For the life support of the house during blackouts, we choose an uninterrupted power supply device (expert advice)

Regularly turning off the lights organizes better than time management courses

Rocket attacks continue. The country’s energy infrastructure has suffered so much that we will probably have to live in conditions of regular power outages for a long time. But people manage to joke that no time management courses could organize them like regularly turning off the lights.

If at a short distance, as one and a half years ago, power outages could be survived with an effort of will, then to live in such a mode for years, as experts predict, is more difficult: the stableman cannot keep a sprinting pace. And a little doping in the form of a source of uninterrupted power supply for the house, I think, is fully justified. Let’s decide together how to choose the best option for such a device, and Yuriy Mogilov, an experienced user who has serviced various inverters and uninterruptible power supply devices, will help us in this.

Portable power sources

Portable uninterruptible power supply devices are especially popular. These are powerful power banks with one or more 220 volt sockets on the panel. They are not cheap, but under the conditions of regular power outages, they are simply necessary.

When choosing between lithium-ion and lead-acid batteries, preference should be given to the first. After all, lead batteries are toxic, with a strong subsidence, lead plates begin to fall, due to which the life of this battery is sharply shortened.

First of all, you need to decide how many electrical appliances need to be restored.  Therefore, the amperage of the uninterruptible power supply unit is calculated. The higher the energy-saving class of electrical appliances, the longer the capacity of the uninterruptible power supply will last. We calculate the total total energy consumption of our devices and roughly understand how much battery capacity we need for, say, 4 hours (for now, this is the average duration of a one-time power outage). Such consumers as, for example, a microwave oven or a boiler are very energy-intensive. If you try to heal them from an uninterruptible power supply or an invector, you will quickly drain the battery.

How an online uninterruptible power supply works

The optimal choice is an online source of uninterrupted power. Electrical appliances powered by it do not interact directly with the outlet. The electric current undergoes a double transformation through a rectifier and an inverter. Such devices provide optimal voltage and frequency characteristics. Among the disadvantages, one can name the higher price and shorter duration of operation with the same battery capacity.

It doesn’t matter if your inverter or uninterruptible power supply has a function to automatically shut down the generator when the battery drops to low voltage.  This feature is unlikely to be needed. It also does not matter what type of outlet is on the power supply unit.

Unlike devices with constant energy consumption, devices with intermittent consumption are periodically turned off, thus saving the resource of the uninterruptible power supply. For example, the refrigerator reaches a set temperature and turns off, remaining for some time in the mode of minimum consumption. You can additionally optimize energy consumption by unplugging devices that are not in use at the moment, because their energy consumption continues even in sleep mode. Finally, it is quite obvious to use LED lamps to optimize the energy consumption of lighting devices.

Uninterruptible power supply for router and computer

The ability to provide power to a Wi-Fi router and have constant access to the Internet is more relevant today than ever. This possibility can be implemented with the help of uninterruptible power supplies for the router, provided that the Internet provider provides uninterrupted power supply at the switching nodes or transmits the signal via fiber optic communication. Under such conditions, you can independently purchase and connect a 12-volt uninterruptible power supply to the router.

As a rule, routers use 12, less often 5 or 9 volts. With a non-standard voltage – 5 or 9 – additional transformers will be needed. Usually, the uninterruptible power supplies the router for several hours depending on the power of the total consumption of the devices and the capacity of the battery, if there is fiber optic Internet, in addition to the router, you will have to power up the optical terminal.

A standard PC has high power consumption. Let’s say you need a 2000 amp battery for 4 hours. This is an expensive and impractical option for an uninterruptible power supply device. Therefore, in blackout conditions, it is better to use a more economical laptop.

Protection of the autonomous heating system in winter

An additional incentive to purchase such a device can be the presence of autonomous heating of the house. After all, in a situation of long-term disconnection of the device in winter in severe frost, the system may simply fail and repairs will be expensive. The critical freezing temperature of the system – fortunately, the latter is unlikely – is when the indoor temperature drops below +4°.

Therefore, for sensitive devices with electronic control boards for heating and security systems, it is better to purchase an uninterruptible power supply of the linear interactive type with a built-in stabilizer. This is an additional safety cushion against problems that arise when switching lines and network overloads.

As a source of uninterrupted power for the boiler, it is optimal to choose models of 220 volt uninterruptible power supplies with an ideal sinusoid. They are designed to protect induction coils of electric motors, throttles and pumps from errors associated with voltage drops and frequency shifts.

If the device does not contain such components or its power supply unit is equipped with a transformer, a stepped sine wave is quite suitable. In addition, to increase the time of operation without external power supply, such an uninterruptible power supply can be supplemented with an external battery of increased capacity.

In fact, the cost of maintaining the operation of a two-circuit gas boiler is small. Energy is needed mainly at the ignition stage. Often, two 1.5-volt batteries are used on such boilers. They also consume little – only for the start-up impulse. If computer programming is connected, it also consumes little. Some boilers have a built-in battery, the autonomous operation of which lasts up to 12 hours.

The genetic memory of the nation is to survive not because of it, but in spite of it

Our compatriots will find a way out of any situation. Probably, it is in the genetic memory of the nation. Here is one such blackout survival hack:

Again 6 hours without light.

“It feels special with a small child on the 20th floor)

But we adapt.

1. An inverter with a 2kW battery appeared at home. Sterilizer, kettle, hair dryer, iron work normally.
2. The candles remained from last year. There is no need.
3. There is a tourist stove on gas. But haven’t used it yet)
4. A set of dry soups appeared, which it is enough to pour boiling water over. But they are still lying around unnecessarily.
5. A mass of lamps on batteries appeared. They give enough light.
6. An uninterrupted power source appeared on the router. But within 3 hours of the power outage, the provider’s switch died…
7. As a result, the provider had to lay an optical fiber. The Internet is now available during long power outages! (I recommend)
8. The boiler keeps hot water for quite a long time, exactly more than 6 hours. You can live
9. Thanks to the neighbors and the management company. A generator has been installed on one of the elevators since last year. The 20th floor was no longer a problem.
10. Thanks to another generator, the boiler room works in winter, there is heat. There is also water with the pumps.

Although it is not very convenient, it is possible to live. We’ll manage.

Some friends have an even bigger set:

– They put a generator on the balcony (I don’t have a balcony, it’s not an option))

– They put themselves starlinks for communication, including for cars.

– Those who live outside the city install solar panels, but in winter there will be no work…”

And how did you prepare for the blackouts this time?

Tatyana Morarash