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Uninterruptible Power Supply (UPS)?
 Another
device that offers protection from power quality problems, is an
Uninterruptible Power Supply, or UPS. If your computer unexpectedly reboots itself when lights are switched on, or when an appliance on the same household circuit starts up, or during thunderstorms, you need a UPS.
A UPS contains a battery, a
battery charger and an inverter which converts the battery voltage
back into 110 volts AC just like that from a wall socket. In the event of a power failure, the battery continues to deliver uninterrupted
power to devices plugged into the UPS, and conditions the output to keep it
within the required voltage range and "clean." By clean, I mean a
relatively smooth sine wave without the noise and spikes that otherwise
come in on household power lines during electrical storms.
Depending
on
their capacity, UPSs can continue to power the computer for 10 to 40
minutes, which allows documents to be saved and computers to be powered
down gracefully --- thereby reducing the chance of corrupting or
destroying a hard drive and/or losing data. A UPS of 550 - 750 VA
capacity is appropriate for most
household computer systems, including the computer, monitor, printer,
modem and router, and costs $75 - $100. Around our house, our UPSs are
most appreciated for keeping things safe and running smoothly even
during thunderstorms and power glitches. It can be frustrating, indeed,
when the power goes out for
just a fraction of a second, but long enough to reboot the computer (if one doesn't have a UPS) and require
resetting every clock in the house.
Most important, is the protection a UPS provides to the hardware. I
have seen computers where every part was destroyed by a power
surge --- power supply, CPU, hard drive, CD/DVD-RWs, motherboard ---
everything, a complete write-off. Given the cost of the equipment
protected, and the value of the data, a good power bar and a UPS are
cheap insurance and a good investment.
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