Dämn These Power Cuts!

[JetsetBkk]

Yet another, in Rawai. What's wrong with this electricity company? Nothing has improved in more than ten years.

Edit:

24 minutes until the UPS dies.

Note to self: get a bigger one.

Bye.

Edit 2:

81 minutes left if I use the Netbook.

Edited June 24, 2014 by JetsetBkk

[LivinginKata]

Got to agree with you JetSet. I lived on Nanai Road, Patong 18+ years ago. We expected a 'brown out' a couple of times a month. Really never got much better over the years other than now it's not brown-outs, more like power out. I've lived here in Kata for about 8 years and the power out are regular 4 times a month. I hear the fuse blowing on a near-by transformer, and next minute no power. If anything I think it is getting worse, maybe 4 times this week. A new sub-staion was built at our road end last year, I expected the end of our problems, but no way. As bad as ever. I have 4 UPS supplies, last not much more than15 minutes to various sensitive routers, home computer, big screen TV.

[Guest]

I have had far less cuts than I had before.

For computer usage. I finally purchased MacBook Air with 10 hour battery life. It's not Linux, but close enough.

This together with mobile phone with additional power pack.. no UPS needed anymore.

[stevenl]

No problems this end of Rawai. Maybe once a month or so it goes out for a bit, but hardly ever real problems. I'm also lucky in Kata that my side of the road seems to be better than the other side. Nit this week though, yesterday out for over an hour.

[NamKangMan]

Would investing in a light truck battery, a 240v car battery charger and a 1000w power inverter give better perfomance for you guys when there is a black out.

Just something to consider.

[JetsetBkk]

I've got 3 UPSs.

A relatively old APC protects the big TV, and cable box, but not much use when Rawai cable goes out with the power.

A new APC protects the Desktop PC, modem, Ethernet switch, etc

A really old Syndome gives me fans and speakers.

I will get another big APC - about 6,000 baht - so I can run the Desktop longer.

I just looked outside - everywhere is black. Could be all of Phuket!

Edit:

Thanks stevenl - so which end of Rawai are you? I'm south east corner - near Rawai Hardware shop.

Edited June 24, 2014 by JetsetBkk

[JetsetBkk]

Would investing in a light truck battery, a 240v car battery charger and a 1000w power inverter give better perfomance for you guys when there is a black out.

Just something to consider.

I had thought of something like that. My next door neighbour has a deisel generator. Might be worth considering if the switch-over can be made simple.

[NamKangMan]

Would investing in a light truck battery, a 240v car battery charger and a 1000w power inverter give better perfomance for you guys when there is a black out.

Just something to consider.

I had thought of something like that. My next door neighbour has a deisel generator. Might be worth considering if the switch-over can be made simple.

Well, a generator is the obvious, but more expensive fix.

The battery, charger and inverter was a cheaper alternative, with no mechanical parts involved, and no extra fuel expense. Also, no noise and fumes.

[JetsetBkk]

Whoopee! Power's back.

The England game is still on...!

(We'll probably get thrashed)

[Suradit69]

Nothing has improved in more than ten years.

On the bright side, apparently things have not got any worse in 10 years.

[LivinginKata]

Nothing has improved in more than ten years.

On the bright side, apparently things have not got any worse in 10 years.

Matter of opinion when the light go out (no bright side) on a regular basis, like many times per month.

[JetsetBkk]

Nothing has improved in more than ten years.

On the bright side, apparently things have not got any worse in 10 years.

That is the attitude that is holding Thailand back relative to other countries in the region.

[SDM0712]

Would investing in a light truck battery, a 240v car battery charger and a 1000w power inverter give better perfomance for you guys when there is a black out.

Just something to consider.

I had thought of something like that. My next door neighbour has a deisel generator. Might be worth considering if the switch-over can be made simple.

This is something I have tried to look into without success and the only advice I have been given is to run a house I will need a Honda 4 or 5. I have no idea what that is, where to get one or how to get it fitted.

Out of interest how big is your neighbours generator and what does it power, if you know.

SDM

[JetsetBkk]

Would investing in a light truck battery, a 240v car battery charger and a 1000w power inverter give better perfomance for you guys when there is a black out.

Just something to consider.

I had thought of something like that. My next door neighbour has a deisel generator. Might be worth considering if the switch-over can be made simple.

This is something I have tried to look into without success and the only advice I have been given is to run a house I will need a Honda 4 or 5. I have no idea what that is, where to get one or how to get it fitted.

Out of interest how big is your neighbours generator and what does it power, if you know.

