#357790 - 07/03/2013 10:58
Mains voltage (quality) monitor?
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veteran
Registered: 01/10/2001
Posts: 1307
Loc: Amsterdam, The Netherlands
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Can anyone recommend a computer-readable (IP, USB, RS-232) mains voltage (quality) meter? I have long periods of no light bulbs burning out in the house, and then suddenly several at the same time, indicating transients or overvoltages....
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#357793 - 07/03/2013 13:31
Re: Mains voltage (quality) monitor?
[Re: julf]
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 29/08/2000
Posts: 14482
Loc: Canada
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#357794 - 07/03/2013 13:35
Re: Mains voltage (quality) monitor?
[Re: mlord]
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 29/08/2000
Posts: 14482
Loc: Canada
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For transients/spikes, you could miss them regardless -- dunno how often the logging in a UPS records samples for the PC. But ditto for a voltage meter. They take/report samples a few times per second, but a spike/transient could still be missed. The $40 UNI-T UT61C meter I got off eBay (China) has serial output for a PC, and can keep min/max readings. Dunno if it would catch brief spikes or not. Sampling interval is 3/second I think. Would need to supply it with power though -- the batteries wouldn't last long enough, and the meter has auto-shutdown as well (to save batteries) -- kinda ruins it for this use.  There are other, similar meters from UNI-T with differing features / capabilities. Good bang for the buck.
Edited by mlord (07/03/2013 13:37)
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#357795 - 07/03/2013 13:39
Re: Mains voltage (quality) monitor?
[Re: mlord]
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veteran
Registered: 01/10/2001
Posts: 1307
Loc: Amsterdam, The Netherlands
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Hmm... Hadn't thought about that! I have an APC Black Smart UPS keeping the house control computer up, guess I need to look at what it sends!
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#357796 - 07/03/2013 13:56
Re: Mains voltage (quality) monitor?
[Re: julf]
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veteran
Registered: 01/10/2001
Posts: 1307
Loc: Amsterdam, The Netherlands
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I have an APC Black Smart UPS keeping the house control computer up, guess I need to look at what it sends! Forget that one - as soon as I plug in the RS-232 cable, the UPS switches off, taking down the computer...
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#357797 - 07/03/2013 15:15
Re: Mains voltage (quality) monitor?
[Re: julf]
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 29/08/2000
Posts: 14482
Loc: Canada
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Lovely. USB-connected UPSs do have an advantage there.
APC : 001,045,1087
DATE : 2013-03-07 12:14:54 -0500
HOSTNAME : zippy
VERSION : 3.14.10 (13 September 2011) debian
UPSNAME : zippy_UPS
CABLE : USB Cable
DRIVER : USB UPS Driver
UPSMODE : Stand Alone
STARTTIME: 2013-03-04 22:37:17 -0500
MODEL : Back-UPS RS 900
STATUS : ONLINE
LINEV : 125.0 Volts
LOADPCT : 9.0 Percent Load Capacity
BCHARGE : 100.0 Percent
TIMELEFT : 94.2 Minutes
MBATTCHG : 5 Percent
MINTIMEL : 4 Minutes
MAXTIME : 0 Seconds
OUTPUTV : 120.0 Volts
SENSE : Medium
DWAKE : 000 Seconds
DSHUTD : 000 Seconds
LOTRANS : 097.0 Volts
HITRANS : 139.0 Volts
RETPCT : 000.0 Percent
ITEMP : 29.2 C Internal
ALARMDEL : No alarm
BATTV : 27.6 Volts
LINEFREQ : 60.0 Hz
LASTXFER : Low line voltage
NUMXFERS : 0
TONBATT : 0 seconds
CUMONBATT: 0 seconds
XOFFBATT : N/A
SELFTEST : NO
STESTI : None
STATFLAG : 0x07000008 Status Flag
MANDATE : 2006-07-04
SERIALNO : QB0628132519
BATTDATE : 2006-09-10
NOMOUTV : 120 Volts
NOMINV : 120 Volts
NOMBATTV : 24.0 Volts
NOMPOWER : 540 Watts
FIRMWARE : 9.o1 .D USB FW:o1
END APC : 2013-03-07 12:15:22 -0500
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#357799 - 07/03/2013 15:28
Re: Mains voltage (quality) monitor?
[Re: julf]
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 18/01/2000
Posts: 5681
Loc: London, UK
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Forget that one - as soon as I plug in the RS-232 cable, the UPS switches off, taking down the computer... Are you using the cable that came with the UPS? I seem to recall that some of them are only-kinda-standard.
_________________________
-- roger
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#357801 - 07/03/2013 15:36
Re: Mains voltage (quality) monitor?
