Export Shipping Options to Brasil and the world

We'll love to serve the world's needs for power protection, but often shipping these very heavy items is exorbitant.   

However, a growing number of people are buying our units to export to other countries.  While prohibitive for just 1 unit, reasonable less-than-container rates can be found since we are so close to the Miami Port.

So if you need a UPS in Brasil, Portugal, or Panama... dont be afraid to ask us.  We use Air Parcel Express for great rates.   Check them out here.  Dont forget to add about $50 for crating and your countries' duties and taxes.

U P aSked: Can I use a SUA3000RMT2U on a regular home 240VAC without damaging the UPS

Danger Will Robinson.. Danger !

High voltage is often causally described as 208, 220, 230, 240 and even 250volt.  But as previously mentioned, high voltage in the US only comes in two nominal flavors:  208v and 240v.  

Recap on Voltages
208volt is derived from commercial 3phase power (though it actually single phase).
240volt is derived from some commercial 3phase power, smaller commercial locations AND more commonly found in people's home.

Recap on UPS Voltage Signatures
Nearly every manufacturer (EXCEPT APC) make units that are good for all types of US and in many cases international power.
UPS will output what the input power is (eg 208v in > 208v out).  And will go to protect mode if the input power is off or the voltage is out of range.
For this to work, you must make sure your UPS can output the voltage you want.  Either automatically or pre-set in the configuration

THE APC EXCEPTION
Most SmartUPS units just output 208volt.   So when you give it 240volt, it will think you are getting a surge and trim the voltage down back to 208v.  Or as APC says...
if you will use it on a much more higher voltage the unit will run online but will be on AVR Trim state which in the long run would damage the mechanism that corrects voltages.

Bottomline... if you need 240volt for a home server UPS... look for our listings with the 200v+, 240, or 208/240v icons.  Sadly that SUA3000RMT2U is not one of them.

End of Year 3000va Specials

Our most popular class of UPS is the 3000va 120volt Rackmount unit.... and now we have 2 great affordable options.

• Tripplite Smart Online 3000va for $529 and FREE shipping.
• Minuteman Enterprise 3200va for $377

The Tripplite model (to313c) is a full double conversion unit, retailing for $1700 new.  But since this is the older style, we got them on sale with free shipping.   Plus, unlike the $800 APC Online unit, these tripplites are ready for PDUs with the twistlock backplate.

The Minuteman Enterprise (mm313) is a true 3200va unit, offering a bit more power to those customers needing a few more watts.  Plus since we got these by the pallet, we can offer them for $377.  Its a great value, but even better since they have the twistlock backplate and shallow depth for all types of installations.

Whats in store for 2012

As we wrap up another record year at GreenlightUPS, we wanted to share with you some developments planned for 2012.

• Warranty Changes - our warranty policy will split into standard and gold levels.   In response to our competitors changes, we will offer a more limited standard warranty.  But will offer a gold level warranty for those looking for a hassle free full service warranty.  And the Good News... all existing customers, will get the Gold Warranty standard
• New eBay Portal - we have opened GreenlightUPS Outlet, for some crazy clearance and scratch and dent items.   
• New Payment Options on our website - We are leaving Paypal to a AuthorizeNET API to meet customer's needs.  Plus we are adding PO and Invoice options.
• Price Changes - We always want to keep our prices low, but an inevitable increase in lead for batteries may push our prices up... so buy in 2011 before the change.

Random Part of the Month XV - ACRD500

APC is primarily a power equipment company, but it also is a big seller of HVAC equipment.  Honestly, my eyes gloss over when people talk about server room cooling.  But when our IT tech friend came across one of these ACRD500 beasts being de-installed, I was impressed.

This is a 1000lb cabinet filled with giant quiet fans, sensors, regulators, and filters.   Its impressive.  While probably not worth the $16000 price tag, it was well made.  Since no one has ever asked for rack row coolers units, I decided not to buy it.   Maybe when it gets 95 degrees again here, I might regret not having this beast in our warehouse.

ReMade versus Refurbished..... The newest option in UPS sales

To meet a growing need of our IT professionals to sell high quality & high value UPS units, we have formally opened our GreenlightLABS Remade UPS division.

Units from the LAB are fully restored with original accessories, new covers & bezels, original packaging, extended warranties and mint new batteries.  This feature allows customers to sell these unit at a greater markup.