SDM

Sorry, I have no idea what his generator is or what it powers. I can hear it sometimes when the electricity is off for a long time.

4 or 5 probably refers to kVA - kilo Volt Amps. It's the way generator outputs are measured. (I'm just reading up on this now, so I'll probably get the terms wrong. )

This site shows how to calculate the output of the generator you need:

http://www.dieselserviceandsupply.com/Power_Calculator.aspx

So, for a single phase 220 volts at 30 amps output, you'll need a 6.6 kVA generator.

But you'll probably need to run just the fridge(s), TV, computer and lights. So probably 13 amps would be enough, which requires only a 2.86 kVA generator, such as...

http://www.justgenerators.co.uk/pages/Honda_Generators.htm

...which are priced at around 3,000 GBP. Add on 30% because TiT and that's a lot of dosh.

Or maybe get a cheap Chinese one but, then, isn't it the cheap Chinese street transformers that are the cause of our power cuts in the first place?

[stevenl]

I've got 3 UPSs.

A relatively old APC protects the big TV, and cable box, but not much use when Rawai cable goes out with the power.

A new APC protects the Desktop PC, modem, Ethernet switch, etc

A really old Syndome gives me fans and speakers.

I will get another big APC - about 6,000 baht - so I can run the Desktop longer.

I just looked outside - everywhere is black. Could be all of Phuket!

Edit:

Thanks stevenl - so which end of Rawai are you? I'm south east corner - near Rawai Hardware shop.

Same area, opposite side of the street in Soi Naamjai.

[steelepulse]

Would investing in a light truck battery, a 240v car battery charger and a 1000w power inverter give better perfomance for you guys when there is a black out.

Just something to consider.

I had thought of something like that. My next door neighbour has a deisel generator. Might be worth considering if the switch-over can be made simple.

This is something I have tried to look into without success and the only advice I have been given is to run a house I will need a Honda 4 or 5. I have no idea what that is, where to get one or how to get it fitted.

Out of interest how big is your neighbours generator and what does it power, if you know.

SDM

Sorry, I have no idea what his generator is or what it powers. I can hear it sometimes when the electricity is off for a long time.

4 or 5 probably refers to kVA - kilo Volt Amps. It's the way generator outputs are measured. (I'm just reading up on this now, so I'll probably get the terms wrong. )

This site shows how to calculate the output of the generator you need:

http://www.dieselserviceandsupply.com/Power_Calculator.aspx

So, for a single phase 220 volts at 30 amps output, you'll need a 6.6 kVA generator.

But you'll probably need to run just the fridge(s), TV, computer and lights. So probably 13 amps would be enough, which requires only a 2.86 kVA generator, such as...

http://www.justgenerators.co.uk/pages/Honda_Generators.htm

...which are priced at around 3,000 GBP. Add on 30% because TiT and that's a lot of dosh.

Or maybe get a cheap Chinese one but, then, isn't it the cheap Chinese street transformers that are the cause of our power cuts in the first place?

I bought a 7.5 Kva Chinese generator when I built my house and it's been reliable. Battery needs replacing every couple of years, but besides that, it works well. Automatic Transfer Switches on the other hand only worked for about 5 years and at a cost of around 50K, I decided to not replace the ATS.

[gazzasore]

Go get Solar Power setup

[NamKangMan]

Would investing in a light truck battery, a 240v car battery charger and a 1000w power inverter give better perfomance for you guys when there is a black out.

Just something to consider.

I had thought of something like that. My next door neighbour has a deisel generator. Might be worth considering if the switch-over can be made simple.

This is something I have tried to look into without success and the only advice I have been given is to run a house I will need a Honda 4 or 5. I have no idea what that is, where to get one or how to get it fitted.

Out of interest how big is your neighbours generator and what does it power, if you know.

SDM

Sorry, I have no idea what his generator is or what it powers. I can hear it sometimes when the electricity is off for a long time.

4 or 5 probably refers to kVA - kilo Volt Amps. It's the way generator outputs are measured. (I'm just reading up on this now, so I'll probably get the terms wrong. )

This site shows how to calculate the output of the generator you need:

http://www.dieselserviceandsupply.com/Power_Calculator.aspx

So, for a single phase 220 volts at 30 amps output, you'll need a 6.6 kVA generator.

But you'll probably need to run just the fridge(s), TV, computer and lights. So probably 13 amps would be enough, which requires only a 2.86 kVA generator, such as...

http://www.justgenerators.co.uk/pages/Honda_Generators.htm

...which are priced at around 3,000 GBP. Add on 30% because TiT and that's a lot of dosh.

