Uninterruptible Power Supply (UPS)
A UPS is an electrical device typically used to provide power to a home or office environment when the main electrical grid (input source) fails or is disrupted. This emergency backup solution requires a battery bank which is continually charged while the grid is available. However, when the grid fails, the battery will carry the load of your most critical appliances.
Power interruptions are becoming all too familiar – Load shedding and poor maintenance of our infrastructure are part of the reason we are often left with no power when we seemingly need it the most.
A UPS system is a great way to start preparing your household, small office, or offices for power outages. A UPS can be small with an internal battery, which is often used to power a wi-fi router, lights or possibly charge a cell phone. Alternatively, it can be a larger device used to store the energy into an external battery bank. Depending on your specific needs, the use of UPS technology allows us to provide a solution that will scale up as your budget and needs grow. In most critical applications, a UPS system is supplied in conjunction with a diesel (or gas) generator. This is specified so that the UPS can provide a backup electrical supply to bridge the time it takes the generator to start up and accept the full load of the site.
For businesses, multiple battery banks can store a lot more energy and keep your essentials running for as long as you may require. The benefit of using batteries and a UPS is that you won’t have to worry about a loud generator, data loss, potential injuries and disruptions to business activities.
Businesses that should consider a UPS solution include:
- Grocery and food services
- Small retail stores
- Offices and call centres
For residential needs, a UPS can power almost anything, but is limited to the number of batteries and their Ampere-hour rating supplied. It is usually advised to start with the necessities first. However, for most high inrush motor loads, we do recommend that the distribution board is split so that these items can be supplied with a generator instead. Below is a basic spreadsheet to help you get an idea of what would be needed.
As a final note, it should be considered that a UPS and Battery system can be augmented by integrating solar panels to further supplement your home/office standby capacity and charge batteries.
