Uninterrupted Power Supply (UPS) is a backup power system that provides continued power supply during conventional power outages. If you ask us, “How long can a UPS provide power?” it depends on a lot of factors like battery capacity, surrounding temperature and humidity, the number of devices connected to the UPS system, power conversion capabilities, manufacturing quality, etc.
So, in this blog post, let’s understand each of them and the different types of UPS systems before we come to a solid conclusion about the duration of UPS power supply.
Battery and charger of UPS systems
Each UPS has an internal battery that stores the power supply. In general, a 100Ah battery operating at 12 volts can store 100Ah × 12V = 1200 Wh of energy. The higher the battery capacity, the longer the UPS power.
Certainly, the battery receives its power from the charger—which converts AC power from the mains or wall outlet to DC power. This converted power gets stored in the battery and then again gets converted to AC power via an inverter to supply electricity to connected systems/devices.
Inverter in a UPS system
This is one of the main components of UPS systems as they convert the DC to AC power to supply electricity. Also, they help prevent the connected devices from any sort of power spike damage. In other words, even though the battery produces fluctuating voltages, it helps stabilize the power supply without any sine waves.
Thus, the higher the battery capacity, the higher the charger and inverter quality, and the longer the UPS performance. Besides, the duration of electrical supply by a UPS also depends on the type of the system.
Temperature/humidity
Batteries are temperature sensitive, and thus, they greatly affect the quality, performance, and shelf-life of the UPS systems.
Manufacturing quality
Last but not least, this factor plays a major role in deciding the performance of the UPS because every component has to be of the highest quality, including the battery, capacitor, inverter, and circuit boards. Thus, the higher the manufacturing grade, the higher the life and performance.
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What are the different types of UPS?
- Offline or standby system
It is the most traditional, standard, or basic type of UPS system that’s best used in homes, small buildings, or offices with less number of connected devices. It can provide only a limited power supply and limited protection from surges or spikes as it runs on UPS backup batteries.
- Online or double conversion
These UPS systems are better than offline systems as they provide a sine-free and continued stable electrical supply with the help of an inverter. Also, they provide higher protection against the spikes which can prevent the loss of device damage or data loss which is crucial. Thus, they are much more useful for enterprise buildings or offices with a higher load.
- Line-interactive UPS unit
This type blends the online and offline systems giving both battery backup and power conditioning. Hence, they are used for those buildings that have a lot of power fluctuations than for those that experience power outages.
How to increase the life of UPS?
- Replace batteries or other UPS components whenever worn out.
- Buy from a trusted manufacturer with good quality products and services.
- Check the Watt rating before buying.
- Perform regular maintenance of the UPS system.
Conclusion
Certainly, there is no particular UPS runtime or duration that you can calculate, as it depends on the UPS model size, internal battery capacity, and the load in watts.