Or maybe get a cheap Chinese one but, then, isn't it the cheap Chinese street transformers that are the cause of our power cuts in the first place?

My idea would just keep powering your electronics. There's no way you could run fridges, fans, TV etc on it for any decent period of time.

If you desperately needed the internet, for example, you had a big buy or sell happening on a stock exchange, or, a big game of sport you wanted to watch, and the battery connected to the power inverter was dying, you could run an extension lead to your car battery (assuming you own a car) and start the car up and your car basically becomes a generator.

If you need electric, constantly, for your household, then you have to look a purchasing a generator, and a generator large enough to power a household will not be cheap and will require ongoing maintenance.

[Guest]

you could run an extension lead to your car battery (assuming you own a car) and start the car up and your car basically becomes a generator.

I like this idea. It would probably be the most cost effective way to provide prover during the occasional outages.

[Keesters]

I agree to the headline. After 30 years in the same Pattaya house with recently installed new power lines, poles and transformers as well as a brand new substation only a few hundred meters away I still get power cuts regularly. So in 30 years the situation has not improved. Is that progress? I think not.

When they turn the power back on it comes with a vengeance trying to supply all that was lost during the black out. Fridges, various power supplies, TV have all been lost due to this sudden surge of power.

Worst still are those tiny small cuts that last a second or so. OFF, ON, OFF, ON, OFF... It's like someone is playing with the switch just as they do with the volume knob on sound systems at temple fairs or funerals, UP, DOWN, UP, DOWN.

[NoshowJones]

Would investing in a light truck battery, a 240v car battery charger and a 1000w power inverter give better perfomance for you guys when there is a black out.

Just something to consider.

That sounds interesting, but what is a power inverter? and where do I get one?

[NamKangMan]

you could run an extension lead to your car battery (assuming you own a car) and start the car up and your car basically becomes a generator.

I like this idea. It would probably be the most cost effective way to provide prover during the occasional outages.

Yes, I believe it would be.

It's emergency power for communication and/or entertainment and/or lighting. Eg. internet and monitor, charging mobile phones, laptops, tablets, cameras, lighting to cook (gas) and eat etc.

Also, depending on the size of your TV, it may also power it up for a while.

If the charging and/or use of the devices were vital, and your inverter battery was dying, start the car up and you are fine.

You couldn't run a household on this system, but you could have some electronics running off it so you would have some basic functionality in your house.

[NamKangMan]

Would investing in a light truck battery, a 240v car battery charger and a 1000w power inverter give better perfomance for you guys when there is a black out.

Just something to consider.

That sounds interesting, but what is a power inverter? and where do I get one?

A power inverter converts DC 12v to AC 240v.

A UPS for computers does a similar job, so you can power down your computer, without it crashing due to the black out, so you do not lose your work.

A light truck battery, but it can be a car battery, with a power inverter, allows you to plug anything you like into it, like a light, a mobile phone charger, a laptop etc etc.

Usually, the idea is to use them when camping, on a dual battery system, with the inverter battery isolated and a fully charged battery to start the vehicle with in the morning. Then when started, you run the batteries together so the battery that ran off the inverter is being charged, as you drive along.

In this case, you just plug in a battery charger when the power comes back on and fully charge your car/truck battery, ready for the next black out.

A quick look on Ebay reveals this 1500w power inverter.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/1500W-Car-DC-12V-to-AC-220V-Power-Inverter-Charger-Converter-for-Electronic-New-/181220059586?pt=US_Power_Inverters_&hash=item2a318ea9c2

You could try a boat shop. They might sell them.

Remember, you are not going to run your air conditioner off this system, but it will allow some basic applicances and electronics to run for a while, and if it's vital, and your battery is dying, you run an extension cord out to your car and use the engine like a generator.

Edited June 25, 2014 by NamKangMan

[NoshowJones]

Would investing in a light truck battery, a 240v car battery charger and a 1000w power inverter give better perfomance for you guys when there is a black out.

Just something to consider.

That sounds interesting, but what is a power inverter? and where do I get one?

A power inverter converts DC 12v to AC 240v.

A UPS for computers does a similar job, so you can power down your computer, without it crashing due to the black out, so you do not lose your work.

A light truck battery, but it can be a car battery, with a power inverter, allows you to plug anything you like into it, like a light, a mobile phone charger, a laptop etc etc.

