How to choose the uninterruptible power supply for the boiler. UPS for boilers: rating, photo and characteristics

The heating period financially for many families is the most real test. Because of the almost annual increase in tariffs for natural gas, the amounts in the payments are very impressive. It's no surprise that with the beginning of spring people begin to think about the device for effective insulation of their own home, as well as for replacing and modernizing the heating system, about the package of measures that will reduce the cost of heating. One of its key points is the replacement of the boiler with a more economical model.

Existing varieties

Depending on the design and efficiency, the market of heating appliances offers customers several options for boilers. Among them, the most famous are the classical gas, which do not require anything for their work, except for the supply of blue fuel. Similar solutions are characterized by relatively low cost, but in terms of efficiency they are inferior to another modification. So, heating boilers of a wall installation have a number of advantages and are currently at the peak of popularity, pushing the classics. In their design, a special pump is used, forcing the circulation of the coolant. In addition, the electronic control card allows you to control the operation of the gas burner, adjusting the intensity of the fire and completely shutting it down if necessary. All this allows achieving a significant reduction in natural gas consumption. Despite the fact that the cost of a wall-mounted heating boiler is higher than that of an ordinary floor boiler, the difference is covered in just one to two years. Of course, depending on the intensity of its use.

Important feature

Since such solutions use not only gas, but also electricity, then in its absence, the operation of the wall-mounted boiler is impossible. It turns off not only the circulation pump, but also all internal boards. The result is simple - the boiler does not work. Even if there is gas in the system. Here such unpleasant feature. And if the owner of such a modern water heater does not take care in advance to get a suitable uninterruptible power supply for the boiler, then if there are problems with electricity supply, one must freeze in his own house. We strongly recommend not to rely on the stability of the electricity network, as very often the causes of failure are weather conditions that can damage any, even the most reliable electricity distribution system. Here he is - a wall-mounted gas boiler. The uninterruptible power supply provides an opportunity to provide it with energy for the time necessary to restore the centralized power supply.

Give me two buckets of current ...

For people familiar with electrical engineering, it is not difficult to choose the correct UPS for the boiler. With some reservations, this can also be said of computer specialists. Others, only remotely imagining what a sinusoid, electrical voltage and direct current, can not choose the right uninterruptible power supply (UPS). As a result, taking advantage of the advice of "experts", many acquire incompatible UPS for gas boilers, which at best leads to errors in the operation of control electronics. Indirectly, this means a decrease in efficiency. In the worst case scenario, the use of improperly selected UPSs for gas boilers causes some expensive logic blocks to fail and the need to replace them. Our recommendation is the following: before buying a backup power source for a wall-mounted boiler, you need to carefully read the information on this issue and understand the basic principles of the operation of such a system. Extra time spent an hour later can save an impressive amount. Moreover, there is nothing complicated in this. Choosing an uninterruptible power supply for the boiler, you can consider only some key points.

What does the heater use?

If in the first wall-mounted boilers the electronic circuits controlling the operation were relatively simple, then modern solutions contain a real microprocessor. In order to understand the magnitude of the complication, one can cite the fact that some boilers allow the owner to perform the adjustment of work using mobile communication. It is quite clear that the characteristics of the electric power supplied to the device must be within acceptable limits. So, if it is stated that the boiler requires 230 V for its operation, then the voltage should be exactly this (+ -10%, which is stipulated by the standard). In addition, although many know that in household electrical outlets the current is variable, not everyone understands what this means in practice. In fact, the term "variable" indicates a feature of this type of current - the presence of a sinusoid. That is, the direction of motion of charged particles flowing along the conductor is periodically replaced by the opposite one. Household electrical appliances are designed to work in this mode. Obviously, if this is not observed, then there may be malfunctions in the functioning of sensitive elements - that same electronics. In addition, the mismatch of the network parameters causes increased heating of the constantly running pump motor.

The conclusion is simple: when buying an uninterruptible power supply for a boiler, it is necessary to study the specification for it and make sure that the selected spare unit issues a pure sinusoid on the device. Otherwise, it is better to refrain from buying this particular UPS and look for alternative models.

Sinewave

Motorists know that all existing batteries produce constant current. In order to turn it into an alternate one, it is necessary to use a special electronic circuit.

