Battery Backup For Laptop When Power Outage?

[paulyjames]

Hey all got a question. I have a dell xps 15 9550 laptop and i have it charged into outlet almost always. But if i disconnect it from outlet, i get around 2 hour battery life at the most it seem before i have to recharge it. The thing is when im doing certain things, i have to be connected for minimum 8 hours. Thus if i have a power outage and power doesn't come back, I lose money in what i do. I had this happen several times in the building where i rent from because power outages is very common.


Most of the time, the power outage isn't that long like 15 minutes. But few times its been hours and rare times its a day or so. But my main issue is when im on the computer and i can't have this happen.


I read online about ups etc. But im not sure exactly how that works. Does this mean if you have something like this and then your battery on laptop is running out of battery, you could connect your laptop to it and then charge your laptop like its an electric outlet? If so, could you basically use it like an outlet? Example say you charge it to your laptop at 10 percent battery. Say you have it charged to 100 percent and during this time, you used the laptop for another 45 minutes etc. Now you are suppose to unplug it right? Then now you get another 2 hours of it on battery? Then would there still be enough power in that device to plug it in again and charge it again? Thus it would be another 45 minutes and another 2 hours?


I read that these devices only give you like 25 minutes or a bit more than that. So basically you could never get that much power?


And can someone tell me what are examples of this on amazon?


I saw these power banks on amazon. So is this the type of device that i would need for this? Im not sure if its power bank or UPS etc.


Amazon.com: MAXOAK 50000mAh 5/12/20v Portable Charger External Battery Power Bank for Laptop & Notebook-Most of Sony Dell Hp Toshiba Samsung Lenovo Acer IBM NEC Mobile Phone Tablet(not for Apple Laptop) : Computers & Accessories

Amazon.com: AC Outlet Portable Laptop Charger (TSA-approved), Jackery PowerBar 77Wh/20800mAh 85W (100W Max.) Travel Laptop Power Bank & External Battery Pack Compatible with MacBook, HP,Thinkpad and other Laptops: Cell Phones & Accessories

Amazon.com: Omars AC Power Bank, 24000mAh AC Outlet Laptop Portable Battery Pack Travel Charger Output Two USB Ports, 80w Output, 88Wh Universal Travel Charger Compatible MacBook, Laptops.: Cell Phones & Accessories


I know that the bigger the mAh, the more it last. But how many hours would it last? Example say you have 2 hours of battery on laptop when power outage happens. Now you have one of these on hand. How many hours could you get additionally with one of these devices? Thus when you plug it to laptop and use it while its plugged in... then unplug it when battery is 100 percent... then use laptop while on battery for another 2 hours... is there still enough power to charge it again or is that already way too much?

 

[file3456]

Look at a UPS. A UPS stands for Uninterruptible Power Supply. It's a battery that will kick in withen milliseconds of a power failure. It takes 12 volts and converts it through an inverter to 120 volts.

I have this one: Amazon.com: CyberPower CP850PFCLCD PFC Sinewave UPS System, 850VA/510W, 10 Outlets, AVR, Mini-Tower: Home Audio & Theater

Fakespot | Cyberpower Cp850pfclcd Pfc Sinewave Ups 850va 510w Pfc Compatible Mini Tower Fake Review Analysis


It's connected to a desktop with two monitors and a 5.1 speaker system with sub woofer. It says I have 15 minutes time when the power goes out. Which is fine by me since I can safely shut down the computer if there is a power outage. With something like a laptop I imagine the battery would last a lot longer. Maybe 2 hours. Though I'm not sure.

Depending on the capacity of the battery, you'll have a longer run time. And that depends on the mA consumption of the laptop. If you need 8 hours, then you would have to buy several UPSs. That would be a pricey endeavor.

 

[paulyjames]

Hi there. So power bank and UPS are not the same thing?


Well i would want to be able to use the laptop for few hours more. Thus i have about 2 hours on my laptop with full battery... maybe 2.5 hours at most. But could i get about 3 hours at least with a power bank? Im confused with the power bank vs UPS here. Because power bank won't work with desktop right? I only would use it for laptop.

 

[Barman58]

The basic difference between a power bank and a true UPS is that ...

a Power Bank is just a basic external battery which are used to keep low power consumption devices, (Phones, Tablets), running, or more precisely charged, when Mains charging is not available They just feed 5V DC to the charging port when manually attached to the device.

