Is Alternative Electricity is BAD for Hardware?...

[Marine691]

Well people we live in pakistan where load shedding is a characteristic feature and is common as leaves on a tree. Imagine that you just came home from work uni etc.. and are dying to play that new game you have installed on your pc. And once you sit down the electricity goes thanks to our friends over at WAPDA/KESC. Well then you get desperate and run your pc on alternative electricity sources such as gas generators and ups.
Well you are able to play at the time but in the long run is it worth it????

what i would like to know is can running your pc or any other electrical device on alternative electricity be damaging to your hardware??? I hope some of our engineer friends (or anyone who has knowledge) at PG can answer the question and elaborate on the subject so that we may prevent potential mistakes. :GL:

 

[sshah]

Alternative Electricity?

....

What do you mean? I haven't even heard of anything like this...

 

[Marine691]

Alternative Electricity?

....

What do you mean? I haven't even heard of anything like this...

I think i explained fairly well, but anyways i meant electricity from generators and ups.

 

[EvilGenius]

I have been running my system on generator for the last 8 months.

No issues here.

 

[sshah]

@ OP That would be alternative energy source, which most generators are not. The ones you are talking about, would either be solar energy or from wind mills, and honestly, both of them are extremely costly.

Mind you, there is no such thing as an 'alternate electricity'.

 

[Dr Evil]

With UPS, dont risk it, with Generator's you can use it without having any issue, but to be on the safe side use stabilizer or Circuit Breaker. So that if something fluctuation occurs stabilizer will take the load not the PC it self.

 

[faraany3k]

Alternate current is basically what current is. If you are asking about Electricity fluctuations with high voltage or low voltage. Man thats a killer for hardware, Buy yourself a stabilizer.

 

[Lord Ammar]

It's idiotic to get a generator just for a computer unless you already have one in your home. A good quality UPS is always a preferred choice and most importantly you dont need gas or petrol to run it.

 

[prohyper]

First of all u r explaining it all wrong u should try to say Alternate source of electricity but u r saying alternative electricity (there are two types of current AC(alternating current) and DC(direct current) so ur way of explanation is wrong) well im not here to teach u current electricity.

coming to the topic the electricity which WAPDA provide us is 220V to 240V with 50-60 hz frequency through which we can run our desire machine but the electricity which a standard generator give us is not Stable as u see when the generator is running the light bulb will continuously blinking which show the instability of voltage supplied by the generator which can harm most of the electrical instruments.but ups are more stable as compared to a generator.

as far as i know u can use any source of electricity which output are 220-240V with 50-60 hz

if im wrong plz correct me

 

[sshah]

^ I think you nailed it man. I was myself confused that what the hell is this alternative current?

 

[hasanJ]

^ Ur rite to some extent

But not all Generators cause the light bulb to blink and talking about Karachi my household Voltage hovers at 200V at nights and as low as 180 in Summer
My generator gives constant 220V all the time

Coming to PCs a Good PSU is rated to tolerate Voltages as low as 180 easily so thats not a problem

UPS Designed for PCs should be used
Else a Good Generator will do it

 

[my3m]

if by alternate sources of electricity you mean, then yes, it depends of course on the source of power.

If your source is producing a sine wave or (modified) and a constant voltage of 220V, then your hardware will love you. My PC runs for 4hours on my UPS without any hiccup. No problem because its output is a modified sine wave meant for electronics.

If its one of those square waves, then your hardware is going to hate you.

It depends on the Power output of your "alternate source". If hardware is getting enough amperage then there will be no problems...
If say your trying to run a beast of a PC, core i7 dual gtx 560's on some Chinese generator or UPS, then you will run into some problems. Otherwise, theres nothing to worry about.

---------- Post added 04-01-12 at 12:22 AM ---------- Previous post was 03-01-12 at 11:59 PM ----------

^ Ur rite to some extent

But not all Generators cause the light bulb to blink and talking about Karachi my household Voltage hovers at 200V at nights and as low as 180 in Summer
My generator gives constant 220V all the time

Coming to PCs a Good PSU is rated to tolerate Voltages as low as 180 easily so thats not a problem

UPS Designed for PCs should be used
Else a Good Generator will do it

It just amazes me that people actually run PC's on 180V....I think thats risky....MY UPS turns on when voltage is 150V...is there anyway to make it turn on if voltage is less than 180V?

 

[BaqarNaqvi]

Alternative Electricity?

....

What do you mean? I haven't even heard of anything like this...

I taught you are major in English... and you are not using your common sense :l33tborn:

 

[hasanJ]

It just amazes me that people actually run PC's on 180V....I think thats risky....MY UPS turns on when voltage is 150V...is there anyway to make it turn on if voltage is less than 180V?

Its not risky as long as the PSU is rated to run at that Voltage

like CM Extreme 460 has Input Voltage range of 180-264V which means it can tolerate all Voltage within this range
Constantly running it below 180V will damage it

As for UPS im not aware of how to pull it off

 

[AsadAbrar]

Lol, I have UPS from 2008 and I used PC everyday. Even now, whne I'm posting I'm using a PC, an internet connection, a TV, a set top box and an iPod is on charging for the previous one hour!

 

[cobby]

Dont know about UPS , but i find electricity on generator more smooth with accurate voltages , while KESC u never know when they will F up the voltages to low high

 

[wfsoomro]

Yar UPS zyada tar log gharon main local lagwatay hain and yeah running your PC on them is a risk. Main nay sirf speakers chalaye thay ek baar UPS pay to urr gaye had to get them repaired... so yeah. Aur generator bhi agar acha ho aur stable output deta hai to theek hai.

 

[faizy]

if your generator is a good one .... then you wont have problems .... i have a APC UPS connected to my pc for keeping the PC turned on for 20 mins or so when the light goes out ... i turn on my generator before that(which is a honda 7.5 KVA generator) and it turns everything up smoothly and charges the UPS faster than KESC electricity ... as caution .. always use a stabilizer with your equipment .. my APC UPS has one built in (APC smart UPS 1000) and all my consoles , PC and equipment run on it with no problems whatsoever ....

P.S. running such equipment on locally made paistani UPS-es is not recommended ... it fucks up everything