UPS = Uninterruptible Power Supply
Do you know what a UPS, or Uninterruptible Power Supply is? It’s a box with a big battery in it that provides a bit of battery backup and a lot of surge protection for devices in your home that you plug into it. We highly recommend that you purchase and install one and plug both your LCWA router and rooftop radio power supply into it. They are as inexpensive as $40 and will do a world of good for your internet access.
Why do this? Here are the benefits of adding a UPS to your router and radio:
- If power goes off in your home, the UPS will retain internet access a few minutes, giving you a bit of time to send a final email or close up a web application.
- They can save the life of your router and radio if lighting strikes nearby by isolating them from the main surging power source.
- They can extend the life of your router and radio by smoothing out the small power surges that happen every day and that take a toll on your equipment over time.
- They will greatly lessen the number of times you need to power cycle your router or radio to keep them running. It’s those daily small power fluctuations that cause your router to freeze and need a power cycle.
- They can prevent an automatic factory reset of your router from lightning, which would require you to reconfigure your router.
- They will save you money on having to buy a new router or radio well before its life is up.
- They greatly decrease the number of time members need to call support due to a frozen or fried router or radio.
Due to this last point, we are now requiring all new members to install a UPS on their router and radio at the time of the first install. LCWA does not have enough volunteers to spend time answering support calls that could have been avoided with a proper UPS installed.
So why don’t you, as an existing member, help out LCWA, and yourself, and get a UPS too?
Which UPS to Get
Choosing a UPS is all about identifying the power needed, and that depends on what you are plugging into it. This is measured in watts, and let me list a few options.
A UPS for your Router and Radio
Your router and rooftop radio draw almost no current, so an inexpensive, low-power UPS is just fine. The one we are recommending to new members for that purpose is a 255W $45 dollar one that you can buy from Amazon.
Here’s the link: Amazon 255W Uninterruptible Power Supply
This is the unit we are requiring, providing, and billing for, when new members install now. You need just one for both the radio and the router.
Want to Add an Ink Jet Printer to the UPS? Then Increase the UPS size
If your router is in your office next other devices, you might be tempted to add those other devices to the same UPS. But if you are using a low power one like that listed above, don’t do that. There’s not enough power. Reserve the above UPS only for your router and radio.
If you want to add, say, an Ink Jet printer, then you will need to step up the size to closer to 500W. Here’s one close enough to that level at about double the price as the one above: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00K8ZMTAQ/
By the way, never try to put a laser printer on any-sized UPS. They draw way too much power.
What about a Laptop?
Your laptop’s battery, from a power-backup point of view, does the same thing as the UPS. So, there is no reason to plug a laptop (one with a working battery) into the battery backup side of the UPS. But every UPS also has a surge-protection-only set of plug sockets, and it does make sense to plug your laptop in there to protect it from power surges. That won’t impact your battery backup devices, so you can do that with any sized UPS.
For Your Desktop Computer and Monitor
Have you ever been sitting at your desktop computer and had it simply blink off when your power goes off? You can lose unsaved work and it will generally mess with your computer. If you had it hooked up to a UPS, as you saw the lights around you blink off, your computer would still be on and you could save work and shut down gracefully.
A UPS that can handle that, however, requires more battery power capacity to operate with; the units above are not sufficient. Get a separate UPS for this, and you’ll need a 1000W unit or larger to cover your desktop computer and monitor. Here’s one that works and it’s closer to $200: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00429N192/
UPS Maintenance
Keep in mind that all UPS units need a battery replacement within 2 to 6 years. These can cost up to 50% of the original unit price. Inexpensive units like the first one listed above will need a manual push of its Reset button after a power outage if the battery is fully depleted during the outage.