multiple UPS's for lighting power supply? at DVinfo.net

Greg Quinn · December 2nd, 2006, 01:16 AM

Has anyone tried using computer uninterruptable power supplies (UPS) to power lighting in night shoots/remotes? Clearly they wouldn't last for hours, but it seems to me a workable solution for relatively brief remote shoots.

Bob Hart · December 2nd, 2006, 01:21 AM

The internal batteries may not be suitable for high current draw and deep-cycling.

Giroud Francois · December 2nd, 2006, 02:34 AM

ups deliver low power (about 300W) versus what needed for light (usually 500W and over) and at full load it is only few minutes.
and weight is really heavy, and expensive.
you better had to go with a small gazoline generator that can deliver easily 2000 W and for some , almost silently.
or you can go with 12V car lead accumulator and car lights. that is very cheap and efficient. you can probably run 2 or 300W per accumulator for several hours.

Boyd Ostroff · December 2nd, 2006, 07:15 AM

UPS'es almost all have an alarm that goes off as soon as the power drops. Older ones had a switch to disable this, but most of the new ones I've seen do not. They may also have a feature to shut them down automatically if running on battery power with no load attached. They really are intended to do something completely different and won't be a very good choice for what you want.

If you don't have too large of a load to power you might look at something like the Husky jump starter/inverter. Home Depot sells them for about $90. Just tried to link to their site but it doesn't work for some reason... go to homedepot.com and enter "hsk037hd" in the search box for more info.

It has an internal battery and provides both 12 volts DC and 120 volts AC through a 400 watt inverter. Of course it depends on how many lights you have and how long you want to run them. As others have said, battery power may not be sufficient for your needs.

Bob Grant · December 2nd, 2006, 07:52 AM

You can buy just inverters that run off 12 or 24V batteries. SLA batteries are pretty cheap, we use the Panasonics.
Running inkies off batteries is a bit of a waste of energy, fluros are better or LEDs. Generators are certainly a cheap source of lots of power. Can be noisy and need to be out in the open though.

Greg Quinn · December 2nd, 2006, 02:04 PM

Thanks for the input, all very good points. I suggested UPS's because folks do use them as off-site power supplies (after disconnecting the buzzers), but it sounds like an inverter of generator would be better.

Dean Sensui · December 2nd, 2006, 03:10 PM

Take a look at the Honda EU series of generators. They're enclosed and have low noise ratings around 59 dB. Panasonic in-room air conditioners, by comparison, have about the same noise ratings.

The 1000-watt generator is very compact and weighs 29 pounds. The 2000-watt generator weighs 46 pounds. They'll run at least a few hours on a tankful of gas at its rated load and several hours at partial load. And a gallon of gas goes a long way.

Check with your local rent-all company. They might have them available. Here in Honolulu the 1000-watt rents for about $35/day. The 2000 goes for $47/day.

December 2nd, 2006, 01:16 AM	#1
Greg Quinn Major Player Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: San Diego, California Posts: 505	multiple UPS's for lighting power supply? Has anyone tried using computer uninterruptable power supplies (UPS) to power lighting in night shoots/remotes? Clearly they wouldn't last for hours, but it seems to me a workable solution for relatively brief remote shoots.

December 2nd, 2006, 03:10 PM	#7
Dean Sensui Inner Circle Join Date: Oct 2001 Location: Honolulu, HI Posts: 2,054	Take a look at the Honda EU series of generators. They're enclosed and have low noise ratings around 59 dB. Panasonic in-room air conditioners, by comparison, have about the same noise ratings. The 1000-watt generator is very compact and weighs 29 pounds. The 2000-watt generator weighs 46 pounds. They'll run at least a few hours on a tankful of gas at its rated load and several hours at partial load. And a gallon of gas goes a long way. Check with your local rent-all company. They might have them available. Here in Honolulu the 1000-watt rents for about $35/day. The 2000 goes for $47/day. __________________ Dean Sensui Exec Producer, Hawaii Goes Fishing

December 2nd, 2006, 01:21 AM	#2
Bob Hart Inner Circle Join Date: Dec 2003 Location: PERTH. W.A. AUSTRALIA. Posts: 4,476	The internal batteries may not be suitable for high current draw and deep-cycling.

December 2nd, 2006, 02:34 AM	#3
Giroud Francois Inner Circle Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: switzerland Posts: 2,133	ups deliver low power (about 300W) versus what needed for light (usually 500W and over) and at full load it is only few minutes. and weight is really heavy, and expensive. you better had to go with a small gazoline generator that can deliver easily 2000 W and for some , almost silently. or you can go with 12V car lead accumulator and car lights. that is very cheap and efficient. you can probably run 2 or 300W per accumulator for several hours.

December 2nd, 2006, 07:15 AM	#4
Boyd Ostroff Wrangler Join Date: Dec 2002 Location: Mays Landing, NJ Posts: 11,787	UPS'es almost all have an alarm that goes off as soon as the power drops. Older ones had a switch to disable this, but most of the new ones I've seen do not. They may also have a feature to shut them down automatically if running on battery power with no load attached. They really are intended to do something completely different and won't be a very good choice for what you want. If you don't have too large of a load to power you might look at something like the Husky jump starter/inverter. Home Depot sells them for about $90. Just tried to link to their site but it doesn't work for some reason... go to homedepot.com and enter "hsk037hd" in the search box for more info. It has an internal battery and provides both 12 volts DC and 120 volts AC through a 400 watt inverter. Of course it depends on how many lights you have and how long you want to run them. As others have said, battery power may not be sufficient for your needs.

December 2nd, 2006, 07:52 AM	#5
Bob Grant Trustee Join Date: Nov 2005 Location: Sydney Australia Posts: 1,570	You can buy just inverters that run off 12 or 24V batteries. SLA batteries are pretty cheap, we use the Panasonics. Running inkies off batteries is a bit of a waste of energy, fluros are better or LEDs. Generators are certainly a cheap source of lots of power. Can be noisy and need to be out in the open though.

December 2nd, 2006, 02:04 PM	#6
Greg Quinn Major Player Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: San Diego, California Posts: 505	Thanks for the input, all very good points. I suggested UPS's because folks do use them as off-site power supplies (after disconnecting the buzzers), but it sounds like an inverter of generator would be better.