A UPS system uses a Battery pack and inverter technology to supply a continuous AC supply, (110V or 240V AC as required by locale), to the device that is permanently connected to it, the connection is such that when the power is running correctly the UPS Battery is Bypassed, (as is the laptop battery itself), and the system instantly switches in the battery power when the AC power fails.

To power any device that normally required a mains supply in an emergency aa UPS system is Ideal, but this uses heavy Lead Acid battery packs and therefore is not portable, whereas a Power Bank is portable but I have not seen one that can supply any type of Laptop or desktop as the weight of the batteries needed would defeat the object of the exercise.

Some professional level Laptops my have larger power batteries available to extend runtime but these, as with most bespoke items, will be expensive.

If you needed a longer power run for your usage of a laptop you could setup a correctly specified UPS at a location and run the laptop from this units mains output and set it to supply power unsil exhausted and then allow the laptop to use its own batteries, but you would not easily move things around.

to Set things up you need to specify exactly what you need - APC are the "big name" in UPS systems for small users and there sizing tools are here APC offers selector tools to help you choose the product you need - APC United Kingdom so you would enter the current and voltage requirements of the laptop and the required run time and these will suggest a suitable unit.

I use a 2.2KVA [2200VA] unit to protect my Desktop system and Monitor for around 30 Minutes from power failure - Laptops use less power so this size may approach your needs

 

[PAWOODCHUCK]

What I have done was with my APC-UPS in the past was too remove the 12V battery and run wiring out of UPS to a auto battery. I was running a BBS and could go for 24hrs before battery discharged. Today most UPS are 24V so would need to use 2 batteries wired in series.

 

[Lady Fitzgerald]

What I have done was with my APC-UPS in the past was too remove the 12V battery and run wiring out of UPS to a auto battery. I was running a BBS and could go for 24hrs before battery discharged. Today most UPS are 24V so would need to use 2 batteries wired in series.

How long did it take the UPS to recharge the battery or did you have to use a separate charger to recharge the battery? If the latter, did you have to disconnect the battery from the UPS to charge it or could you leave it connected and continue to run it?

 

[PAWOODCHUCK]

I just let the UPS recharge the battery. Not sure how long but always was ready for next power issue.

 

[Megahertz07]

What I have done was with my APC-UPS in the past was too remove the 12V battery and run wiring out of UPS to a auto battery. I was running a BBS and could go for 24hrs before battery discharged. Today most UPS are 24V so would need to use 2 batteries wired in series.

A UPS has two main parts:
- A AC-DC (charger and battery).
- A DC-AC (inverter).

The power capacity is defined by the inverter. If you want a UPS to hold a computer, a modem, a router etc you have to to sum up the individual powers and apply a factor of 150%.
For example:
Laptop PS 19V - 5A = 95W
Modem PS 12V - 3A = 36W
Router PS 12V - 3A = 36W
Total = 167W x 1.5 = 250W
The ups should be at least 250W.

If you want it to have power for 10h, the battery must be at least 250*10 = 2500Wh. If the battery is 12V, the battery capacity is 2500/12= 210Ah.

The UPS would be a small one but the battery very big (probably 3 x 70Ah, 12V in parallel)

 

[paulyjames]

Hey all i wanted to buy this last time but did not but will do so soon and want opinion.

https://www.amazon.com/Dell-Power-C...00PC9HG0Q/ref=cm_cr_arp_d_product_top?ie=UTF8



There is an option to buy a 4 cell that is 12000mAh for 40 dollars plus tax. The 4 cell usb-c one is 93 dollars.


The 6 cell one 18000 mAh is 100 dollars plus tax.


How long would i get if i get the 4 cell one? What about the 4 cell usb-c? Do those weigh less than the 6 cell one? So no matter which one i buy, the 6 cell one will be the heaviest and also give the most battery correct?


My dell xps 15 9550, there seems to be 2 different types i believe in terms of battery for the internal battery.


Example some xps 15 9550 has a 84W battery. Mine however has the 56W battery.


Would that mean anything to this?

 

[paulyjames]

here im located, there is frequent power outages. I use my laptop connected with 2 external monitors and when this happens, i only have power on my laptop because on my internal battery. But what im doing, the battery last about 1 hour... if i dim the light and power... it might hit 1 hour 30 minute at the absolute max. But its between 1 hour to 1 hour 15 minute most likely.


