Question Can I use a ups which is intended for commercial/industrial use, at home?

MichaelKnight

Distinguished
Nov 15, 2014
88
0
18,540
Can I use a ups which is intended for commercial/industrial use, at home?

I am thinking about to buy a ups from a favourite brand of me(Sanups/Sanyo Denki), but they seem they are making uninterruptible power supplies only for commercial orindustrial use.Can't I use it at home?

My other question is, I am currently using a very old pc, some of it's components are about 15 years old, some of them are newer.One of the newer ones is a gold certified 850watt psu. I am currently using a ups with 1000va/675W and they seem they get along well for my current pc.

But I have ordered many pc components to build a new pc and I wonder if I will have to change the ups or not.I don't want to write all the components's brands/models to make you calculate, I just want to ask if newer pc components are generally more efficient and uses less electricity than old ones or the opposite is true?

Thanks
 
Last edited:
Can I use a ups which is intended for commercial/industrial use, at home?

I am thinking about to buy a ups from a favourite brand of me(Sanups/Sanyo Denki), but they seem they are making uninterruptible power supplies only for commercial orindustrial use.Can't I use it at home?

My other question is, I am currently using a very old pc, some of it's components are about 15 years old, some of them are newer.One of the newer ones is a gold certified 850watt psu. I am currently using a ups with 1000va/675W and they seem they get along well for my current pc.

But I have ordered many pc components to build a new pc and I wonder if I will have to change the ups or not.I don't want to write all the components's brands/models to make you calculate, I just want to ask if newer pc components are generally more efficient and uses less electricity than old ones or the opposite is true?

Thanks
Yes. I use APC UPS models that were sold for "commercial" customers. As long as the input and output voltages are correct and the power cord does not overload your mains plug, you should be OK. Commercial units may be louder that home units. They may have a fan that runs 24/7 for example. That can be annoying in a bedroom.
 
  • Like
Reactions: MichaelKnight
I also use an APC unit that was designed for rack mount/commercial use. It has been fine, as above.

For your load calculations, the website for any reputable brand should have a calculator on site which will help you make an informed decision about the size needed. Almost impossible to answer the other aspect of your question, but in a very general sense older electronics tend to become less efficient, if that helps.

IIRC my own unit is either 1000 or 1200 and I run (2) PC, the switch, a printer, and two monitors (of three) on it at the same time. I have a third PC hooked to the unit but it is not used alongside the other two for any length of time. One of the PC, monitor, switch, and printer are always on unless in the case of a really long power outage. My current runtime with two of the PC in use is in excess of 60 mins, and typically about twice that with just one in use.

I use a separate smaller backup for just my modem such that internet doesn't go down with a power flash.
 
  • Like
Reactions: MichaelKnight
My brother used to have one specifically for his fridge (because it was 1U and fit nicely next to it) and another for his sump pump. (Though the latter has a modified PC UPS that used semi truck batteries instead)

My future plan is a whole house battery using a used EV pack I acquired a few years back.
 
  • Like
Reactions: MichaelKnight
Hard to say if they are more "efficient" . You likely get more computing power for the same electrical usage but the new equipment also has massively more computing power so it uses more overall power.

When you look at stuff like high end video cards using over 400 watts of power by themselves it is a very different requirement than years ago.

In general as long as everything matches you will be ok. You for example can not actually fully use your 850watt power supply on you current ups since it maxes out at 675.

When you look at a new UPS just be sure that the watt rating is above what you expect the maximum to be for your power supply.

Now none of this may matter to you. If you have stuff that is 15yrs old then you are not chasing the fancy tech. You can get motherboards and cpu that are actually designed for low power usage. They many times will use the chips designed for laptops if you are just going to do general stuff and no high end gaming.
 
  • Like
Reactions: MichaelKnight
Thanks for your answers.

I calculated using CoolerMaster psu website and it says my new computer needs 377watts to run.(Though I may add a few hdds into the mixture)