Need help in choosing UPS and clearing up Power Factor Stuff??

[Surajsharma]

I know that UPS are rated in VA (Volt Amps) but I'm really confused in choosing the right UPS because I don't know what Power Factor to use when calculating

PSU: Corsair VS 550
Active Power Factor Correction 0.99
PSU Efficiency: 85%
Volts: 240V

I don't know if it is Bronze, Silver or Gold Certified, just efficiency is mentioned there on both the box and website, by the way here is the website - http://www.corsair.com/en-in/vs-seriestm-vs550-550-watt-power-supply

Monitor: Samsung SyncMaster SA100 LED Monitor
Input Voltage: 100-240V
50/60 Hertz
0.3 Amps
VA Rating: 21-40

And I will plug a monitor and a router (soon going to buy it) to the UPS

However, VA rating of monitor is given as mentioned above but I'm having difficulties in determining VA rating of my SMPS, how can i calculate that??

 

[DonkeyOatie]

OK The PUS produces 550W, the APFC is nearly 1, so it can be ignored. Assuming Bronze and only 80% ( it should be better.) that means your PSY draws about 690W from the wall at full power. (which you won't be using) You should be running the PSU at about 70% of rating at most.

You monitor is 21 to 40 Watts. What else do you want to run? So far, you need about 600W of SMPS 600VA.

 

[Surajsharma]

OK The PUS produces 550W, the APFC is nearly 1, so it can be ignored. Assuming Bronze and only 80% ( it should be better.) that means your PSY draws about 690W from the wall at full power. (which you won't be using) You should be running the PSU at about 70% of rating at most.

You monitor is 21 to 40 Watts. What else do you want to run? So far, you need about 600W of SMPS 600VA.

Wait a minute, how do you calculated it to 690 Watts, assuming that 550 Watts SMPS + 40 Watts Monitor = 590 Watts, is that a typing mistake from your side, if that so please clarify it.

So a 600 VA UPS in enough to safely shutdown my PC in case of power failure, right?

 

[DonkeyOatie]

550W is what the PSU delivers to your system. It is 80% efficient (or a bit more) so 550W is 80% of the draw from the wall, so it draws about 690W. Your UPS needs to be able to supply that, theoretically. however, we do not use our SMPS at 100% of their capacity, it is inefficient and ages them prematurely if used for gaming. A typical system should max out at around 70% of the SMPS maximum wattage so:

SMPS = 550W
70% usage = 385W
80% efficiency draws 480W from wall
monitor uses up to 40W.
safety margin suggests a total of about 600W for your UPS.

You need VA for power, but you also need hours for duration. How long do your power interruptions last?

 

[Surajsharma]

550W is what the PSU delivers to your system. It is 80% efficient (or a bit more) so 550W is 80% of the draw from the wall, so it draws about 690W. Your UPS needs to be able to supply that, theoretically. however, we do not use our SMPS at 100% of their capacity, it is inefficient and ages them prematurely if used for gaming. A typical system should max out at around 70% of the SMPS maximum wattage so:

SMPS = 550W
70% usage = 385W
80% efficiency draws 480W from wall
monitor uses up to 40W.
safety margin suggests a total of about 600W for your UPS.

You need VA for power, but you also need hours for duration. How long do your power interruptions last?

I'm expecting 5-10 mins runtime from UPS, so that I can safely close all my work and shutdown my PC safely, answering your power interruptions question I will say power failure lasts as little as 5 mins - 4 hours. This only happens during Summers during Winters there are no story of power failures.

 

[DonkeyOatie]

Then 600VA and 300Watt-hours would seem to be plenty.

 

[GhislainG]

600VA (360W) is a bit too close to the requirements. An 850VA would be better.

 

[Surajsharma]

600VA (360W) is a bit too close to the requirements. An 850VA would be better.

That what I was thinking

Okay, thanks guys, I will go with 850 VA UPS, its good be to on a safe side !!

 

[GhislainG]

And it isn't much more expensive.

