Seeking technical advise regarding hardware

[rasamalai]

(Well, I think it's hardware-ish.)

So, I was just reading that many of the members are very tech savvy and I was hoping someone could advise me on how to do something.
We have a lot of blackouts where I live, and oftentimes they come with power surges and fluctuations.
That has gotten through to my computer, even though it's plugged to a nobreak which is supposed to protect it from power fluctuation or peaks, I think.
Well, the nobreak itself is plugged to one of those long bars that have many outlets and are supposed to be peak suppressors. It didn't help las December, though :c

So I'm wondering if I should get a regulator to plug the nobreak to or something like that, and if I could plug two nobreaks to one tiny regulator I liked the (cheap) price of, or not.
Or if there's something I could actually do to prevent my (soon I hope, 2) computers from taking damage.
Thanks in advance!

 

[Steveiest]

Whilst not the cheapest option, it might be worth looking at getting a small UPS. Most affordable ones will only power a desktop computer for a few minutes in the event of a power cut, but what it should do is provide a clean supply of power to the computer, smoothing out any peaks or cuts.

 

[EZWoodWorker]

My experience with ADP UPS's is that they have a "bug" that starts saying the battery needs replacing and continues even after the battery is replaced. I have changed to CyberPower UPS's and have not had any issues with them.

 

[rasamalai]

Whilst not the cheapest option, it might be worth looking at getting a small UPS. Most affordable ones will only power a desktop computer for a few minutes in the event of a power cut, but what it should do is provide a clean supply of power to the computer, smoothing out any peaks or cuts.

The nobreak is an UPS, but the power peak still got through (I suspect) because on December we had to replace the power supply and logic board on the iMac, they couldn't tell for sure what had happened to it, there were no signs of electrical damage, according to them. But we did have strong power fluctuations on that day, although not at the exact time the iMac shut off (on its own.)

I've seen some houses in the area that have a big regulator attached to the outside of the house, but I don't know what they're called and they seem sort of expensive (because we rent and... I suppose we could move it with us, maybe?) plus I only shop at office supply shops and they don't have them.

My experience with ADP UPS's is that they have a "bug" that starts saying the battery needs replacing and continues even after the battery is replaced. I have changed to CyberPower UPS's and have not had any issues with them.

I don't know that brand, we have Koblenz and they don't tell us when the battery is low, but we've replaced them once and they seem to work alright, I think. But just for good measure I won't buy that brand if I come across it, thank you for the heads up!

 

[Captain_Marko]

I used to install kit and work in edit suites and recording studios (a long time ago!). First in the chain from the wall power socket was always an intelligent "power conditioner", that's a completely different animal to a passive surge protector multi-socket unit that has a long reaction time before it acts and are mostly useless.

A conditioner intelligently monitors the power supply and guards expensive equipment against damage caused by poor quality power. Next in the chain should be an UPS in order that you would have the time to shut down the computers gracefully in case of an outage.

I'm out of touch with the latest products and what's available over your side of the ocean - if you have a pro-audio supply company or Amazon in your country check them out.

 

[MGAlexis]

You could just use a surge protector extension then plug in your UPS's, I don't know as I hardly get power cuts here. But If I did I would get a surge protector extension.

 

[rasamalai]

You could just use a surge protector extension then plug in your UPS's, I don't know as I hardly get power cuts here. But If I did I would get a surge protector extension.

I do use one, it seems they don't work. We have sort of extreme, intentional conditions here.
Edited to add: when I was a kid I remember overhearing the adults saying that the power company was in some sort of agreement with the shops that sold electrodomestics and would cause this power surges on purpose, to ruin our electrodomestics, so we'd need to buy them all over again. I believe this is still happening.

I used to install kit and work in edit suites and recording studios (a long time ago!). First in the chain from the wall power socket was always an intelligent "power conditioner", that's a completely animal to a passive surge protector multi-socket unit that has a long reaction time before it acts and are mostly useless.

A conditioner intelligently monitors the power supply and guards expensive equipment against damage caused by poor quality power. Next in the chain should be an UPS in order that you would have the time to shut down the computers gracefully in case of an outage.

I'm out of touch with the latest products and what's available over your side of the ocean - if you have a pro-audio supply company or Amazon in your country check them out.

That sounds just like what I need! I'm going to search for one! Thank you!