Switched On Tech Design

Tag: electricity

  • Get yourself a UPS…

    We had a lightning storm rcently; this was the view from our perspective:

     

     

    We also got a call about a customer’s computer that was no longer working, along with most of the connected peripherals. This wasn’t a coincidence…

     

    An uninterruptible power supply is a device which stores electricity in batteries and, when the power goes out, kicks the electricity supply across from mains to the batteries without missing a beat. Some better UPS models will also condition the power that comes through, compensating for brownouts or oversupply. Depending on the capacity of the UPS and the load of the devices attached to it you may end up with anything from minutes to hours of power supply; a small UPS will give you enough time to turn the devices off normally and some come with software to automate this process.

     

    A larger UPS may be able to give you enough run-time to outlast the power blackout – this could be very valuable if you run very long processes that can’t be interrupted without data loss. Uninterruptible power supplies generally also provide surge protection., and the higher-end models isolate the power supplied to your systems from the mains power as much as possible – meaning that you have a much better chance of reducing or avoiding entirely the damage caused by power surges.

     

    A basic UPS costs around $100, and for the protection they provide they’re a worthy investment. Protect your expensive electronic hardware today – drop us a line and we can set you up with a model that suits your needs.

  • New Product: LED Bulbs!

    Are you interested in saving money on your electricity bill? LED bulbs use around 20% of the power of a regular halogen bulb, while producing an equal or greater amount of light. Considering that room lighting is one of the hardest things to cut back on, this is a great way of saving money each bill – if you even have a bulb on for 6 hours a day you recoup the cost of the LED bulb in mere months if your electricity is around 30c per kWhr, which is about what we pay here in NSW.

     

    It’s not all about the cost, though – using less power is a good way of reducing your carbon footprint and your overall impact on the environment. The bulbs screw into standard light fittings – whether an Edison E27 screw mount or a bayonet mount – and also come in fluorescent sizing. You have the choice of warm white, neutral white or cool white and a wide range of wattages to choose from.

     

    There are also LED spot lights and smaller bulbs available. If you’re interested in saving money through using less electricity, contact us today and we will give you a quote!