 

[Surajsharma]

And it isn't much more expensive.

Here are some UPS that I've choosen

Link 1 - http://www.flipkart.com/zebronics-zeb-u725-ups/p/itme6xwg7zfbv3yn?pid=UPSE6XWGJRCEMPPF&al=mRG0pxZ%2Bs1Wtt4fqG7vL6cldugMWZuE77x17v9FMUpnK6aVGPKH0KTcjB2p%2FDk0aR%2FEEsghmhPw%3D&ref=L%3A-6912838903386583731&srno=b_2

Link 2 - http://www.flipkart.com/asia-power-ind600-ups/p/itmegzxh9exwbaza?pid=UPSEGZXHGACMCC2E&al=mRG0pxZ%2Bs1WdKVED1iSZycldugMWZuE77x17v9FMUpkPkbNY4yM5o8yTPjOoKHkOP9WJDQ2HBFs%3D&ref=L%3A-8816510078199970874&srno=b_46

Can't decide which one to buy, Zebronics one provide 600 Watts Power Output at 95 % Efficiency and Asia Power one provides output of 750 Watts at 80% Efficiency and by the way what is "Coldstart" in UPS Terms?

 

[DonkeyOatie]

Efficiency means the same thing that it does for a PSU, the amount of incoming electricity that is available for output.

Cold start means that the UPS will turn on and run even when there is no power, as opposed to continue to run and provide power when the power stops. It is a problem of properly powering the inverters. You might want to do this if, during a power failure, you wanted to turn your computer on for a few minutes.

I am unfamiliar with either of those products. It is of concern that the 750W model has 600 in the model name and has 80% efficiency. This suggests that the 750W is th value produced, but not necessarily recived. It also has no information on duration. You need at least 15 minutes.

 

[GhislainG]

Those inexpensive UPS don't provide the flipkart advertised power.

The Asia Power IND600 is a 600VA UPS; therefore it really is a 360W UPS, not 750W: http://asiapowercom.com/wp-content/plugins/downloads-manager/upload/IND600%20brochure.pdf

The Zebronics ZEB-U725 also is a 600VA (360W) UPS: http://www.zebronics.com/products/ups/zeb-u725 It has very slightly better specs on paper, but both UPS basically are the same quality.

Did you decide to go for a 600VA instead of 850VA? Since you are looking for an inexpensive UPS (you often get what you pay for), you should consider this Champion Home & Office 800VA UPS: http://www.flipkart.com/champion-home-office-800va-ups/p/itme4brespgsyhjk?pid=UPSE4BRERMUPRBHD&al=mRG0pxZ%2Bs1XoryHzGCjcDcldugMWZuE77x17v9FMUpnzZRaGFrYHGhCR2AZziVwm4fVXiikzM1A%3D&ref=L%3A2871865911624089918&srno=b_3 It's a 480W UPS that provides AVR and Sinewave output (that can't be verified without a scope).

Cold start function: The UPS can be started from battery directly without AC utility. Not useful if the UPS always is powered on.

 

[Surajsharma]

Those inexpensive UPS don't provide the flipkart advertised power.

The Asia Power IND600 is a 600VA UPS; therefore it really is a 360W UPS, not 750W: http://asiapowercom.com/wp-content/plugins/downloads-manager/upload/IND600%20brochure.pdf

The Zebronics ZEB-U725 also is a 600VA (360W) UPS: http://www.zebronics.com/products/ups/zeb-u725 It has very slightly better specs on paper, but both UPS basically are the same quality.

Did you decide to go for a 600VA instead of 850VA? Since you are looking for an inexpensive UPS (you often get what you pay for), you should consider this Champion Home & Office 800VA UPS: http://www.flipkart.com/champion-home-office-800va-ups/p/itme4brespgsyhjk?pid=UPSE4BRERMUPRBHD&al=mRG0pxZ%2Bs1XoryHzGCjcDcldugMWZuE77x17v9FMUpnzZRaGFrYHGhCR2AZziVwm4fVXiikzM1A%3D&ref=L%3A2871865911624089918&srno=b_3 It's a 480W UPS that provides AVR and Sinewave output (that can't be verified without a scope).

