I would like recommendations for a UPS for my Hubitat and Nighthawk R7500 Router.
I have no idea what size I need, and there are a lot of options on Amazon.
I know. I was looking too. I always go with the APC ones. I think I'm going to get one to plug in my router and hubitat into. Feels like a safe bet.
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The problem is in figuring out just what you intend to connect to the router and how long you would want it to operate if there is a power outage. APC does have some calculators for figuring out things like this. So does Tripp Lite, and probably others also. A small UPS will support just the two devices, probably for more than a few minutes, but add in your computer, cable modem/DHL modem, etc, and that run time shrinks quickly. Do you have a lot of very short outages, like where the lights blink, or are they of several hours in duration? If it is the former, then a small UPS, say around 500 VA will be adequate. If the latter, then you will want something more in the range of 1500 VA. You know what you intend to connect and how long you need it to run. Check out the calculators and get a better idea of what will work for your situation.
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I'm very happy with this one from APC
And they have various battery sizes with time ratings to compare.
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Little off topic, but your router & hub should not be together, such that they can use the same UPS. Depending on your zigbee channel & wifi channel, you may run into issues.
Or am i assuming they are close together?
Agreed. I've had that for several years and it's worked just fine. Have recommended it to several clients, and none of them have had any trouble with that particular model either. They're inexpensive and the capacity is more than adequate for what you need. I get about 30 minutes run time, but I have everything on it.
24 port switch, a MacBook Pro, two HE hubs, Hue Bridge, Lutron Smart Bridge Pro, Oberserver IP bridge, My Synology DS115 and a external drive, my ISP modem and my TP-Link Deco M5 mesh router.
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Had the same post / thought and then was told about UPS and Nut servers too.
I picked an APC because they have surge protection for the modem to router ethernet cable. A year ago I suffered a nearby lightning strike that rode into the house on the cable TV coax, went through the router and anything hardwired to it (TV and 3 computers). Homeowners insurance doesn't begin to cover the losses.
Ive been using APC SmartUPS for a long time now and they are by far the most reliable. You can use CyberPower or Tripplite but just expect less of the unit. I have APC models still around that are over ten years old and just change the batteries every 4-5 years. For your setup just go with a 500-650 unless you want more runtime. I have a 1000 on my firewall and modem which gives me over an hour of runtime (since this is my only form of data, no cell coverage) I then have a 650 that my hubitat and core PoE switch are connected to in another closet.
I have given up on APC UPS's I had 4 of their 1500 VA UPS's at various client sites and in 9 months the first one's battery said there was no voltage, APC replaced the battery with me paying shipping $30, and within 2 months the same message. APC replaced the UPS for another $30 shipping fee.
The next one went bad after a full battery drain during a sustained power outage. When the power returned the UPS wouldn't turn on. This was after 14 months of in service. APC is still working on evaluating if it qualifies for warranty. I couldn't wait so I purchased an equivalent model from Cyberpower.
The other two are in service but I have decided to move to Cyberpower UPS's. Based on my experience both brands should be quality but something happened at APC after Schneider electric took over APC.
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I have this one and it works great for my NAS, Switch,Router,HE Hub, Modem....
If you are near a BJ's warehouse they have the Cyberpower UPS's on clearance for 58.98. Warehouse only they sold out over the weekend online:
I have a 1000VA APC UPS for four years and it has been rock solid. Powers my network equipment, hubitat, and lutron hub for about 2.5 hours.
I've had one of these for 4 years, I have a QNAP NAS, modem/router and some of my hubs plugged in, never had any issues!
@didymus As you can see you get a range of opinions. UPS seems to be one of those cans of worms. From experience, I would recommend you pay attention to the recommendations for specific models, rather than a focus on brand. There will be reliable and problematic support and models from every manufacturer.
What’s is important of these suggestions is, which of them are still available and fit your budget. They will all meet the capacity requirements, so that’s one less thing left to consider.
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I have a very old APC 550. I use it on my desktop to not crash when I in to process of a large project.
The APC has been solid, the battery is a sealed Lead Acid (similar to that of a home alarm) it cost $23 to replace. It has an output to connect to the computer RS232 (I suspect a new one would be USB) to shut the computer down if the UPS was ready to shut down due to depleted battery. I never used it.
The company I worked for use APC for individual computers (only where needed) and never had any issues.
I don't quite understand the goal of UPS for router and Hubitat. If you want to retain internet access you would need to handle the modem as well. So your selection really depends on what you expect.
- Do you want to keep the Hubitat from unexpected power loss and internet access for a short time.
- Or do you want to continue gaming until your laptop battery gives up.
I have this one....i need to make a way for it to power off when i go to bed.....Im thinking about figuring out how to mod the switch....i know it can shut down a computer with the usb and software....i wonder if i can shut it down from a computer and somehow manage it with Hubitat.
Why would you want to do that though? If you are thinking to extend battery life I doubt very much this will make much (if any) difference compared to leaving it to trickle charge. UPS's are designed for 24/7 continuous use.
However to answer your question, you probably could use this to issue a command to your PC to shutdown a UPS using the APC drivers.
Also depending on what you mean by 'power off' you could use a zigbee/zwave smart outlet to do that as well. Kill the power. I do this for my garage door opener when we are on vacation.
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If you turn it off with a smart outlet it will just go to battery power.