Usually, the idea is to use them when camping, on a dual battery system, with the inverter battery isolated and a fully charged battery to start the vehicle with in the morning. Then when started, you run the batteries together so the battery that ran off the inverter is being charged, as you drive along.

In this case, you just plug in a battery charger when the power comes back on and fully charge your car/truck battery, ready for the next black out.

A quick look on Ebay reveals this 1500w power inverter.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/1500W-Car-DC-12V-to-AC-220V-Power-Inverter-Charger-Converter-for-Electronic-New-/181220059586?pt=US_Power_Inverters_&hash=item2a318ea9c2

You could try a boat shop. They might sell them.

Remember, you are not going to run your air conditioner off this system, but it will allow some basic applicances and electronics to run for a while, and if it's vital, and your battery is dying, you run an extension cord out to your car and use the engine like a generator.

Thanks NamKangMan, that's a great help, just what I've been looking for.

[belg]

i had a silly UPS some years ago, but deceided it was not worth charging it 24/7 for the little minutes you get in return when you have a black out

[Guest]

i had a silly UPS some years ago, but deceided it was not worth charging it 24/7 for the little minutes you get in return when you have a black out

I think the greatest benefit of consumer grade UPS's is that those protect electronics from voltage spikes and brownouts.

[LivinginKata]

i had a silly UPS some years ago, but deceided it was not worth charging it 24/7 for the little minutes you get in return when you have a black out

I think the greatest benefit of consumer grade UPS's is that those protect electronics from voltage spikes and brownouts.

Exactly. For me it's more about surge protection with the many off/on in rapid succession. The time to power down devices is a bonus.

[slk350]

Would investing in a light truck battery, a 240v car battery charger and a 1000w power inverter give better perfomance for you guys when there is a black out.

Just something to consider.

That sounds interesting, but what is a power inverter? and where do I get one?

A power inverter converts DC 12v to AC 240v.

A UPS for computers does a similar job, so you can power down your computer, without it crashing due to the black out, so you do not lose your work.

A light truck battery, but it can be a car battery, with a power inverter, allows you to plug anything you like into it, like a light, a mobile phone charger, a laptop etc etc.

Usually, the idea is to use them when camping, on a dual battery system, with the inverter battery isolated and a fully charged battery to start the vehicle with in the morning. Then when started, you run the batteries together so the battery that ran off the inverter is being charged, as you drive along.

In this case, you just plug in a battery charger when the power comes back on and fully charge your car/truck battery, ready for the next black out.

A quick look on Ebay reveals this 1500w power inverter.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/1500W-Car-DC-12V-to-AC-220V-Power-Inverter-Charger-Converter-for-Electronic-New-/181220059586?pt=US_Power_Inverters_&hash=item2a318ea9c2

You could try a boat shop. They might sell them.

Remember, you are not going to run your air conditioner off this system, but it will allow some basic applicances and electronics to run for a while, and if it's vital, and your battery is dying, you run an extension cord out to your car and use the engine like a generator.

Thanks NamKangMan, that's a great help, just what I've been looking for.

I work't with Generator and Inverter for 17 yeahr's on a Big skale. If you buy a Inverter make sure is a Sinus Wave most China's inverter are Rubbisch.

check out, "Xantrex "this is a Brand you can Buy . But is not cheap,i have a 12 Volt make 1800 Watt ,Ok for Fridge ,Light , TV , Computer, Fan .

To run this you need min. two 100 amp Car Battery's then you be ok for some Time. Also i have a 5 KW Generator, that i use if the Powercut take's longer.

With this i run my whole House, air con and so on. The Gen.is from China 8000,- Bath ,is ok does the job.

[NoshowJones]

I do not need it for the house at all. I have a small detached two room building beside the house, in which I have my computer, fridge, and fan. I can use a battery light. I can buy a truck battery, charger and inverter.

It may be hard to find an inverter, I know about a boat shop, but I am in Central Thailand. I was thinking about buying one when I go to the UK in about six weeks, and maybe posting it over here. Thanks for your help.

[rexaco123]

Car and truck batteries aren't really suitable for this application. Deep cycle batteries are what you want and they can be purchased from a solar supply store. A small plug in 240v battery charger will keep the battery topped up and ready for emergency use. And if it is just low voltage items to want to run when the high voltage power is out, you won't need that expensive inverter. Simply keep a "female" 12-volt DC auxiliary car (cigarette lighter) outlet hooked up to the battery and you can power almost any electronic device that includes its own 12-volt DC car charger (laptop computer, cell phone, etc.).