Why your system must be maintained regularly
Finally convinced the higher-ups that an uninterruptible power supply (UPS) is essential for your company? Good for you. And who cares if it took a lot of cajoling or even outright nagging? And so what if they barely paid any attention to your painstakingly-researched PowerPoint presentation until the very end when you showed them how much money they could lose with a power outage?
The point is that now you have a UPS, but it’s important to remember that this isn’t a set-and-forget type of system; to ensure that it will perform as it should, it needs periodic maintenance.
Four benefits of maintaining a UPS
When your UPS is in tip-top shape, it can be instrumental in several areas, including:
1. Preventing downtime. Even a small amount of downtime can be extremely costly to a company. What would happen to your business if the computer system was down for an hour? What about a day? A UPS gives you real peace of mind.
2. Protecting equipment. If your business were to experience a power surge, not only might this cause an outage, it can also severely damage your equipment. With a UPS, you get a steady flow of power that won’t be affected by any surges.
3. Normalizing power. Things like lighting can wreak havoc on a computer system, causing unpredictable spikes and dips, but a UPS will ensure that everything remains normal no matter how frightful the weather may get.
4. Securing data. Surely you remember to back up all your data. If you’re nodding your head, that’s great, but what happens if, in the time between backups, the power goes out? You’ll be out of luck. A UPS is a nice failsafe.
Six tips for maintaining a UPS
Okay, now that you see why a UPS needs to be maintained, you need to know how to do it, and the following tips are important to keep in mind.
Look at the batteries
If a USP system malfunctions, chances are very good that the issue is related to the batteries. The typical life span for a UPS battery is four to five years, but that can be shortened by different factors, including improper float voltage, repeated cycling usage, and even if the room the UPS is in is too hot or too cold.
In addition to closely looking at the batteries, to figure out what kind of health it’s in, thermal scans and voltage testing should also be utilized.
Examine the environment
Even if the battery is fine, other things could cause a UPS system to fail. For example, airflow is important, and this can be reduced if components are dirty or dusty.
If moisture is allowed to seep in, this can cause corrosion to connections. And if wires are frayed or perhaps just improperly installed, this can limit the transfer of power.
Keeping a UPS environment neat and clean is vital for maintaining a system you can count on.
Conduct load bank testing
Speaking of being able to count on your system, there’s really only one way to find out if it will work when you need it: Have somebody spill some coffee on an important piece of equipment. We’re only joking about that.
But seriously, you can simulate a power disruption with load bank testing, and this will give you great insight into how your UPS will perform when it’s needed.
Stick to a maintenance schedule
You probably get your car’s oil changed regularly, right? Well, to make sure your UPS will perform when needed, it also has to be on a schedule for its maintenance. Whether this is on an annual or semiannual basis, you must stick to it.
Keep good records
If you’re like most people, remembering detailed information from things that happened several months ago – or even just a few weeks ago – can be tricky. But when it comes to maintaining your UPS, you definitely don’t want to rely on a potentially faulty memory. This is why you need to keep precise records of when the maintenance took place and what was done, including any cleaning, repairs, or testing.
Partner with the right company to install your UPS
If you’ve finally convinced the boss that your business needs a UPS and are ready to put one in, we can help you design the right system and install it, as we have done for many companies throughout South Florida. Contact us for more information.
