Are you planning to add a battery backup for OBI devices?

[pjs344]

Most internet/voip providers have their devices with a battery backup. I have not seen any standalone voip provider offer any voip devices with either an internal or external battery backup for when the power goes out. Most cable, DSL, Wimax and 3G/4G hotspot providers are on backup system. So there service does not go down when the local power goes out in the area. Not everyone can afford a Cell phone and that is why they use a free or low cost voip provider.

[ceg3]

You could look at a small UPS device like one MFG by CyberPower that has a small foot print and would keep you up long enough to complete a call and protect if from outages and spikes.  You could add your modem and router to keep your Internet connection up for a time.  I think they have one at the 35.00 mark, but maybe it's a little more.

[restamp]

Mine is protected by an UPS which services all of the computer equipment in the area where it is located.  It's probably good for an hour.  After that, I'd probably have my generator online if I were there.

When I considered cutting the cord to the landline and replacing it with a VoIP solution, a protracted power outage was probably the most serious scenario:  Not only would it likely be widespread, but it will kill my ISP in about an hour as well.  However, in a pinch I have my cell phone as a backup.

I have a friend, BTW, who is running his OBi200 off a 12.6V trickle-charged battery.  So far, it's run fine.

[SteveInWA]

I have a friend, BTW, who is running his OBi200 off a 12.6V trickle-charged battery.  So far, it's run fine.

That's actually a good idea, as long as all the other equipment upstream of the OBi is also running on that battery 

At one time, I actually sold UPSs for data centers and branch office use.  I've got 5 of them at home, spread all over the place, since we get power outages here every winter.  The problem is, that their inverters (the circuitry that converts the battery power to AC) aren't very efficient, and they waste a fair amount of battery power as heat.  Ideally, they're just intended to ride out short outages, or until a generator can kick in.  Skipping the DC-->AC-->DC conversion by hooking the ~12VDC networking gizmos up to a AGM lead acid battery (or bank of several batteries) is a more efficient solution, and it's what the telcos did for decades, running most everything on 48VDC and rooms full of batteries.

[Yury]

The following devices are connected to my Back-UPS 550 http://www.amazon.com/APC-BE550G-Back-UPS-8-outlet-Uninterruptible/dp/B0019804U8 (Shipping Weight: 13.7 pounds):
- Cable modem/router/wifi
- Another router
- Obi200
- Panasonic phone base station
I was disappointed that this UPS lasted only 45 minutes in my test.

I recommend buying a larger UPS or supplementing similar UPS with an external battery.

[SteveInWA]

The following devices are connected to my Back-UPS 550 http://www.amazon.com/APC-BE550G-Back-UPS-8-outlet-Uninterruptible/dp/B0019804U8 (Shipping Weight: 13.7 pounds):
- Cable modem/router/wifi
- Another router
- Obi200
- Panasonic phone base station
I was disappointed that this UPS lasted only 45 minutes in my test.

I recommend buying a larger UPS or supplementing similar UPS with an external battery.

Those small UPSs are only designed with a typical runtime of 7-15 minutes.  The intent was that they'd give you enough time to save your work and then shut down.  You're asking it to do something it wasn't designed to do.  Yes, for extended runtime, you need a much larger battery, or a generator.

[LeoKing]

As other had said, I connected the OBi's, cable modem, router & switches to a 1500VA UPS so my home phone lines was never disrupted by power outages.

[drgeoff]

As other had said, I connected the OBi's, cable modem, router & switches to a 1500VA UPS so my home phone lines was never disrupted by power outages.

1500VA specifies the maximum power that the UPS can provide but says nothing about the length of time it can do so.

[LeoKing]

As other had said, I connected the OBi's, cable modem, router & switches to a 1500VA UPS so my home phone lines was never disrupted by power outages.

1500VA specifies the maximum power that the UPS can provide but says nothing about the length of time it can do so.

I didn't know exactly the time it provided to run the OBi's and the DECT 6.0 phones connected to the UPS because I also connected other things to this UPS such as desktop PC + monitor & a 15" laptop. But even with all these, it lasted for a very long time.

