdwatermelon]

That is extremely helpful. I didn't Think I would be drawing that much wattage even though my PSU is 850. I definitely will need an online power supply because I need smooth power. Have you heard anything on the brand I mentioned in my post

 

[[H]utch]

That is extremely helpful. I didn't Think I would be drawing that much wattage even though my PSU is 850. I definitely will need an online power supply because I need smooth power. Have you heard anything on the brand I mentioned in my post

Unfortunately I haven't. Try googling for some reviews, but a general rule of thumb would be to look at the price comparatively. Chances are a $400 is better than a $100 one in this regard.