bill@carpet.WLK.COM (Bill Kennedy) (08/22/88)
In article <3871@juniper.uucp> gbh@juniper.UUCP (Geoffrey B Hoese) writes: [ 3B1 swimming screen and observed low voltage in the house ] > >The best cure for this would be a UPS, but as I can't really afford one >right now, so i'm looking out for a good deal on a constant voltage >transformer. Mind you, a surge protector won't help as this is the >opposite problem - drops in voltage rather than rises. Something else to >watch for, anyway. This is a tough call. On the one hand we can claim to be unable to afford power conditioning equipment and on the other, when the worst happens, we spend more on repair. The issue gets complicated by some irresponsible manufacturers' claims of "UPS" when their unit is really a standby (switches in the inverter after some period of no/low power). I'll not elaborate on what I have spent for power conditioning, the pain is recent memory as is the motivation. I will evangelize a bit on the benefits. My site has the misfortune to be on a rural electric cooperative so it has the idea that if the irrigation pumps are running the power is OK. Even if you are on a good public utility with a reliable grid, you are not immune as the others have pointed out (swimming screen, fried power supply). The problem is two-fold, the terrible stuff that comes down the line when the power is on and the worse stuff that comes down when the power comes back after an outage. Many surge suppressors and standby units just don't have the ability to swallow the stuff. Some perform the "supreme sacrifice" and melt down trying, but now you're naked, it's gone for the next time. The CV transformer will handle a lot of those problems as well as voltage fluc- tuations that your power supply can't. A standby unit can handle the outage altogether. When my on-line UPS bit the dust a consultant suggested getting a huge CV transformer and using standby units on the equipment that couldn't take an outage. The recommendation was a good one and very cost effective. It was not what I did, but that was for another reason. If you are serious about power conditioning (and you should be), you might give this fellow a call. Sure, he sells the stuff, but he's price competitive and very willing to talk to a "small fry" user. He helped me size an air conditioner once and didn't charge a penny. I have no affiliation with him other than as a satisfied customer. Oma Graves (pronounce Oh ma) Computer Room Technologies P.O. Box 458008 San Antonio, TX 78280-8008 (512) 675-3117 (he returns calls on his nickel when the box answers) The last time I spoke with him he said he'd be glad to help anyone fashion a cost effective solution and didn't mind working by long distance. You might find that he can offer a more affordable approach than the consequences of not having any power protection. -- Bill Kennedy Internet: bill@ssbn.WLK.COM Usenet: { killer | att | rutgers | uunet!bigtex }!ssbn!bill