We typically offer LAB service to any UPS still in production including the SUA, SMT, and SURT APC models.  Email or call for details and pricing

New Product - Affordable 3kva UPS units

Why we normally shy away from non-major brands, we got an opportunity that meet many people's needs at a great price.  Introducing the Minuteman Enterprise UPS 3200 series.

These units available in 120 and 200v are well spec'd UPSes, fully refurbished with new batts.... but at a fraction of the price of the APC and Eaton Models

Learn more here:  mm313 (120v)  |  mm392 (200v)

415UPS and 2ndGrid divisions close down

After several years, Wesworth has ended its relationship with 415UPS.com and folded the 2ndGrid division back into GreenlightUPS.

In official corporate speak, we would say the reason is "in order to refocus our energies and improve our branding", but the reality was that any efficiencies gained from these two ventures were offset by higher operating costs.

Not to worry, GreenlightUPS will continue to serve its California and IT consultants under the main store.   415UPS.com's ebay store will re-open as GreenlightUPS O-U-T-L-E-T in 2012

KnowUPS - Shutdown of Multiple Servers

Sadly, most APC Smart UPS units are really dumb without the addition of a network management card.  But once you add these powerful accessories... the skies the limit.  Buy them here

Here are the most common features used

• Be notified of problems via email
• Customize shut down and reboot of connected equipment
• Data logging of events and environment
• Forwarding SNMP traps
• Web access to UPS anywhere on network
• Activate relays based on events

A frequent request is to have the UPS initiate shutdowns on multiple servers.  To do you need the netcard and the PowerChute software available on APC's site.

Read more here

Random Part of the Month XIV - SURT20KRMXLT

I have getting several requests for these very large Smart UPS units.  We only see a few a year, and honestly its not a favorite of mine.  SURT20KRXLT

First off, its the Smart UPS RT Online unit on steroids.  Its a 12U non modular single phase unit.  At $12,000 new its not that much less than a modular and scalable Symmetra unit.   But unlike the Symmetra, this one can give you the full 20,000va.

But wow, if it fails.... you just got a 700 lb paper weight.  And with no bypass and poor surge protection, this will be fun to replace.

U. P. aSked (You people asked): Big Box UPSes dont work on servers

A frequent question from customers is... I bought a 1500 UPS from a big box store, but its not able to handle my two servers each with 500watt power supplies.

• First off, nearly every big box retailer only sells APC backUPS or SmartUPS SC units, which are junk.  
• Second, those junky units use a technology that causes them to shut off during overload conditions.
• Third, your server probably uses a PFC type power supply which tend to have a high inrush current, which these junky UPSes think are overloads.
• Fourth, those junky UPSes require you to size your UPS at 125% of the rated Power supply wattage.  (meaning a two servers with 500watts power supplies need at least 1250watts or a 1700va UPS)

The good news, is that real Smart UPS units from us can handle your server's power supplies at the actual load, without any necessary upsizing.   So two servers with 500 watt power supplies probably can use a 1000va SmartUPS (100b), since the actual max load of the servers is about 300watts and the 100b is rated for 670watts.

Bottomline, all the units we sell are rated for the PFC type power supplies and need only be sized based on their true load.  Of course call us or visit APC's site for actual loads.

Read more about PFC from APC's white paper

New Product - Network Management Card with Modem AP9618

APC Network cards turn your UPS into a very dynamic unit.  The AP9618 card incorporates all the basic network, environmental and relay control features, but adds a Out Of Band Management feature.

In other words, this card (qsc18p) allows you to monitor and manage the UPS by remote control regardless of whether the UPS is powered on.   Also called Lights Out Management, this adds a powerful feature to units.

The qsc18 is available in our store along with the basic (qsc17), relay (qsc19), environmental (qsc19p), and 2nd generation card (qsc30).   Since it still serves an important purpose, APC still makes it, even while they have discontinued its cousins.

Are 3000va units on the way out....

Most people are familiar with Moore's Law, the doubling of computer power roughly every 18 months.  But  "Koomey's Law" may be more relevant to consumers.

Energy consumption for computing is improving just as fast as processing power.    But,  Koomey's Law is that at a fixed computing load, the amount of battery you need will fall by a factor of two every year and a half.

For UPS customers, it means that your typical server will need less and less power to operate.  We allready see that in our business, where new baseline servers sip power at only a fraction of the older cousins.  In the near future, the same server that meets your business's needs today might run on a Iphone or small frame unit using 30 or 40watts.

