9 power supply issues solved by using a UPS 

By on

Installation of a UPS can help in reducing problems due to issues with the power supply.  Often this is related to nine key issues:

  1. Power failure - complete loss of supply (standard application for a UPS)
  2. Power sag - short term voltage dip in supply beyond normal operating parameter
  3. Power surge - short term voltage increase in supply beyond normal operating parameters
  4. Under voltage - longer term voltage dip lasting minutes to days
  5. Over voltage - longer term voltage increase lasting minutes to days
  6. Electrical line noise - electromagnetic and other high frequency interference
  7. Frequency variation - variations in frequency from normal operating parameters
  8. Switching transient -  spike and large over voltages caused by switching operations
  9. Harmonic distortion -  current and voltage distortion due to non-linear loads

Depending on the type of UPS installed it is possible to resolve some or all of the above issues.  The simplest installation of an off-line UPS will resolve issues (1) to (3), while the installation of a full double conversion unit could potentially resolve all issues. 



Steven McFadyen's avatar Steven McFadyen

Steven has over twenty five years experience working on some of the largest construction projects. He has a deep technical understanding of electrical engineering and is keen to share this knowledge. About the author

myElectrical Engineering

comments powered by Disqus

  1. Notes's avatar Notes says:
    8/21/2013 3:21 PM

    Trackback from Notes

    A UPS is an uninterruptible power supply.  It is a device which maintains a continuous supply of electrical power, even in the event of failure of the mains (utility) supply.  A UPS is installed between the mains supply and the equipment to be protected... ...


Comments are closed for this post:
  • have a question or need help, please use our Questions Section
  • spotted an error or have additional info that you think should be in this post, feel free to Contact Us



Periodic Electrical Installation Inspection – How Often?

How often installations are inspected is up to the owner of the installation, provided such durations do not exceed any regulatory maximums in force. ...

Arc Flash Calculations

Working in the vicinity of electrical equipment poses an hazard. In addition to electric shock hazard, fault currents passing through air causes Arc Flash...

Earth Electrode Resistance

Earthing of electrical systems is essential for the correct functioning and the protecting of life and equipment in the event of faults.  The earth electrode...

Autonomous Vehicle Challenge

Two driverless and solar power vans have departed from Italy on their way to China via the silk road. During the 13,000 kM trip the vans will drive themselves...

E-Ink

Before the technical, some general information. E-ink display are found in a lot of e-readers, some mobile phones and similar devices and the intent is...

New Mail Chimp

We've been sending out Newsletters on a regular basis for a few weeks now. To do this we have been using Google's Feedburner service. While Feedburner...

8 Steps to Low Voltage Power Cable Selection and Sizing

A recurring theme on our forums is cable sizing. Now many installations are unique and require special consideration. However, a lot of the time things...

Variable Frequency Drive

Variable frequency drives are widely used to control the speed of ac motors.  This note looks at the mechanisms which enable drive units to control the...

Lighting - Lamps

Lamps are the essential part of any luminaire. These are the light generating components. Since the advent of electrical lighting in the middle of the...

Our internet address and Vanity URLs

Visitors who like to type web address rather then click menus may be interested in how our URL structure works.

Have some knowledge to share

If you have some expert knowledge or experience, why not consider sharing this with our community.  

By writing an electrical note, you will be educating our users and at the same time promoting your expertise within the engineering community.

To get started and understand our policy, you can read our How to Write an Electrical Note