Basically UPS surge protectors are battery backups which can be used on appliances that require a shut down process so that data isn’t lost or a required cool down time can be applied. Being battery backup, this means that a UPS surge protector has to be fully charged to be useful. Once it has been charged to 100% it can be left plugged in to protect your computer, HDTV or any other appliance that takes time turning off.
Most of these devices aren’t surge protectors by themselves, but have surge protection built into their systems. This two-in-one protection benefits users because for one it prevents unwanted power loss to your equipment and secondly, but probably more importantly, it provides protection from power surges in your lines. Battery backup and surge protection are two different beasts and as such, people often ask if there are advantages of having one over the other. The answer is no. You can not use a battery backup as surge protection as it will not stop surges. The same logic applies to surge protectors. Surge protection will not stop power outages and keep power supplied to your device. You need both.
There really is no benefit of using a surge protector vs. a UPS (often called an uninterruptible power supply). A UPS by itself will back up your system’s power flow in the event of a power outage and will give you about ten minutes to shut down properly. Surge protectors prevent surges in the flow of current in your home on a daily basis from damaging equipment they are installed on. You can find battery backup ups systems without surge protection but it really makes more sense to include this feature. The surge protection offered is standard 100V.
As for units that don’t have surge protection, you won’t be able to plug it in to a surge protector and reap any benefits. The surge protector will disrupt the performance of the UPS by blocking information filtered by the protector. This loopback will keep the UPS from diagnosing problems and identifying power outages in time. Again it is best to have one unit with both features. There are clear advantages of UPS power surge protectors over non-protected units. You will still need a clean line with proper grounding for it to be effective however.
As for clean power, the UPS has power conditioning built into it. This helps the battery supply power the equipment hooked into it. One thing to note, the UPS will not offer surge protection if the battery is down. It needs to be charged to offer any kind of support. Typical batteries in a system will last about 5 years, then they need to be replaced. When purchasing one make sure the battery supply is readily accessible and not sealed within the unit. This makes it easier to replace without serious maintenance time.
Going back to proper grounding, you really need to make sure your outlets are grounded to the main earth ground of the house or apartment building you live in. Say for example you rent an apartment and the outlets are not grounded, meaning you have only the two-slot outlets in the apartment, but you have a three-prong adapter with a grounding coil that will allow you to connect to the receptacle screw. Unless that receptacle screw on the outlet is properly grounded to the house’s main earth, that adapter should not be used on your UPS surge protector.
So how much surge protection should you look for in a ups surge station? Look for something with 1200 to 1400 watts. For computer systems and something heavy duty like a rear projection television, it would be best to go higher, maybe to 2200 watts. A lower watt system would not last long powering a high-powered item like an RPTV. The surge protection would still be there, but your battery supply would drain out faster.
So when considering amonst the UPS surge protectors available, you always want the UPS as surge protection as well as battery backup so that you will gain the benefits of both.