Random Part of the Month XIII - QWPAEFFICIENCY-MISC

While APC makes most of their money on products... like everyone else they are now expanding aggressively into services.

This product, the QWPAEFFICIENCY-MISC  is actually a ~$3750.00 report based on the physical site survey of your data center.   The report focuses on efficiency and eliminating waste   (I guess paying nearly $4000 isnt waste to them)  Some of the nuggets of value

• Reports efficiency values for the data center.
• Identify the air distribution methodology.
• Provide projected efficiency improvements for each recommendation to facilitate ROI calculations and capital expenditure justification.
• Using the data center one-line diagram, create a list of all measurements required to accurately characterize the power use of the data center infrastructure elements.

Sign up for some of the other APC services here

New Product - the Ferro-resonant UPS.... FerrUPS

Ferro-resonant UPSes are a 3rd type (or topology) of UPS.  Unlike the line interactive or double conversion, ferro-resonant units use a transformer to hold energy long enough for the UPS to transfer to the batteries.

The most common is the FerrUPS.  Branded under Best Power, Powerware and still made by Eaton.  These type of units are very robust and highly sought.  Many times we have have tried to get customers to leave their FerrUPS to no avail.  So we have now started selling a few models.

FerrUPS are best used in industrial applications where the load may spike under certain condition.  Since it continuously 'saturates' the internal transformer these spikes are absorbed without incident.

Look for our Ferrups 10kva later this month.  Unlike some of the other UPSes, these units need quite a bit of work to be refurbished.  DONT BUY A USED ONE!!!   Buy from a trusted supplier like GreenlightUPS

Know UPS - MATERIAL SAFETY DATA SHEET on batteries

Even though UPS units use safe Sealed Lead Acid batteries, they still are filled with dangerous chemicals... How dangerous?  According to the NFPA, Sulfuric Acid has a Hazard Rating of 3/0/2

While that is pretty scary, the reality is that very few formal Control Measures are required since the acid is safely stored in inside the batts.  Read more from the MSDS sheet from Powersonic

But over 65% of the battery is actually lead compounds.  And while sealed in the battery. its safe, lead overexposure is one of the most common overexposures found in industry and is a leading cause of workplace illness.

KnowUPS - Eco Mode

Today everything needs to be "Green."  And suppliers, vendors (we are GreenlightUPS after all), manufacturers, and customers all want to be part of it.  

The problem is that not all Green things are great.  (Pond scum in my pool for one)

One potentially bad Green thing on UPSes is the optional "Eco Mode" found on many new units.  Eco Mode is a sexy marketing term to essentially mean Line Interactive operation.  Since UPSes that operate as Line Interactive only switch over to battery during an outage (allbeit after 0.005 seconds) the UPS does not use up energy when there are no problems.   Online UPS are always online... always using energy.

The rub is that Eco Mode is found on those expensive Online UPS units.   So you pay double the price for a UPS for it to be online and then you downgrade it (um.. upgrade it)  to operate it in Eco Mode.

Kinda stupid.... especially when Eco Mode saves 3.3% or 10$ a year per 1000watts.  Learn more from APC's greenpaper

Random Part of the Month XII - SY500K500DL-PD

If you do the product search feature on Google with the term "APC," the most expensive item available "off the shelf" at a major retailer is the SY500K500DL-PD.

Its a Symmetra PX 3phase unit rated for 500kW.   It weighs a staggering 20,858 pounds!  The electrical requirements of 745 amps of 480volt power will dim the lights of your neighbors when you start this sucker up.

Its on "Super Sale" at RestockIT for $365,843.94... and they claim to have 200 in stock!

And if you have 1 really important server you want to run on this puppy... you only get 30:34hours of runtime. But if you are looking to warm your offices this winter, this sucker will put out a jaw-dropping 62515 BTUs. That more than a giant Jobsite kerosene heater.  Get the s'mores... and someone else's credit card.

New Product - A 3phase Unit that fits in your hand.

As an early proponent of APC's Symmetra PX's class of 3phase UPS units, its rare for us to recommend any other style, let alone brand.   But when we find a 3phase unit that meets such an obvious need AND offers so many great specs and features ... its deserves our attention.

The Gamatronic PowerPlus SA3, is a 10kva 120/208 3phase Unit that is just a bit bigger than a CPU tower.  While it doesnt fit in the palm of your hand, its much smaller than the 42U cabinets, that the APC Symmetra PX and VT units.