[Re: Roger]
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veteran
Registered: 01/10/2001
Posts: 1307
Loc: Amsterdam, The Netherlands
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Are you using the cable that came with the UPS? I seem to recall that some of them are only-kinda-standard. Yes, using cable that came with the UPS - but I thought the special cables were only for the pre-smart UPSes that used some strange signalling instead of sending ascii text.
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#357802 - 07/03/2013 15:37
Re: Mains voltage (quality) monitor?
[Re: mlord]
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veteran
Registered: 01/10/2001
Posts: 1307
Loc: Amsterdam, The Netherlands
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Lovely. USB-connected UPSs do have an advantage there. Definitely. There was a reason I got mine cheap :-/
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#357804 - 07/03/2013 15:41
Re: Mains voltage (quality) monitor?
[Re: julf]
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 29/08/2000
Posts: 14482
Loc: Canada
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Are you using the cable that came with the UPS? I seem to recall that some of them are only-kinda-standard. Yes, using cable that came with the UPS - but I thought the special cables were only for the pre-smart UPSes that used some strange signalling instead of sending ascii text. I think they still use one of the RS232 control lines for "turn off now." Need to have the serial port configured correctly and all before plugging in that cable -- eg. by having apcupsd all set up and running on the computer. Not a bad thing to do regardless, as it'll enable controlled shutdown/restart on battery exhaustion during power failures too.
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#357805 - 07/03/2013 15:50
Re: Mains voltage (quality) monitor?
[Re: julf]
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 29/08/2000
Posts: 14482
Loc: Canada
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Lovely. USB-connected UPSs do have an advantage there. Definitely. There was a reason I got mine cheap :-/ Speaking of which. I recently installed a CyberPower UPS for the MythTV box here, and am quite impressed by it all. Everything works in testing: auto shutdown, restart on power return, etc.. I got one of the "PFC" models with "pure sinewave output" (gotta verify that on a scope someday..). It is much more power efficient on AC than the APC units we've had, enough so that we'll probably even notice the savings on our electricity bills. Very easy to set up in Linux. I'm hoping it will be more reliable long-term than the APC UPS we've tried here over the years. Those all seem to die with non-battery issues after 3-6 years. The one whose stats I posted above is the last of the APC UPS models for me. It has had one battery replacement, and seems to still be good. But the transformer has been making crackling noises for the past 18 months, and I'm slightly worried that this might turn into something worse. Thus far it hasn't.
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#357811 - 08/03/2013 08:40
Re: Mains voltage (quality) monitor?
[Re: mlord]
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veteran
Registered: 01/10/2001
Posts: 1307
Loc: Amsterdam, The Netherlands
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But the transformer has been making crackling noises for the past 18 months, and I'm slightly worried that this might turn into something worse. Thus far it hasn't. Now I have visions of my electrical cabinet catching fire in the middle of the night 
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#357813 - 09/03/2013 11:22
Re: Mains voltage (quality) monitor?
[Re: julf]
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old hand
Registered: 29/05/2002
Posts: 798
Loc: near Toronto, Ontario, Canada
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I have an APC Black Smart UPS keeping the house control computer up, guess I need to look at what it sends! While you are sorting out the UPS signaling/software, do not have the computer plugged into the UPS. Plug the computer directly into wall power.
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#357814 - 09/03/2013 12:54
Re: Mains voltage (quality) monitor?
[Re: K447]
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veteran
Registered: 01/10/2001
Posts: 1307
Loc: Amsterdam, The Netherlands
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While you are sorting out the UPS signaling/software, do not have the computer plugged into the UPS. Plug the computer directly into wall power. Good advice - and that was my plan, but I have to wait until a suitable chance to take down the system again to switch it over to the regular wall plug.
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#357819 - 10/03/2013 11:14
Re: Mains voltage (quality) monitor?
[Re: mlord]
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veteran
Registered: 01/10/2001
Posts: 1307
Loc: Amsterdam, The Netherlands
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Need to have the serial port configured correctly and all before plugging in that cable -- eg. by having apcupsd all set up and running on the computer. Not a bad thing to do regardless, as it'll enable controlled shutdown/restart on battery exhaustion during power failures too. But... But... How do you ensure apcupsd is running when you turn on the UPS - if the computer on which apcupsd is running is powered by the UPS?
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#357820 - 10/03/2013 15:16
Re: Mains voltage (quality) monitor?
[Re: julf]
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old hand
Registered: 29/05/2002
Posts: 798
Loc: near Toronto, Ontario, Canada
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Need to have the serial port configured correctly and all before plugging in that cable -- eg. by having apcupsd all set up and running on the computer. Not a bad thing to do regardless, as it'll enable controlled shutdown/restart on battery exhaustion during power failures too. But... But... How do you ensure apcupsd is running when you turn on the UPS - if the computer on which apcupsd is running is powered by the UPS? My (now fuzzy) recollection is that the 'serial port' on older APC units accommodated both serial communications and direct wire voltage level signaling. Some pins were used for simple RS-232 data (send and receive), other pins were used with DC voltages to signal 'on battery power' and 'turn the UPS off', and perhaps some other functions. I seem to recall that there was no hardware flow control or handshaking for the serial data. The special APC cable separated the functions so the 'serial data' mode would work with a normal PC serial port. I do not recall if there was a different APC cable for using the voltage signal method. APC tweaked the port configuration over the years, so not all models had the exact same port configuration. And I think there were different versions of the serial cable too.