Cold start function: The UPS can be started from battery directly without AC utility. Not useful if the UPS always is powered on.

Didn't know that both UPSes would be of cheap quality with 600VA Output, Flipkart sometimes put wrong specifications and I didn't tend to verify them, thanks for that GhislainG, Champion Home & Office 800VA UPS seems better option but it provides 480 Watts Output at 90% Efficiency, is that enough for my system? if you know some better UPSes would you please link it to me.

Thanks to you also DonkeyOatie for the info, and yes I would like UPSes that supports coldstart (Its Optional)

 

[GhislainG]

What's your budget? I ask because you originally selected the lest expensive UPS that you could find. The APC BR1100CI-IN is more powerful: http://www.flipkart.com/apc-br1100ci-in-ups/p/itme3kw7axc3tpzh?pid=UPSE3KW7ADFFH5VW&al=xiAuVxUIJ0rYTl35oke9Q8ldugMWZuE77x17v9FMUpny2CRIrvfoUh4RNpRYeHxYQsTTwQHMIHU%3D&ref=L%3A6437314940476607426&srno=p_10&query=ups&otracker=from-search It supports cold start: http://www.apcmedia.com/salestools/JGNY-8FFB56/JGNY-8FFB56_R1_EN.pdf?sdirect=true

 

[Surajsharma]

What's your budget? I ask because you originally selected the lest expensive UPS that you could find. The APC BR1100CI-IN is more powerful: http://www.flipkart.com/apc-br1100ci-in-ups/p/itme3kw7axc3tpzh?pid=UPSE3KW7ADFFH5VW&al=xiAuVxUIJ0rYTl35oke9Q8ldugMWZuE77x17v9FMUpny2CRIrvfoUh4RNpRYeHxYQsTTwQHMIHU%3D&ref=L%3A6437314940476607426&srno=p_10&query=ups&otracker=from-search It supports cold start: http://www.apcmedia.com/salestools/JGNY-8FFB56/JGNY-8FFB56_R1_EN.pdf?sdirect=true

That seems pretty expensive one, aren't there any other ones
My budget is under 3K INR

 

[DonkeyOatie]

Sometimes you have to spend money to get a good product. The UPS is 'insurance'. you need a good product that will do what you want when you need it.

 

[GhislainG]

What's your budget? I ask because you originally selected the lest expensive UPS that you could find. The APC BR1100CI-IN is more powerful: http://www.flipkart.com/apc-br1100ci-in-ups/p/itme3kw7axc3tpzh?pid=UPSE3KW7ADFFH5VW&al=xiAuVxUIJ0rYTl35oke9Q8ldugMWZuE77x17v9FMUpny2CRIrvfoUh4RNpRYeHxYQsTTwQHMIHU%3D&ref=L%3A6437314940476607426&srno=p_10&query=ups&otracker=from-search It supports cold start: http://www.apcmedia.com/salestools/JGNY-8FFB56/JGNY-8FFB56_R1_EN.pdf?sdirect=true

That seems pretty expensive one, aren't there any other ones
My budget is under 3K INR

Then you're limited to the Champion Home & Office 800VA UPS. There are no really good UPS for such a low budget.

 

[Surajsharma]

What's your budget? I ask because you originally selected the lest expensive UPS that you could find. The APC BR1100CI-IN is more powerful: http://www.flipkart.com/apc-br1100ci-in-ups/p/itme3kw7axc3tpzh?pid=UPSE3KW7ADFFH5VW&al=xiAuVxUIJ0rYTl35oke9Q8ldugMWZuE77x17v9FMUpny2CRIrvfoUh4RNpRYeHxYQsTTwQHMIHU%3D&ref=L%3A6437314940476607426&srno=p_10&query=ups&otracker=from-search It supports cold start: http://www.apcmedia.com/salestools/JGNY-8FFB56/JGNY-8FFB56_R1_EN.pdf?sdirect=true

That seems pretty expensive one, aren't there any other ones
My budget is under 3K INR

Then you're limited to the Champion Home & Office 800VA UPS. There are no really good UPS for such a low budget.