The Gamatronics unit offers many of the same power conditioning and online topology found in the other makers, but at a great price point and small footprint.

We got our first SA3 from a distributor liquidating some old stock.  It was never used, but couldnt be sold as new anymore.

So take a peek at the GAS10....

.

Rumble in the Rack IV: APC 1.5k versus Liebert 1.5k

Its On... Can the very popular and best selling SUA1500RM2U ever meets its match?
Today, the Liebert GXT2 1500 enters the ring.. for Rumble in the Rack IV..

The APC SUA1500RM2U is frequently requested by people needing a 120volt UPS for small telcom loads.  Its a 2U unit, priced at about $300.  The Liebert is also a 2U, but a bit more money.

 v. 

After they Rumble... this what we found...

APC Smart UPS 1500  StoreLink (402b)

• Is Cheaper
• has 6 output (versus 4 for Liebert)

Liebert GXT2 1500 StoreLink  (lg412)

• More VA at 1500va  (versus 1440va for APC)
• More Watts 1050 (versus 980watts for APC)
• Online Double Conversion Mode for allways On protection  (APC is line interactive)
• Expandable Runtime  (no expandable capability for APC)
• Lighter at 51lbs (versus 63lbs for APC)
• 200% Overload ability for 8 cycles  (versus 100% limit for APC)

Both Units have

• Similar batteries & run-time (13mins at half load)
• Similar control options (USB and NetCard Option)
• Minimal TVSS and EMI/RFI Filers

WINNER and its a lopsided win at that

Liebert GXT2 1500

Buy It Here

This Blog is getting bloated

Here are some of our popular blog series links

• Random Part of the Month  --- the best and worst from APC's product catalogue
• Know UPS  --- briefings about UPS technical features
• Rumble in the Rack  -- head to head comparisons between UPS units
• UPS University  --- talks about UPS design, terms, data center applications, and operation
• U People aSked it   --- sort of actual questions and answers about the UPS world

U. P. aSked (You people asked): Most Important Specs

Hello,

I visited your site and am overwhelmed on what type of UPS to choose.  My IT adviser recommended me getting an APC SUA3000RM2U, but there seems to many other choices that look better?   Why is so special about the SUA3000RM2U unit?

-RW

Rich,

I am glad to help demystify choosing a UPS.  Essentially your IT tech is recommending a 3kva line interactive UPS. The SUA3000RM2U (302b) is very popular unit, but has some drawbacks. 

1. The SUA unit does NOT offer extended runtimes.  If you want more than 15mins of backup time in the future, this unit is not for you.  You will need to upgrade to the SUA3000RMXL3U (313b) to have this feature.
2. The SUA is over $500, but the older 3U version SU3000RM3U (303) is about $100 less and offers more runtime.
3. The SUA does not include a Network management card.  You'll need to spend another $75 for your IT tech to control the unit.   Consider the Liebert 3000va 2U (lp312) unit which has the network card included.  Look at my blog for a good in depth comparison.

Sincerely,

Bob

ReBlog... APC's Currents Magazine

APC's quasi monthly Newsletter, Currents,  is out and had some interesting tidbits to talk about

• TV Protection
• Realistic Small Server Room Cooling Techniques

TV Protection.

While not a focus for GreenlightUPS, many of customers have requested protection for their high end TVs and Audio systems.  We still recommend a Panel Mount surge suppression system as a first line of defense.  APC has launched its J Type Power Conditioners to protect, backup, and filter this type of equipment.  While the J-Type is indeed a good looking unit, there is nothing wrong with using  less expensive Smart UPS 1000va unit (100b) for your digital AV equipment.

As mentioned in Electronic House Magazine, UPSes work best for Media Servers, Streaming Boxes,  DVRs, Satellite & Cable Boxes, DLP Screens, and Projectors.  Dont use them on Amps as the demands for peak audio wattage could be viewed as a surge and clamped.

Small Server Room Cooling Approaches

All the major makers of UPS units, have large Cooling divisions in their companies.  I tend to find the whole Cool and Hot row religion a bit idealistic to implement in a growing business, but many people eat that shit up.  APC however, reminds us that the first priority is not Cooling, but heat removal.   

Simply put, put a fan at the top of the closet that draws heat out.  Then put a grille lower, to let the cool air in.

Random Part of the Month XI - EPW9

Like other Random Parts of the Month, here is another stupid part from APC.... a $1200 switch... the EPO InfraStruXure Box.

