CompuServe Thread

Smart UPS

2 messages in this thread
#89089From: John K. JordanMar 5, 1994 8:05 PM
>>main circuit breaker… That's what uninterruptable power supplies are for! But the dogs… Hey, Larry, (and everybody) speaking about UPSs, let me tell you about my experience with one company, APC. Nearly two years ago I bought a Smart-UPS from American Power Conversion. The thing worked flawlessly, saving my tail several times when the power glitched. Then a couple of weeks ago, the power went out twice in one morning, the second time for just a fraction of a second. The UPS glitched and off went the computer! Ack! After a couple of trys, it came back on and seemed to work fine. The point of all this is I called APC to ask them about it, and even though the unit appears to work fine now, they sent me an exchange unit, no charge, just in case. Talk about service! I was so impressed I bought a second unit the same day for my second computer. There are so many negative stories about various companies, I thought it would be nice to tell a positive one. BTW, the Smart-UPS 600 will run the pentium (fully loaded) with a 20" monitor for about 25 minutes before the 2-minute warning.
#89244From: Don NellMar 6, 1994 4:45 PM
John, I had the same problem with my APS 600. All seemed to work fine but then one day… well you know. After getting a replacement unit, the problem was still there. It turned out to be my power supply. According to the APS technical support, if your computer is equiped with a non UL listed power supply, chances are that over time, the power supply won't be able to sustain the power level for those few precious micro seconds that it takes for the UPS to kick in. In my particular case the problem occured when the utility power was restored and the UPS switched from back-up power to standard power that my system would crash. Replacing my original, perfectly functional, non UL listed power supply with a UL listed one solved the problem for me. Just something to concider if your problem should return. Don (And I thought computers were going to make things easier)