So when there is power outage, many times i need to be on the computer doing something that would last longer and thus i cannot have power cut off. So is getting one of these power companion exactly what i need? Now if i get one of these, how much more battery would i get? I would have to have it fully charged first right and when there is a power outage... then use my laptop as is on battery for an hour or so? Then if power doesn't come on, then i connect this to it? But how long would i get out of it? I could use my laptop while plugging this to it right? So when i use it, it would be also charging my battery as im using it... similar to like how i use my regular charger connected to my laptop? My charger is almost always connected to my laptop because if not, every hour i have to plug it back in etc. Also i have to keep it plugged because if i dont, and power outage happens, i only have say 15-30 minutes of power before my computer turns off.


So how long would the 4 cell get me with 12000 mAh? What about the 4 cell usb 12000mAH? And the 6 cell 18000 mAh? Would i even get say 2 hours on it or not? So with this... if there is power outage, i get 1 hour battery with my regular battery... and maybe 1 hour 30 minute at the absolute max with this? Because i want something where i could buy some time because if the power doesn't come back, then i have to head to starbucks or a location with a power outlet? Someone in another forum told me when they use this with their laptop connected fully, it last all day. How in the world would that even be possible? With these, you are basically getting no more than like what your internal battery gets you right?


I like to also add that the 56W battery i currently have, i bought a new one last year because the old battery was very bad and the battery went off in about 10 minutes. I had replaced the battery one time and that was last year.


But basically no battery would make this laptop last few hours right? All the laptops i ever had, i hear ppl talk about 7 hour battery etc... i dont think any of this is ever true right? Like other laptops they advertise 8 hours of battery... i mean unless your screen is dim and you dont play any youtube video or do anything besides, type, that probably only way one could get those battery times? How many hours can you guys get on your dell xps 15 9550 while doing your regular thing? What about youtube? What i do, it uses power so thats why it last 1 hour or so. But if i youtube only... its only a bit over 1 hour.


Any tips on what i can do here to get more battery on my laptop if there is a power outage? So if i want to get many hours... buy 2 of these? But how long would 1 last me? Because when i do things online on the computer, i can't afford to have the power go out. Thus i have to find a power outlet as quick as possible. So my laptop battery gives me about 1 hour. But i need much more than that.


Thanks.

 

[paulyjames]

Okay i looked through this thread again.


So im on my laptop and use 2 monitors. But when power outage happens, i only use my laptop and have maybe 1 hour battery because laptops shut off.


So if i want to have a few hours on my laptop, do i get a power bank or the UPS? I will not connect it to a desktop or monitor. But i connect it to monitor, that uses power very quickly right?


So if i get the power bank i linked, how long can i get with that with my laptop? If i get a power bank, would it be longer? Example 1 hour of battery i have on my dell xps 15 9550, then when power goes out, i connect to the power bank. How long would i have on it before i have no more power? What about the UPS? So its actually possible to get like 5 hours of battery on my laptop if i buy like 2 or 3 of these UPS? So all these UPS is compatible with my dell xps 15 9550? So what if i get a power bank like the one i posted? How long would i get with that?

 

[Megahertz07]

Did you read my post #8?
12000mAh is only 12Ah. Very little capacity.
You have to tell us what equipment s you want to stay on and for how long.
Do you live on a house or on an apartment?

 

[paulyjames]

Small apartment.


A dell xps 15 9550 laptop. Example there is a power outage. Then im on the laptop battery only and i get between 1 hour to 1 hour 15 minutes no it. Now when im almost out of battery on my laptop battery and plug it in, how long would i get on my laptop assuming the 18000 mAh?

 

[Megahertz07]

You can use a UPS like CyberPower UPS
When the main power goes out, it will begin to use the UPS battery. When the UPS battery discharges, it will automatically begin to use the laptop battery.
If you want to extend the time, you can replace the UPS battery with one or more car batteries (70Ah)

OR

A small generator. Quiet Portable Generator
With the generator you don't need the UPS. When the laptop battery is bellow 40%, start the generator and (with an extension cord) plug the laptop charger on it. You must place the generator on a window (exhaust pointing out). The generator noise can be a problem with your neighbors.

 

[file3456]

Of course don't run a generator in a house. You'll die of carbon monoxide poisoning.

Same for using gas heaters in a tent without adequate ventilation.