The EPW9 is an emergency power off push button that turns off the UPS in the event of a problem.   APC explains...


APC’s Emergency Power Off (EPO) System consists of one or more wall-mounted, push-button EPO
boxes. Each EPO box provides a single point of equipment shutdown for up to eight APC InfraStruXure
devices and one third-party device (such as an upstream breaker), using Normally Open (NO) contact
closure connections. You can cascade an EPO box with other EPO boxes to support multiple points of
equipment shutdown.

While EPO is good and required thing...Why you would pay $1200, when this mushroom plunger switch does the same thing is beyond me.  But thats why APC makes billions of dollars and I still eat ramen noodles.

G3 versus G4

I really hate APC Part Numbers... probably because my job requires me to listen to people reading their part numbers out over the phone.  If I get 1 digit of the typical 12 alphanumeric part number wrong, it can be entirely different unit....

So, I have simple 3-6 digit part numbers located on every picture.  The APC SURTD5000RMXLT3U-1TF3 is simply 593g4k.

On the APC SmartUPS Online RT Series, I added "G3" at the end of the normal part number to originally designate it as the 3rd generation.  While I later learned this was incorrect, the G3 designation stuck.    So when APC tweaked the series,  I just changed the G3 to G4.

So what was the tweek?....   The only noticeable change is that they replaced the serial RS232 com type port with a Cat5 type RS232 type port.

Also, there are some minor changes such as thermal profile and different certifications, but all in all they are functionally the same.

But for me, its a big difference (sometimes over $250) because the

• The G3 is older (before 2009)
• The G4 is newer and comes with rails ($30), the AP9619 card ($159)

Financing Options

I sometimes joke to people that we offer Net negative 10 days... meaning your payment is past due before we ship it.

But, as businesses are struggling to grow and upgrade in this new normal economy, we have been getting many more requests for financing and terms.

To be honest, I swore never to get back into offering "Terms."  When we were mostly electricians and electrical contractors, this proved disastrous.  The one advantage of a online retail business is we get paid first.

But, we have been very successful recently and haven't got stuck with any bad debts, so maybe we will consider opening up the terms and financing arms...

The first rule of Terms Club is you dont talk about Terms Club.  The second rule of Terms Club is you DO NOT talk about Terms Club

But I am violating the Rules, because I want people to know that we will consider it.  Here are the real rules

1. We will give Net n,  where n is 30days minus your D&B Paydex score.  If D&B says you pay in 30 days, you get 30days.  If you pay in 35 days, its net 25, etc.
2. We need the email address and phone number for the AP person that writes the checks.  They must answer calls and respond to messages timely.
3. Net means payment must be received by that date.  1 day over and you will NEVER get terms again.
4. There is NO warranty on units until they have been paid.

Efficiency in UPSes - Part 2

Continuing from last post on Efficiency...

Besides Power Factory Efficiency, the other type of Efficiency is Topology Efficiency.

This type of Efficiency is more related to energy savings, but honestly more gimmicky as manufacturers tout their green credentials.

Simply put, Topology Efficiency is the amount of energy used to operate the UPS.  Lets recall Topology... Its is the method of providing backup power.  Online Topology, is simply that its allways online.. allways giving you clean power.  Line Interactive Topology uses a 'switch' to turn on the UPS power if something in the line goes bad.  Obviously, Online - since its always on - will use more energy than a line interactive that just turns on when needed.

So line interactive UPSes are more efficient than online types can ever be.   Within the Line Interactive model mix, there are a few super efficient models.  The APC 5th generation units, (like the 200v) dont switch over to the energy intensive UPS power, unless its really necessary.  Some sort of magic corrects alot of the minor power problems without energizing those line interactive transformers.  Older units, didnt really care, and just switched over - saying to hell with a few watts.

And thats the problem... this super efficient line interactive UPS like the 5th gen APC save so little power, thats its kind of stupid.  The idea that saving of 5 kWh ($1) a month when your server room is set at 60 degrees and you are running 10,000 watts of servers is pointless.  Its like ordering a Diet Coke with a Bacon Double Big Mac, Fries, Milkshake and a bucket of lard.

Bottomline, the Topology of the UPS dictates its efficiency by determining how often the unit runs.

GreenlightUPS is not a shipping service or underground research facility

While our friends in San Francisco get this alot, yesterday was our first day of having a customer come in with a bunch of presents looking to ship them UPS.

