cvt
13-09-2005, 01:47 AM
The following posts
i dont have a surge protected powerboard... so i turned mine off cos i really cant be fucked replacing fryed hardware :/
rY*']never had that problem cause of circut breakers ;)
make me sad :(
advertising sells.. and unfortunately the truth is rarely heard...
so read this full post.. and take attention, if you don't beleive me, then eat broken glass and die.
Surge Protected Powerboards
surge protecting powerboards are pointless...
they work by having a MOV (Metal-Oxide Varistor) built into them to snip the tops of small spikes off..
how they work in more detail
240v = nominal
270v = mov threshhold (anything above this gets absorbed)
but they don;t absorb forever.. constant over 270 is instant death
about a 800v spike or more is also instant death to them (and most baords with a light don;t truly indicate whether they are working or not)
ok.. so they filter out 90% of the spikes.. that would stop your computer from crashing... right?
wrong..
most compuet killing spikes are right over 1000v... but why so high?
ALL computer PSU's have MOV's built into them, and in most cases (even with generic and shit brands), a better quality one than you will get in the best powerboards there are.
thinking a powerboard is protecting you is a false sense of security, and if you are thinking it will save your computer from a surge... think again.
there is no true protection from a huge surge.. the best you can get is by using a REAL UPS.. by a real ups, I mean ones like APC's Smart-UPS range..
they actually work by converting the 240v down to the battery voltage, then forming a true sine wave output whenever volatge is not perfect.
they monitor and react quicker than the spike can get through, same with power going out, the moment volatge goes nasty, they switch to battery, wether it be constant high voltage or low voltage, but in those cases, it still runs of 240v (charging batteries), just its not direct from power, but forming a true 240v sine wave output from its 24v/48v batteries.
if a surge biggenough and longenough came thru, it could also kill the ups, first thing that happens is the input fuse blows.. and those batteries absorbed more of the surge than any amount of MOV's ever could..
the equivelent on your computer would have been certain death.
it is still possible to fry all the way thru and kill the computer.. but one that bad.. I've never heard of.
so simply.. don't think that surge protecting powerboard is doing any more than giving you a warm comforting glow of false beleifs.
note: it will save some things.. like mouse chargers, or power packs (most notebook ones are the same as desktop psu) so they arn;t entirely pointless...
last note.. and take attention: a brownout (dropped phase or dullened lights) is more likely to kill your pc, powerpacks, and alike, than a surge a mov would actually save. mov's are used for making power more reliable, absolutly pointless against the true damage dealers!
btw.. 280v constant can kill a PSU, then possibly a PC, the MOV will not last, only small and insatnt spikes are clipped..
by instant, I mean on a 1/4 waveform you could have 20 500v spikes and lift the average voltage 10v.. they arn;t big, any bigger than that and the MOV is dead...
Circuit Breakers / RCD's
circuit breakers don't protect from spikes either.. only over-current, and they typically react in 30->250ms (180ms typical)
so even if the surge has caused overcurrent, by them everything is dead.
RCD's are no different to a circuit breaker under these circumstances.. except that the RCD would probably be dead and need replacing to be effective any longer.
how an rcd works, and what it does
The purpose of RCD'd is to save your life from electric shock.. when a device fails, or save your dogs life when they bite thru the extension cord.
by law they are not required unless.. blah blah blah legal bullshit.. but if you do have them. or are interested, this is how they work
all power going down the active is the same as returning through the neutral, correct? (yes mr. cvt)
so what has happened when this is not the case?
the power has dissapeared somewhere else.. either thru your ugly arse, or alike, or down the earth.
result.. dead/dangerous equipent, tripped/tripping rcd.
it works by 2 small coils, one on the active and one on the neutral, when these become imbalanced, the rcd trips.
brownouts are #1 cause for killing rcd's, and it is quite possible for an RCD to die within 6 months, or last for years and years..
to test them, push the test button, if it doesn't immidiatly switch off, its dead
now please... read and learn.. and if you want real protection, act uppon it properly.
__________________
please don't think doing thos will stop all your computer troubles or make you 100% safe.. it will make you >1000% safer than you are now... but it won't remove all risk..
think about it..
$2000+ PC...
+ you upgrade it how often?!?!
is it really that unreasonable to spend a few hundred protecting your investment (when its a once off)... when it may need $80 of batteried replaced every 4 years for upkeep ?!
plus a good chance your computer will seem more stable... it probably will be if you have bad power (wether you notice it or not).
if you are considering the smart path.. do ask before buying the first one you see.. cos I don't want to see you guys go and buy a battery backup thinking its doing anything more than a extension lead and immunity to blackouts.
i dont have a surge protected powerboard... so i turned mine off cos i really cant be fucked replacing fryed hardware :/
rY*']never had that problem cause of circut breakers ;)
make me sad :(
advertising sells.. and unfortunately the truth is rarely heard...
so read this full post.. and take attention, if you don't beleive me, then eat broken glass and die.
