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Batteries are Cheap, Backup power is expensive

Dear Audiophiles,

To make a long story short I need to make sure my Internet devices stay on even when power is down for 24 hours, which on the South Carolina coast is realistic. 

I have an APC UPS 600VA which I though would do the job but it actually lasts less than 2 hours.  So I have been crunching the numbers and have really been surprised at how expensive an APC UPS is per minute of run time vs. modern battery based generators and DIY solutions. 

An APC UPS can be anywhere from $1.50 to $2.50 / minute of run time while an EcoFlow Delta for instance is around $0.50 to $0.75 / minute.  Not only is the EcoFlow cheaper but just has ten times better run times.  A single 1 kWh unit will keep my data closet running close to a full 24 hours.  I have too many devices in there which consume ~ 50 watts.  50 x 24 = 1,200 

I did in fact purchase a Delta 2 with back up battery for other reasons than the data closet, but when doing the research I also investigated DIY backup solutions and came across the idea of using a Renogy inverter/battery charger + 2x 12V LiFePO4 batteries.  It’s even cheaper than the Ecoflow but requires much more effort to set up.    I’ll do a full write-up on that soon. 

What have you done to back up your home devices?  

erik_squires

Showing 2 responses by joeycastillo

joeycastillo
82 posts
 

OP

I have a Renogy 1000 with 2x car sealed battery. I live in California so there are not much power outages but if the city power blew up the tranny during hot months, well there it is. I manually switch over my router, switches and Wi-Fi over to the Renogy and some lights and Fan. It works for about 6 hours straight for me experience

with today's tech, see how a Solar panel can charge your batteries and if large enough, power up your home data center

joeycastillo
82 posts
 

@erik_squires 

I now understand how you're planning to wire this setup of yours. I think it will work. Mine is more manual. I use the Inverter when I want to be standalone. Then after nearly draining the battery, I then connect the batteries to a charger to fully charge it back. 

So, in your case, you want 24x7 power from the Inverter. in that case, you need a Charger sized to keep the battery "charge" at the same time feeding your devices.

you need to research how to determine this power rating necessary to accomplish this. or crudely, i will attach an amp meter between the battery and inverter when you have all your devices plug in and determine the amps drawn. then choose charger based on that. (give it some headroom) 

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