So How's the Weather...

[hidden]

No I took the battery out of an old UPS that quit.

I cut the cigarette plug off of the cord for the DC adapter
and hooked it to the old battery.

You could also get a small lawn tractor battery and do the same thing.

I can charge it with my car battery charger in the 2 amp mode for a short while.

[hidden]

  ummm what is a ups?

[hidden]

uninterruptible power supply (UPS), also known as battery backup.
# A constant, continuous power supply to even out electrical fluctuations
# Auto shutdown software to automatically save files and close applications
# Data line protection to cover Internet, fax, modem or DSL connections
# Sufficient battery runtime to let you finish what you were doing.

With Windows operation system, having a few minutes to safely shutdown your computer
when the power goes out is important.
Even better a short interruption won't cause a data loss.

[hidden]

No I took the battery out of an old UPS that quit.
I cut the cigarette plug off of the cord for the DC adapter
and hooked it to the old battery.
You could also get a small lawn tractor battery and do the same thing.
I can charge it with my car battery charger in the 2 amp mode for a short while.

HMM....Better not fool with it myself.     With my luck I would electrocute myself or set my tv on fire.
I would be better off having a UPS that I can just plug the little TV adapter into. 

Wanda:
Power out...UPS kicks in and supplies PC with power.  Some as little as 5 minutes, some as long as 40 minutes...depends on equipment and power of battery. The battery units discharge and recharge repeatedly but eventually they get weak/die.  My last one lasted 3 years and finally had to be replaced.  They often go on sale at office supply stores.  Example search for them h**p://www.officedepot.com/textSearch.do?uniqueSearchFlag=true&Ntt=ups

To buy one, you need to know your equipment.  Most people only plug in Monitor and CPU.  But you may need to plug in an external drive or something else too.  Usually people put printers/scanners into the SURGE protection only plugs on the UPS so they have some protection from surges and spikes but no backup battery time.
Stronger/higher rating gives you EITHER:
longer time to close safely OR supports power hungary equipment OR support more less powerful pieces.
I have weak equipment so I get a strong UPS to give me more TIME.     

With Windows operation system, having a few minutes to safely shutdown your computer
when the power goes out is important.
Even better a short interruption won't cause a data loss.

Lots of small Windows corruptions are caused by sudden hard shut downs that occur at inopportune moments!
We have the UPS units on every machine at the office and I am THANKFUL for it!!!

I have a strong UPS because we have tons of tiny 1-4 second brown-outs in my area.  While working in the pc on bright sunny days or clear evenings at least twice per week, my power gets interrupted enough to shut down tvs, dvds, etc but the UPS backup battery allows me to keep working. Having a battery unit on my computer is a MUST. 

[hidden]

lol and here I was thinking of the nice man in the brown truck that brings me all the stuff I buy on line!  Now that I know what it is, I can proudly say that I have a UPS!! woohoo! Although I could use a more powerful one because mine has a very good surge protector built in and I ended up plugging too many things in there and now if the power goes out - no make that when the power goes out like it regularly does due to Florida's lovely thunderstorms ( Lightening capital of the world we are) sometimes I only have a minute to shut down. Without everything on it is supposed to go up to 10 minutes but no way has it ever lasted that long. It does get me through the multiple brown outs that we also have around here. The price of being hooked up to an experimental power plant I guess. Maybe the UPS man will bring me a new UPS soon!?

I tried to get a full house generator system hooked up this year that has an auto power off detector switch mostly for hurricane and severe weather purposes but the budget didn't allow for that and a vacation so I took the vacation! 

[hidden]

Wanda, the UPS units are rated to last ONE YEAR. 
Many of them will last longer but they do weaken with time so it is always better to have one that exceeds the basic minimum requirement.  Besides, if you get only the minimum needed for your system and your system changes (replace equipment, etc) you may need a stronger UPS to handle the load.

[hidden]

I bought a good UPS many years ago.
There is a battery store here called Batteries Unlimited that will replace the UPS battery in most units.
I just put in my third battery.

And the old one is what I am using for the TV.

For a TV you can get a cigarette lighter socket with a cable and clips on the other end
that you can clip to a small tractor or motorcycle battery if you don't want to mess with the wiring.

On my unit there are outlets with battery backup and others for just filtering.
I have the computer, Monitor and Modem on battery backup.

[hidden]

My Batteries Plus could not replace my UPS battery  .  No store had a compatible replacement for the UPS box. Had to replace it. 

So... Radio Shack (I LOVE that store even if it is over-priced...) would have the socket/cable combo? HMMMM
Love this idea.  Had a battery charger before the breakin last year. Will check garage tonight to see if I still have it! My grandfather gave it to me and it came in handy several times but have not needed it for quite a while! 



Yes, on my UPS, I have monitor, cable modem, CPU, and backup drive on battery backup, scanner and printers are on surge only on the oldest UPS I have that has no battery backup now but still provides nice surge protection.

[hidden]

I did not see the adapter at Radio Shack
but online you can search for it
i.e.  cigarette lighter socket with a cable and clips

like this one
 http://www.roshgo.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?page=rc01/PROD/00408/16012

You may be able to find it locally at a car parts store or RV parts store

[hidden]

I feel like the witch in wizard of oz...."I'm melting!"
The temp is high, humidity high and I am turning into a big ball of slime!

Ok.. Where is the cool breeze I ordered???  When there is a breeze it makes things worse, like a convection oven.

When we moved to Florida in late 70's, you could set your watch to the afternoon refreshing rain that would rinse the air and cool the temp 10-15 degrees. That's gone.  And now it's just miserable this year. 

I come into my home, adjust the thermostat and never get cool...CALGON....TAKE ME AWAY! Cool bath/shower is the ONLY temporary remedy. But as soon as you open the door to go outside, you step back into the sauna.