Okay, thanks to all of you, I will try to increase my budget.

 

[GhislainG]

It would be easier to determine if a 480W UPS is good enough if we knew more about your system. We know the monitor can draw up to 40W and that your power supply is a Corsair VS550, but what are the components in your system (motherboard, CPU, GPU, HDD, SSD, etc.)? Determining the peak power of your complete system is key to calculating your UPS requirements. To play it safe the UPS should exceed that calculation.

 

[DonkeyOatie]

Since the OP wants to use the UPS to shut their system down in a controlled manner, I would not count the peak power usage of the GPU into the equation.

 

[turkey3_scratch]

In America, only industrial consumers pay for reactive power. Active power + reactive power = apparent power. PFC is the ratio of active power / apparent power. If you don't work at warehouse or industry, you really don't need to worry about PFC.

 

[Surajsharma]

Since the OP wants to use the UPS to shut their system down in a controlled manner, I would not count the peak power usage of the GPU into the equation.

Here are my specs, try not to laugh at it

Processor: Intel Pentium Dual Core E2140 1.60 GHz
RAM: 4 GB DDR2 RAM @ 667 MHz
GPU: nVidia GeForce GT 610
HDD: WDC WD1600AAJS-22PSA0 ATA Device 149 GB
ODD: SONY DVD RW AD-7260S ATA Device
Deepcool Gamma Archer Heatsink + 120MM Fan
80MM Exhaust Fan

 

[GhislainG]

CPU: 65W TDP (it will never draw that much power)
GPU: 29W
HDD: 20W
ODD: 25W
Motherboard, cooler, etc.: Let's presume approximately 60W

Total system power draw at peak = 200W
Power draw from the UPS (the PSU is 82% efficient): 200/82*100=244W in theory, but it's impossible to draw that much power while using the system because you can't make all components 100% busy.

If we add the monitor, the total power draw from the UPS can't exceed 284W; therefore a 480W UPS meets all of your requirements. A 360W UPS would also work, but you may eventually upgrade components that increase the power draw. I'd recommend you don't exceed 70% of the UPS rating, particularly when using an inexpensive UPS.

 

[Surajsharma]

CPU: 65W TDP (it will never draw that much power)
GPU: 29W
HDD: 20W
ODD: 25W
Motherboard, cooler, etc.: Let's presume approximately 60W

Total system power draw at peak = 200W
Power draw from the UPS (the PSU is 82% efficient): 200/82*100=244W in theory, but it's impossible to draw that much power while using the system because you can't make all components 100% busy.

If we add the monitor, the total power draw from the UPS can't exceed 284W; therefore a 480W UPS meets all of your requirements. A 360W UPS would also work, but you may eventually upgrade components that increase the power draw. I'd recommend you don't exceed 70% of the UPS rating, particularly when using an inexpensive UPS.

So a 600VA UPS is enough for my needs? Considering upgradation path I have decided to stick with 480 Watts and one of the nicest thing is that it has 2 Years Warranty on UPS and 1 Year on Battery

 

[GhislainG]

600VA is enough, but the 480W will provide more backup time. Since they all are inexpensive UPS, buying one that exceeds your requirements is cheap insurance. For a 600VA I would consider this APC: http://www.flipkart.com/apc-back-ups-600/p/itme9udcqfebevwe?pid=UPSE9UDBHVFCTUAC&al=XoqxX5xtze6K9AvuYMyqlcldugMWZuE77x17v9FMUplNO6o7uzg9EeAYLUo%2FY78zvdAGO6rJIDM%3D&ref=L%3A-5842796897800532899&srno=b_1 On paper the less expensive Champion Home & Office 800VA UPS has better specs.