While a UPS seems like it would work, I think that unless a person has a good understanding of electricity and kit bashing there are better alternatives to go with.

Great information shared here.

I was curious as I have some of these already and wouldn't go with them if I had to buy them separate or for this purpose only.

As I mentioned in my 12v thread I`ll probably do some 12v lighting eventually.... we will have a generator too but figured hey, if I got some why not?

FWIW: These are cheap to get because most people toss them when the battery dies so you can get them in dumpsters for free then buy a $25 battery I have two UPS that have on/off switches right now and another off-brand I need a new battery for.

I plan to find more free

My folks keep my dad's old APC in their bedroom with a 40W bulb and an alarm clock. Worked fine when they were without power for three days a few years back.

Good to know.

I know people who have had OLDER APC's burn up their PCs.

I used my CyberPower 1500AVR to power my Cable Box and 16" TV for about 90 minutes after one of those little hurricanes in Florida in 2006. Probably more wattage than a couple of compact florescent or incandescent bulbs.

Note 1: The CyberPower 1500AVR is a switching UPS, and is not a "cold start" UPS.

Note 2: Microwaves CANNOT be powered by a UPS.

Edited to Add:
Note 3: You have to be able to put up with the "BEEEEEEPPPP" every 3 seconds, or find the speaker and disable it.

I sold/serviced UPSs from 350VA (breadbox size) to 1.5MVA (two stories tall).

The biggest enemy of the smaller units is heat/thermal design. Compact case designs do not allow for proper cooling for longest battery life or the inverter's cooling. The battery is usually very close to the warm/hot charger/inverter circuitry. Matters worsen when you consider house air conditioning fails during a warm weather outage and there is little/no air movement, to boot.

Installing a small cooling fan on the UPS output and opening up the case cooling ports will help. It is entirely possible for a 350VA UPS to run on a larger battery for extended periods as long as it is cooled adequately. The cooling is a challenge, tho, especially in true "lights out" conditions.

I, too, am looking at a solar/battery setup.


-josh

Hey Josh, very good points. I think it would be relatively easy to remove the battery and put it 1ft away too. This of coarse if your goal is to use it as a 'backup' for lights and not your computer system as that may be a pain.

I also have a case of 12v computer fans that I got for <20 that could work too.

One point you bring up that is interesting is using a larger battery... as long as it's 12v can it be ANY size? Say a car battery hooked up to one? Or is it dependent upon units? Like will it regulate until a certain size then turn off thus not utilizing the full capacity?
-Todd

As long as you're using the same or larger capacity rechargeable battery of the same voltage, you should be OK.

A car battery should work fine for a short-term solution, but I wouldn't recommend it for continuous indoor use. Remember, too, some batteries have differing charge/float voltages.

The chargers in the small UPSs are usually puny. A large battery will take a long time to charge. An external AC charger is recommended. I picked up a Black & Decker car charger that actually has settings for AGM, GEL and wet cells.

Some of the high-end small UPSs "sense" the slower voltage rise and will generate a bad battery alarm. It won't debilitate the unit, but it might beep or send you a notification (for units connected by USB/serial).

-josh

I just found my APC unit box when moving (use dit for that) and it says it adjusts voltage to correctly supply the proper amount to your electronic devices. Something to do with not running on battery during brown outs / unless power is 100% off. It also says it regulates some other things too. I think I paid ~$150 @ Costco a year ago.