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#357821 - 10/03/2013 15:41
Re: Mains voltage (quality) monitor?
[Re: K447]
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veteran
Registered: 01/10/2001
Posts: 1307
Loc: Amsterdam, The Netherlands
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APC tweaked the port configuration over the years, so not all models had the exact same port configuration. And I think there were different versions of the serial cable too. Yes, looking at the apcupsd web pages shows there was quite a variety of cables... Until now I was convinced the cable I was using was the original cable that came with the unit, but I can't see any product/manufacturer name or product number on it, and it is supposed to be embossed into the plastic.
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#357823 - 11/03/2013 01:45
Re: Mains voltage (quality) monitor?
[Re: julf]
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 29/08/2000
Posts: 14482
Loc: Canada
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[quote=mlord]But... But... How do you ensure apcupsd is running when you turn on the UPS - if the computer on which apcupsd is running is powered by the UPS? You don't. Instead just ensure apcupsd is up and running (and all configured) before plugging in the serial cable.
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#357824 - 11/03/2013 07:47
Re: Mains voltage (quality) monitor?
[Re: mlord]
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veteran
Registered: 01/10/2001
Posts: 1307
Loc: Amsterdam, The Netherlands
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You don't. Instead just ensure apcupsd is up and running (and all configured) before plugging in the serial cable. Sure - what I am concerned about is how vulnerable the system becomes. Will everything come up in the right sequence when the power comes back? I am afraid the answer will be "usually"...
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#357825 - 11/03/2013 12:25
Re: Mains voltage (quality) monitor?
[Re: julf]
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old hand
Registered: 29/05/2002
Posts: 798
Loc: near Toronto, Ontario, Canada
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APC tweaked the port configuration over the years, so not all models had the exact same port configuration. And I think there were different versions of the serial cable too. Yes, looking at the apcupsd web pages shows there was quite a variety of cables... Until now I was convinced the cable I was using was the original cable that came with the unit, but I can't see any product/manufacturer name or product number on it, and it is supposed to be embossed into the plastic. You can check the cable pin connections using a multi-meter and a thin paperclip. If it is a standard serial cable, the meter will tell you. Without checking the Interwebs, I recall that the genuine APC 'serial cable' uses only a few pins, several pins will have no connection.
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#357826 - 11/03/2013 13:59
Re: Mains voltage (quality) monitor?
[Re: julf]
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 29/08/2000
Posts: 14482
Loc: Canada
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You don't. Instead just ensure apcupsd is up and running (and all configured) before plugging in the serial cable. Sure - what I am concerned about is how vulnerable the system becomes. Will everything come up in the right sequence when the power comes back? I am afraid the answer will be "usually"... Oh, I get the point now. Yes, things do work 100% in the correct sequence. But only if the correct UPS cable is used! Which means.. the reason it switched off when you plugged it in earlier can only be that the wrong cable was used. Bummer. Cheers
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#357827 - 11/03/2013 15:40
Re: Mains voltage (quality) monitor?
[Re: mlord]
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veteran
Registered: 01/10/2001
Posts: 1307
Loc: Amsterdam, The Netherlands
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Which means.. the reason it switched off when you plugged it in earlier can only be that the wrong cable was used. Yes, just verified I have the wrong cable. Guess I need to make a new one.
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#357873 - 20/03/2013 15:58
Re: Mains voltage (quality) monitor?
[Re: mlord]
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veteran
Registered: 01/10/2001
Posts: 1307
Loc: Amsterdam, The Netherlands
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The $40 UNI-T UT61C meter I got off eBay (China) has serial output for a PC Got a Digitek DT-4000ZC for s similar price. The good thing is it does not turn off automatically when the RS-232 port is connected. So far I have learned that the mains voltage drops 6 V when I turn on the oven
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#357875 - 20/03/2013 16:10
Re: Mains voltage (quality) monitor?
[Re: julf]
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 29/08/2000
Posts: 14482
Loc: Canada
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Got a Digitek DT-4000ZC for s similar price. The good thing is it does not turn off automatically when the RS-232 port is connected. Looks like a good deal. Oh, and I've just discovered that I can disable the "turn off automatically" feature on mine when required -- press and hold "blue" button while turning it on. So far I have learned that the mains voltage drops 6 V when I turn on the oven Cool.. err.. hot!
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