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| Author | Surge protectors (Read 5476 times) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Bolkonskij
Administrator 1024 MB  Posts: 2023 
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on: January 03, 2022, 13:43
I reside in Germany and we used to have a pretty stable and reliable supply of power. Now that they're taking 3 nuclear power stations off the grid with the hope to replace them with renewable energy only, I get a little nervous about the reliability. Sudden black-outs and respective power spikes can damage our computers. So I'm thinking about buying a surge protector for my Macs. I saw one at my in-laws that would beep when the power supply was off, allowing them to safely quit applications and shut down the computer. That's something I'd like too. Any of you guys use a surge protector? Being a total newbie - anything I should be aware of / that you can recommend? |
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Last Edit: January 03, 2022, 15:20 by Bolkonskij
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cballero
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1024 MB  Posts: 1179 System 7, today and forever
Reply #1 on: January 03, 2022, 17:09
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Great question for everyone to think about!!  As far as UPS systems go, I feel a little more comfortable using UPS systems that offer a pure sine wave output because it is much gentler to electronic devices. You spend a little more but it offer the best protection and more importantly, very clean power output. As far as brands it may be worth investing in name brands like APC or even Tripp Lite, but I like examining reviews in places like Amazon to get a clearer picture of particular models, especially when my sensitive items are going to be protected by them. I tend to unplug important items I won't be on being slightly paranoid about power issues, lol. You could also consider having an electrician install a whole home surge protector as well to prevent power spikes to all of your electric devices as well. This will safeguard other items like NIC cards and anything not on a UPS. The units themselves cost just over $100 like the Eaton model CHSPT2ULTRA. They are worth they weight in gold if they prevent a surge catastrophe from occurring.
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Bolkonskij
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Administrator 1024 MB Posts: 2023
Reply #2 on: January 04, 2022, 13:26
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cballero, that's the kind of answer I was hoping for. Thank you! I just learned about the difference between surge protectors and UPS and indeed, UPS seems to be the way to go. I'll definitely not buy a cheapo no-name ("he who buys cheap ends up buying twice") and read further up on the sine wave output. Let's see if I can find a local dealer that sells this stuff for a reasonable price. Jeff Bezos has enough money.
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cballero
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1024 MB Posts: 1179 System 7, today and forever
Reply #3 on: January 04, 2022, 23:41
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Skip Amazon, agreed!!! Just remember that the surge model like the I posted can be added for the whole house, so you can consider both! 
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Bolkonskij
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Administrator 1024 MB Posts: 2023
Reply #4 on: January 05, 2022, 20:55
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Yeah, unfortunately we're just renting the house (common in Germany, where a decent house around here starts at 800.000$), so it'll be just one device for the Macs. Saw a good offer locally for a new APC Back-UPS CS 650VA which - from the product specs - might be what I'm looking for. I'll have to do some research on user feedback prior to buying though.
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Bolkonskij
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Administrator 1024 MB Posts: 2023
Reply #5 on: January 17, 2022, 14:02
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So, I settled on the APC Back-UPS CS 650 (230V). Cost was about 130 euros. I just unpacked the box. Man, this beast is heavy! Like 60's electronics stuff ;-) Anyway, going to rearrange my office a bit tonight and will plug it in. Interestingly, the box gives examples for back-up times and surprisingly, it features yesterday's Mac prominently. They sold me on that runtime for a Power Mac G4 ;-) Here's a photo: http://images.macintosh.garden/2022/01/17/apc-backup-box.jpg Anyway, thanks again for the advice!
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cballero
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1024 MB Posts: 1179 System 7, today and forever
Reply #6 on: January 17, 2022, 17:58
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Yes!!! Those devices are huge battery packs to keep things moving forward during surprise power outages or spikes! Nice!!! I'm excited and darn-right shocked to see APC quoting PPC Mac specs on their UPC, wow!
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68040
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512 MB Posts: 950 68k - thy kingdom come, thy will be done !
Reply #7 on: January 18, 2022, 15:40
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I sat in a small valley in Belgium last spring, when we first got drowned and then cut off any power for three days. I think the era were you could safely rely on juice coming out of that outlet in the wall, are gone and won't return anytime soon. So I got myself three portable battery banks and a hand crank generator (just in case) - and switched my IT to low power ARM devices. Surge protection is built into my power banks but to be safe I always disconnect from the mains the moment anything starts to flicker. Cause fact is: Only industrial sized SPs can protect you from a ligthning strike or a surge caused by a sudden failure of the power line. We are talking milliseconds, to block a surge of many dozens if not hundreds of amps. Multiply that by 220V and then look at your Microwave, to get an idea of the frying power involved. here. Most household surge blockers are not designed to act that quick, for it is costly to build such fast reacting circuits. Also, most of the SPs are one time use only - so once triggered they have to be replaced.
Last Edit: January 18, 2022, 15:53 by 68040
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cballero
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1024 MB Posts: 1179 System 7, today and forever
Reply #8 on: January 19, 2022, 03:07
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You know, you bring a valid point. Actually, I was going to recommend plugging the UPS to a good surge protector, but here's an article from Tom's Hardware fro 2015 that goes into more depth on that exact subject: https://forums.tomshardware.com/threads/plugging-a-ups-into-a-surge-protector.2323385/ So, if you wish, you can invest in a little more protection after all 
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wove
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1024 MB Posts: 1363
Reply #9 on: January 20, 2022, 04:01
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I have moved the bulk of my computer use to low power arm devices. My raspberry pi 3B+ Nextcloud server, Pi 400 and Pinebook Pro all run very well off battery power that can be easily charged with a fairly small solar panel. The power consumption of a lot of older hardware is a draw back to using it. I have a nice dual processor gigabit ethernet machine that runs System 9 very well and OS X ok, but it uses more power in a couple hours use than my ARM devices use in week.
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cballero
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1024 MB Posts: 1179 System 7, today and forever
Reply #10 on: January 20, 2022, 04:46
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I know right? I happily run Mac OS 8.1 on my ASUS ARM Chromebook Flip emulating a Quadra 900 and I know the power consumption is incredibly low, and while I enjoy firing-up my old Macs a lot, I'm also excited at the idea of getting PPC emulation working using SheepShaver and QEMU with the Linux option on Chrome OS; I'm working on that on an Intel Chromebook. I haven't gotten it set-up and I haven't found any signs of anyone so far who's attempted to do this. I'm thinking maybe it's not something that can be done without some real tinkering? I know a Raspberry Pi likely runs both to perfection, but this would open up PPC Mac emulation to a huge new group of users far beyond 68k with Basilisk II
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