Also, yesterday, we got a delivery from UPS Freight, and the driver asked whether we are some subsidiary of UPS researching green technology.  (that was funny.... as our warehouse is in a kinda of dumpy location, not a place a multi-billion dollar company like UPS would setup shop creating nano-green technology)

To answer both, no... we dont ship packages to your Grandma and no we dont work for UPS's Green Energy Initiative.  (or maybe we do... and I just cant tell you yet.... )

Greenlight UPS's name was inspired by the display on APC Uninterruptible Power Supply units that lights ups Green when everything is ok.

Efficiency in UPSes - Part 1

Efficiency is a great buzzword today, but has several meanings in the UPS world.  None of the definitions reflect what most people think of when they buy fuel efficient car, or energy efficient light bulb.

Definition 1 - Power Factor Efficiency
As I have said before, UPSes are sized in Volt Amps (VA).  While the actual Wattage is usually a factor of that VA, depending on the UPS.
A 1000va UPSes can offer 900, 670, or even 500watts, depending on its Power Factor efficiency .  Larger and even more expensive units can have the same apparent low efficiency.  The $3500 SURTD5000XLT has a 70% Power Factor Efficiency, delivering 3500watts per 5000va unit.   The MGE 5kva unit is really efficient in Power Factor, as it delivers 4500watts per 5000va unit.  Whereas, the Symmetra PX UPS is 100% efficient, delivering 10kw per 10kva.

Bottomline, while this is the most important spec in UPSes, the lower power factor efficiency doesn't necessarily mean that a unit is wasting energy like our common sense of efficiency..

When a Watt is not a Watt

As mentioned before, UPSes are rated in VA or volt-amps, which is similar to Watts. But, power supplies, speakers, etc are also rated in Watts.

The problem is that these two Watt metrics dont correlate to each other.

Example 1:  Dell's Poweredge T710 advertises two 1100watt Power Supplies, but according to APC, uses only 694watts.

Example 2: Dell's m1000e Blade Server can hold six 2700watt Power supplies (16,200watts?), but uses only 4100watts.

Bottomline, like speakers, manufacturers use "Wattage" to imply the "mightiness" of a unit.  Your desktop that has a 500w neon, water cooled power supply, barely uses 150watts, but 500watts sounds cool.  Just know that  many times these are Marketing Specs and not electrical specs.

When sizing UPS units, a simple trick is to look at the equipment's plug.  The load cant be any more than 80% of the plug.  So a blade server with a C14 12amp outlet, cant be any larger than 1150 watts.

A 3000va Unit that outputs 3600watts

A customer today reminded me of a great spec on the Tripplite 3000 CRM UPS unit (tl314)

As I have mentioned before, usually a 3000va unit can only provide 2800watts, if its very efficient.  But since this Tripplite unit can be hardwired, the unit can actually output a full 3600watts.   How does that happen?

Well probably because the Tripplite engineers upped the specs on the components, so they can handle 4kva or 40amps of power.  While it is good practice to overspec in manufacturing, very few companies still do it.

Tripplite's commitment to better quality UPSes show on this unit...  And their effort means they have the largest 120volt UPS unit available.

U. P. Asked (You people asked)

You asked:
[Bob] once told me that the one I had [3rd Gen Smart UPS 315 ] was better than the newer ones [4th Gen SUA 3000 - 310b]. Is that still the case?

I responded
The 3rd generation units like yours were built in the US.  APC was small and performance driven product.  Costs of UPSes were minor in the IT world and they could afford to use the best labor and components.  Around the time the 4th generation units were released in 2004, cost consciousness in IT had arrived.  Outsourcing to the 3rd world, pricing pressures and many up starts forced APC to make cost concessions.  Therefore these units were lower quality.  Most people think after Schneider bought them in 07, did they go back to making better equipment.
Bottomline an unused 2003 SmartUPS like the one you have is a better product than today's 2011 SmartUPS.   But, after 10 or so years of use that older 3rd gen unit cant be as good as even a poor quality newer one.

New Racks in Stock

We are updating our Rack section of our website to reflex some new inventory.

We have some nice mid size telco racks and several 42U/48U Dell and APC racks.

Still no 25U units, though.. we are backordered 2 of those... :-(

New Hire...we grow to serve you

Good news... GreenlightUPS is growing enough to bring an additional tech on board.

Joining the Team is Stephen Kingston.  He will help with warehouse, assembly and delivery.  This will allow the rest of the team to focus more on serving your needs in the most cost effective and efficient manner.

