Quick links

Surge suppressor ABCs
SPS ABCs
UPS ABCs

SURGE SUPPRESSOR ABCs

Surge Suppressors (Protectors) are power protection devices that protect your computer against an electrical surges. Surges are large amounts of electricity which exceed the standard amount a device is capable of holding. Surges are capable of damaging or destroying a computer or components within a computer

Underwriters Laboratories produced a standard that governs surge suppressors called UL 1449, which defines the surge suppressor offers protection well beyond the power supply found in your computer.

While it is important to protect your computer and computer peripherals, it is also important to protect your computer modem. Surges not only have the capability of traveling over the power lines, they can also destroy or damage computer modems if not protected.

Surge suppressors generally run from $50.00 to $200.00.

SPS ABCs

A SPS (Standby Power Supply / offline device) is different from a UPS as it contains a circuit which has the capability of telling if and when a disturbance in electricity occurs. When a disturbance occurs, the SPS switches to battery power. Unfortunately, however, if the SPS switch time is not fast enough, all power may still be lost. Higher quality SPS systems offer a ferroresonant transformer that offers a small amount of power while switching takes place.

SPS generally run from $150.00 to a couple thousand dollars.

A UPS (Uninterruptible Power Supply / True UPS / online device) is commonly confused with a SPS because of how some companies advertise a SPS to be a UPS. A UPS, unlike a SPS, allows the computer to directly run off of the battery allowing a steady non interrupted flow of electricity. This means if the power were to go out, no switching is involved as the computer is already running off of the battery.