UPS Suggestion? - Forums

Topic starter

Jan 1, 2023

Hello all,

Still working out my remote imaging plan, and I will need a UPS so I figured I would ask around and see if there are specific units folks have had success with. The deployment is to New Mexico, so no concern about international power differences, etc.

Thanks,
Bill

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Michel Makhlouta

Jan 1, 2023

If I were going to get one for a remote observatory, I would go for an online UPS with a usb connectivity that actually works. It would be nice for you to have some input on the battery health, load, how frequent outages are happening, etc…

If it is not for a remote setup, I would go for one of those power stations. Overpriced I agree, but you get a screen to show the usage vs time remaining, they charge fairly fast, they have a 12V output by default. I suggest a brand that provides a regulated 12V output and a high battery cycle count.

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Aygen

Jan 1, 2023 · Edited: Jan 1, 2023

Hi Bill,

I have the following model in my remote obs in Spain :

Delta Power Solutions N Series 1 kVA: UPS Delta Power

Let me know if I can help you for once

.

Should you anything, please feel free.

CS,
Aygen

John Hayes

Frequent contributor

Jan 1, 2023

Bill,
Here’s the UPS that I used on both the 20” and my refractor before shipping to Chile. It has replaceable batteries, good backup time, and it’s quite stable. It will work really well at DSW.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000B63KTG/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&th=1

John

Chris White- Overcast Observatory

Jan 1, 2023

I'm also in the process of assembling a kit for a remote location. I'm planning to go to Ed Thomas's site in NM. Are power blips a pretty common issue for these remote installations?

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Aygen

Jan 1, 2023

I'm also in the process of assembling a kit for a remote location. I'm planning to go to Ed Thomas's site in NM. Are power blips a pretty common issue for these remote installations?

Personally, I never ran into any issues.

Also, I would see the benefit of such a device mainly if you have your rig up and running in a personal obs so you can close the roof (dome) should any blips occur. For instance, I have currently my equipment in a hosting where each user has the possibility to control his own roof > then it makes sense to have a "plan b" if something goes South

Dark Matters Astrophotography

Topic starter

Jan 2, 2023 · Edited: Jan 2, 2023

I'm also in the process of assembling a kit for a remote location. I'm planning to go to Ed Thomas's site in NM. Are power blips a pretty common issue for these remote installations?

I doubt they are common, but the UPS is on the required equipment list Ed has and it's always a good thing to be able to gracefully park and turn down the system in the event of a power outage.

I ordered this one, as it was in stock and had a discount on it:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00AX9Z7R4?psc=1&smid=A29CFOW4UM3L3L&ref_=chk_typ_quicklook_titleToDp

vercastro

Jan 2, 2023 · Edited: Jan 2, 2023

My recommendation is to avoid CyberPower due to a design flaw that disables power output when a battery fault is detected.

APC or Eaton is usually the best bet. The "Smart" UPS models have a serial port that allow control from computer. You'll have to spend more to get one with over the network control.

And another note about UPS units. There are two types: switching and online-double-conversion. Switching UPS units simple pass through the power from mains and "switch" to battery when the voltage falls outside of a threshold. They do not "clean" or "condition" dirty power. Online-double-conversion does actively power condition, but they are usually an order of magnitude more expensive and are usually much larger in size and weight. Most of the models sold at Best Buy, Amazon, etc. are switching. AVR (Automatic Voltage Regulation) is just a fancier switching power supply with supposedly tighter thresholds.

Most of the time a switching UPS is sufficient.

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