Switch off or leave on?

[Anonymous user]

Hi,

We just took receipt of a new APC 1500 unit to support our home office. Its currently charging ready for connection later today.
However, despite quite a lot of searching we are still a bit confused about how to use it, not how to connect up but more
specifically do we switch it off when we shut down at night?

We think that we leave it plugged in (to the main power socket) and that this keeps the battery charging? However, we also prefer
to switch the unit off using the button on the front (pressed for a couple of seconds) if this is not detrimental. The PCs etc are all
powered down at night so there is no need for back-up.

So are we correct in thinking to leave the unit plugged in and powered on at the main wall socket but ok to switch off at the front
please? Is it only when the unit is completely powered off and on i.e. at the wall socket that it goes through the self-test and hence
can reduce the battery life?

Thanks very much for clarification,
Dave

[BillP]

The UPS actually does a self test every time you turn it on. The only benefit to turning the UPS off every night would be saving a little bit of electricity(doesn't use much just sitting there with no load). Obviously if you knew the power to the room would be off, it would be best to just turn the unit off but otherwise, there is no real benefit to turning it off. Since it would do a self test every day, it would of course shorten the battery life. It's not the same as a full power outage of course though.

[Anonymous user]

Hi,

For anyone searching for similar advice, we spoke to support today and they advise a) it is ok to switch off at the front of the unit but leave the mains input powered on to keep the battery charged. They also advised that the battery powered sockets are surge protected in this mode altho if its powered off to the downstream kit, why would it need to be?? Still some conflicting information?

If anyone has any better info, please post.

Thanks
Dave

[BillP · Accepted solution]

I'm not sure what you mean by "downstream kit" however you are correct that even with the UPS off, it will still provide surge protection. It does this by shunting to ground any kind of surges that come in. That's why it needs to be plugged in. It does need the UPS to be on for it to output power though. From a surge protection standpoint, it's recommended to do this as a surge could come through even if your equipment is off but still plugged in.