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Originally Posted by westom You need to first learn some facts. Do you want to protect data from a blackout? Or do you want to protect hardware from a surge? They are completely different and unrelated events. So again, what do you want to solve? If you want to protect data, then the UPS numeric specs only claim to do that. Meanwhile all electronic appliances contain significant surge protection. So that internal appliance protection is not overwhelmed, you must have the solution that was even done 100 years ago where ever damage could not happen. You must upgrade earthing and install one 'whole house' protector. You must install the only type of protector that actually does surge protection. |
The problem is these are not easily available and the only one I found on the Home Depot website is $185. I guess that is not a high price to pay to protect your stuff but for the average customer, that's a lot of money to pay for a box. None of these guarantee full protection. If you lose your electronics, do these manufacturers put a dollar value on your stuff and pay you money? I don't think so.
The second problem after availability and high cost is indeed the reliability. UPS protection is purchased because it is usually reliable - while it's working. The battery will eventually fail and then you need to replace it. But, I haven't read of any reports of widespread failures of UPS units. People are generally satisfied with them most of the time. It depends on the unit but generally, they seem to do the job. The problem is which one to choose and these also have high prices. However, they have better availability. You can go in any big box computer store or the better computer stores and buy one of these. Either the surges aren't delivering enough to 'get through' the UPS units or they don't happen often enough to cause considerable concern related to the protectors.
I can say, for a fact, that merely plugging the computer into the wall is the surest way to risk damage. In the past, I've seen other people's computers victimized by a surge or some kind of brownout or related problem. This has happened after a thunderstorm and you find your computer turned off and dead. I guess that would be my main concern, something like that happening. A UPS, I believe, can deal with that in most cases.