The Reduced Runtime Model Series...

Normally, Reduced Runtime, would be something that would be undesirable in battery backups systems.  The whole point is to have runtime, so reducing it seems dumb.... but not in some cases...

Our Reduced Runtime series (designated xxR) is when we take the normal battery and replace it with a smaller one.  This smaller battery costs less and the overall unit is less expensive.

Our first product in the Reduced Runtime series is the APC SmartUPS 3000 Tower (310R).  In this case the four 12v 18ah batteries are replaced with four 12v 7ah batteries.   Why?

Many people with copiers need the 3000va capacity of the unit, but dont need the 30mins of runtime.  So the 310R can protect these items for $100 less.

Look for future Reduced Runtime models including

• Tripplite SmartOnline 10kva ... to1096R
• APC SmartUPS 1500va Desktop... 402bR

Random Part of the Month X - AP8641

I just recently started selling PDUs, and it has always amazed me how they can be so expensive.

Case in point, the APC Switched Rack 2G 0U 30amp PDU.

This glorified surge strip sells for $1450.00 from APC.

Sure, its has some neat user controls and a few too many ports... but why do blue LCD screens cost so much?  This unit's earlier version AP7941 can be found at our website for $259.

KnowUPS - Power Conditioning

Frequently, I get requests for the best UPS for power quality and conditioning.

To answer that, I can offer 2 different approaches.

TOPOLOGY
Topology is, loosely, the type of UPS mechanism.  I have written in depth about this.  Online and Line Interactive are the common ones.  Simply, Online type is where output power is always being made by the UPS and Line Interactive type online "makes" the power if something goes wrong.  So, if you want UPS to manufacturer the power output all the time,  Online is the best topology.  But that doesn't necessarily mean its the "best power."


OFFICIAL POWER QUALITY
Technically, power quality is the quality of the voltage; specifically, transient content and voltage magnitudes.   UPSes address both problems and offer redress.  No matter whether its an Online or Line Interactive type UPS,  they output a voltage plus or minus their operational tolerance.
A quick check of some common units, shows some differences in Output Voltage

• APC Line Interactive 5kva (585AB) = +/- 5%
• APC Online 5kva (593g4) = +/- 3%
• Tripplite Online 5kva (to595) = +/- 2%
• Eaton Line Interactive (p5593) = +/- 8%
• Eaton Online 5kva (p9593v) = +/- 2%

So if the goal is 208volt (or other selected voltage output), the best power quality unit is a Online UPS, but with low ranges such as the Eaton or Tripplite.

But, as I have said many times, most IT equipment runs off its own power supply, and the small differences of power quality in the specs isnt worth worry about.

Worry about the quality (or absence) of your Transient Voltage Surge Suppressor....  thats where real power quality should be addressed

My Inner UPS Child... recalls the SmartUPS 2200 208v XL 5U

This unit is famous for being one of the units that I would bring to a deserted island, first hurt my back on, and drove 150 miles out of the way on a vacation to pickup.

The reason is that its a great unit.  It take four large batteries for serious runtime, it has a XL port that can connect to the Super BigMomma battery pack, and has a couple 120volt outputs for non high voltage loads.

While we havent sold that many recently, its still a very good unit and $429 its a best buy

So buy one today, and relive 2003 with a SARS mask, your first Itunes purchase and with no fear of another East coast blackout

Most requested unit we dont have

I would love to be able fulfill every request that we get, but the nature of the refurbished marketplace means I dont have control of availability.  All it takes is for a major University, national chain or large IT reseller to put a bounty on certain items and the prices and availability get skewed.

This month's challenges...

• The Dell Branded SmartUPS 3U - DL3000RM3U (303b)   We have a standing purchase order for 40 that we cant fulfill.  The caused the price to jumped from $419 to $479 to adjust to the demand
• The 120v Online 3U APC - SURTA3000RMXL3U (313g4) is on permanent backorder.  As soon as I get one in it gets snapped up.  I sold the last one for $909, which is $200 more than the price earlier this year. 

RBCs and Battery Page Updated

After several requests, we have re-worked our Replacement Battery store page.  The new pages will help you replace batteries on many server grade units.

We offer the Complete Replacement Battery packs (RBC) and  Replacement Batteries Only (RBO) which require you to re-use the existing trays and leads.

If you need help finding your RB#, contact us or visit this page