Surge Protected Powerboards
surge protecting powerboards are pointless...
they work by having a MOV (Metal-Oxide Varistor) built into them to snip the tops of small spikes off..
how they work in more detail
240v = nominal
270v = mov threshhold (anything above this gets absorbed)
but they don;t absorb forever.. constant over 270 is instant death
about a 800v spike or more is also instant death to them (and most baords with a light don;t truly indicate whether they are working or not)
ok.. so they filter out 90% of the spikes.. that would stop your computer from crashing... right?
wrong..
most compuet killing spikes are right over 1000v... but why so high?
ALL computer PSU's have MOV's built into them, and in most cases (even with generic and shit brands), a better quality one than you will get in the best powerboards there are.
thinking a powerboard is protecting you is a false sense of security, and if you are thinking it will save your computer from a surge... think again.
there is no true protection from a huge surge.. the best you can get is by using a REAL UPS.. by a real ups, I mean ones like APC's Smart-UPS range..
they actually work by converting the 240v down to the battery voltage, then forming a true sine wave output whenever volatge is not perfect.
they monitor and react quicker than the spike can get through, same with power going out, the moment volatge goes nasty, they switch to battery, wether it be constant high voltage or low voltage, but in those cases, it still runs of 240v (charging batteries), just its not direct from power, but forming a true 240v sine wave output from its 24v/48v batteries.
if a surge biggenough and longenough came thru, it could also kill the ups, first thing that happens is the input fuse blows.. and those batteries absorbed more of the surge than any amount of MOV's ever could..
the equivelent on your computer would have been certain death.
it is still possible to fry all the way thru and kill the computer.. but one that bad.. I've never heard of.
so simply.. don't think that surge protecting powerboard is doing any more than giving you a warm comforting glow of false beleifs.
note: it will save some things.. like mouse chargers, or power packs (most notebook ones are the same as desktop psu) so they arn;t entirely pointless...
last note.. and take attention: a brownout (dropped phase or dullened lights) is more likely to kill your pc, powerpacks, and alike, than a surge a mov would actually save. mov's are used for making power more reliable, absolutly pointless against the true damage dealers!
btw.. 280v constant can kill a PSU, then possibly a PC, the MOV will not last, only small and insatnt spikes are clipped..
by instant, I mean on a 1/4 waveform you could have 20 500v spikes and lift the average voltage 10v.. they arn;t big, any bigger than that and the MOV is dead...
Circuit Breakers / RCD's
circuit breakers don't protect from spikes either.. only over-current, and they typically react in 30->250ms (180ms typical)
so even if the surge has caused overcurrent, by them everything is dead.
RCD's are no different to a circuit breaker under these circumstances.. except that the RCD would probably be dead and need replacing to be effective any longer.
how an rcd works, and what it does
The purpose of RCD'd is to save your life from electric shock.. when a device fails, or save your dogs life when they bite thru the extension cord.
by law they are not required unless.. blah blah blah legal bullshit.. but if you do have them. or are interested, this is how they work
all power going down the active is the same as returning through the neutral, correct? (yes mr. cvt)
so what has happened when this is not the case?
the power has dissapeared somewhere else.. either thru your ugly arse, or alike, or down the earth.
result.. dead/dangerous equipent, tripped/tripping rcd.
it works by 2 small coils, one on the active and one on the neutral, when these become imbalanced, the rcd trips.
brownouts are #1 cause for killing rcd's, and it is quite possible for an RCD to die within 6 months, or last for years and years..
to test them, push the test button, if it doesn't immidiatly switch off, its dead
now please... read and learn.. and if you want real protection, act uppon it properly.
__________________
please don't think doing thos will stop all your computer troubles or make you 100% safe.. it will make you >1000% safer than you are now... but it won't remove all risk..
think about it..
$2000+ PC...
+ you upgrade it how often?!?!
is it really that unreasonable to spend a few hundred protecting your investment (when its a once off)... when it may need $80 of batteried replaced every 4 years for upkeep ?!
plus a good chance your computer will seem more stable... it probably will be if you have bad power (wether you notice it or not).
if you are considering the smart path.. do ask before buying the first one you see.. cos I don't want to see you guys go and buy a battery backup thinking its doing anything more than a extension lead and immunity to blackouts.