This inquiry is a re-post of a question that was posed during this Board's most recent technical glitch(es), and which unfortunately also resulted in its inadvertent deletion before answers could be collected. Please post any recommendations that you might have for currently-available UPS units suitable for remote (and typically hostile environment) transmitter site ancillary equipment racks, specifically those UPSs which (a) have mechanical latching on-off switches (i.e. not momentary push-buttons, requiring on-site intervention) and (b) do not require a computer running UPS controlling software to restore normal operation after outages or battery depletion. These are clearly getting harder and harder to find, and so would benefit from your field experience knowledge.
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Transmitter UPS Revisited
- Thread starter maineengineer
- Start date
If the site has a generator I wouldn't expect you'd have a problem with any UPS that has a non-mechanical on-off switch. The biggest problem I've seen in the past relates to "dirty" generator. If the generator doesn't have a clean sinusoidal I know some UPS units refuse to charge or even recognize the power as being restored.
Other than the above, I've used APC and Tripplite brand UPS at transmitter sites with good results and reliability.
Other than the above, I've used APC and Tripplite brand UPS at transmitter sites with good results and reliability.
Back when I lived in the land of daily lightning, the South Florida locals used to swear by the Best Power -- now Eaton -- FERRUPS line. I see Eaton still vends them for the industrial / marine sector, but I suspect the price of copper used in the units' multi-wound power transformer means they ain't cheap.
Here's a sample: http://powerquality.eaton.com/Products-services/Backup-Power-UPS/FERRUPS-Rackmount.aspx
Here's a sample: http://powerquality.eaton.com/Products-services/Backup-Power-UPS/FERRUPS-Rackmount.aspx
I recommend Staco power's Unistar III. They are rock solid, double conversion, self-restart, and eat dirty power like candy. I've got them at about five sites. One location has notoriously poor power. The lights blink and dip all the time. There are tons of outages there. The Unistar rides right through all of it, including running on a cheap Generac generator.
I second the Staco series. The output is clean & solid.
The APC that was there didn't like a 175 KW genset running a 50 kw AM @ 50% load.
Battery would run down because it was constantly switching back & forth.
The APC that was there didn't like a 175 KW genset running a 50 kw AM @ 50% load.
Battery would run down because it was constantly switching back & forth.
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