All sources of uninterruptible power supply cope with this task, but if you connect an oscilloscope and look at the sinusoid created by inexpensive models, then instead of a parabola, a step pyramid will appear on the screen . For consumers, undemanding to this characteristic of the power grid, this fact is completely unprincipled. For example, light sources, computers with their own converters and many other equipment work perfectly. However, if instead of a sinusoid at the output of the "pyramid", then no one guarantees the stable functioning of the electronic circuit boards of the heating boilers.

Types of batteries

The UPS can be connected to one of two types of batteries: sealed maintenance-free and lead-acid batteries. The first seemingly are small plastic boxes with two terminals. They are installed in backup power systems for computers. The advantage of such batteries is that when working in the air, no by-product gaseous products are released - they are airtight and can be installed at least in the bedroom. The disadvantage is high cost, low service life (official data is taken from ideal systems) and, most importantly, low capacity, which requires the assembly of whole blocks of such batteries, unless, of course, the owner wants to limit himself to just a few tens of minutes of boiler operation.

From the point of view of expediency, car batteries are more preferable. The emergence of unattended models allows you not to deal with the preparation of acid solutions and controlling the residual capacity of the liquid electrolyte. In the recalculation of the cost of capacity, such batteries are simply ideal. Their disadvantage is that during the charging process, a small amount of hydrogen is released into the air, so they are recommended to be installed outside the living quarters.

Recovering the charge

The battery connected to the UPS is gradually discharged. Even if not used. To restore the charge, lost during operation, you need a special charger. It can be a separate device, and also be part of a backup source. Obviously, the latter is more preferable. It is important that the charge current is sufficient to replenish the capacity of the batteries.

Principle of operation

All such sources are divided into two classes: with ordinary and double conversion. Devices of the first type with the disappearance of electricity in the network switch to battery power, take from them 12 (24) V DC voltage, which rises to 220 V and becomes variable (we mentioned the sinusoid). Much more expensive solutions of the second type. In them, the converter works not only when working on batteries, but also in normal mode. The alternating current of the network is rectified and fed to the generator of the sinusoid. That is, all the time the UPS operates on the principle of "variable - constant - alternating" current. This allows you to guarantee an ideal sine wave at the output, regardless of the spread of the parameters of the external network. The name is an uninterruptible power supply with a double conversion, or an inverter UPS (online).

Ratings and product line

According to official data, the UPS is most in demand with a conventional conversion, but with an ideal AC sinusoid. The most famous were the sources of the Ukrainian company, sold under the brand name "Leoton". The internal electrical circuit in them is just perfect - everything is thought through to the smallest detail. However, the assembly itself is often so bad that the question arises: "How does it work, in general?" Perhaps, in new models this sad fact will be eliminated.

From foreign analogues, new solutions are being singled out from APC, characterized by a sinusoidal signal. This, for example, is the Smart-UPS SUA1000I model with a power of 1000 volts * amperes (about 700 watts). When connected to a computer, control via USB or serial interface is possible. Its weight is about 20 kg. The charge time of the pre-installed battery is 3 hours. Duration of work can not be specified, since it depends on the electrical power consumption.

Solutions with a double conversion, as we pointed out, are quite expensive, so it is advisable to use them either for large violations in the operation of the power grid, or in the presence of "extra" funds. In the rating of these devices APC Smart-UPS On-Line SURT1000RMXLI is in the lead. Its weight is almost 30 kg. It produces 700 watts of power. In this mode, it can work for 10 minutes. The charge lasts 3 hours. When operating from the network, it can regulate the voltage in the range from 100 to 280 Volts.

Here is a list of requirements that a good UPS for a boiler must meet:

- The output is a pure sine wave.

- Output electric power corresponds to the consumption of the boiler. Usually the excess should be at least 30%. That is, if the water heater of the heating system consumes 100 W, as indicated in the instructions, then the uninterruptible power supply for the boiler should be able to give out not less than 150 W, but better.

- The design provides automatic switching of operating modes depending on the state of the main network.

- Batteries for UPS for boilers should be recharged by the charger of the reserve source itself to the desired value without human intervention. And regardless of their type.

- Good UPS for heating boilers should contain a system of protection against frequent switching. When the electricity supply is restored along the main line, a "transition" to it must be delayed.

- The current of the built-in charger must be sufficient to restore the electrical capacity of the connected battery.

- The quality of the assembly should not be artisanal, as some models of a well-known firm sin.

Thus, if all the above-mentioned nuances are taken into account when buying, the decision on how to choose a UPS for the boiler will not present any difficulties. In the framework of this article, it is not possible to cover all the nuances, so additional information should be sought about the rules of connection and subsequent operation.