[dircom]

I have a friend, BTW, who is running his OBi200 off a 12.6V trickle-charged battery.  So far, it's run fine.

A Lead acid battery can be 13+ volts
would you recommend using a linear regulator?

or a 12V Step-up/Step-Down Voltage Regulator?

[SteveInWA]

I have a friend, BTW, who is running his OBi200 off a 12.6V trickle-charged battery.  So far, it's run fine.

A Lead acid battery can be 13+ volts
would you recommend using a linear regulator?

or a 12V Step-up/Step-Down Voltage Regulator?

I believe that most equipment that uses "wall wart" style, 12VDC adapters should be able to sufficiently regulate lead-acid battery voltage without additional, external voltage regulation.

[Confuzed]

I have a friend, BTW, who is running his OBi200 off a 12.6V trickle-charged battery.  So far, it's run fine.

A Lead acid battery can be 13+ volts
would you recommend using a linear regulator?

or a 12V Step-up/Step-Down Voltage Regulator?

I believe that most equipment that uses "wall wart" style, 12VDC adapters should be able to sufficiently regulate lead-acid battery voltage without additional, external voltage regulation.

There are a number of cheap solutions for building your own DC-DC UPS.  Grab one of these, for example, add a 12V battery and a suitable charger and your
good to go.

http://www.mini-box.com/picoUPS-100-12V-DC-micro-UPS-system-battery-backup-system

Here is a sample implementation: http://e.molioner.dk/projects/ups/

Basically, the device takes a 15V-18V DC input and outputs 12V DC to the device while charging the battery.  If the DC input gets cut (power outage) the device will draw from the battery.

The OpenUPS and OpenUPS2 do basically the same thing, but add support for Windows monitoring and custom programmability if you want to pay for it: http://www.mini-box.com/OpenUPS?sc=8&category=981, http://www.mini-box.com/OpenUPS2?sc=8&category=981.

There are a variety of solutions available on that site (and elsewhere) that will allow you to build your own UPS with varying levels of features.  Personally I would go cheap and grab the picoUPS, a 12V deep discharge scooter battery or two, and appropriate charger.... could put something together for $100 or so that might give you hours of runtime.

[Lavarock7]

My Panasonic DECT phones have a neat option. The phone has a battery which can power the base, if the base looses power.

Although I have multiple UPS's, I am also a Ham Radio/technical-type guy. I would hook phones and other DC voltage type items to a car battery. This would give lots of extra time without the battery to 120 volt and back to DC voltage conversions which happen between a UPS battery and the charger plugged into it.There are Youtube videos on how to open a UPS and tap off the internal battery direct to DC.

As an aside, using a LED bulb in a fixture hooked to a UPS gives lots of light for little current draw.

[drgeoff]

There are Youtube videos on how to open a UPS and tap off the internal battery direct to DC.

I would advise extreme caution before doing that.  I have a Belkin UPS which has the following words moulded into the interior side of the battery cover:

"Caution
Risk of electrical shock.
Battery circuit is not isolated from AC input.
Hazardous voltage may exist between terminals and ground.
Disconnect powercord from wall receptacle before servicing battery."

While I don't doubt that connecting to the battery is perfectly safe on some UPS units, clearly there are some where it is not.

[ceg3]

Maybe the simplest answer is a good one.  I go back to my suggestion to just by yourself a UPS with enough juice to run your OBi and network devices long enough to finish your call.  Of course, there are ways to survive an extended outage, such as buying a generator for your house.  I remember when a hurricane put my city in dark for several days I left my dark townhouse and went next door where my tech savvy neighbor was watching TV and cooking.  I was never so jealous. 

[SteveInWA]

I have a friend, BTW, who is running his OBi200 off a 12.6V trickle-charged battery.  So far, it's run fine.

A Lead acid battery can be 13+ volts
would you recommend using a linear regulator?

or a 12V Step-up/Step-Down Voltage Regulator?

I believe that most equipment that uses "wall wart" style, 12VDC adapters should be able to sufficiently regulate lead-acid battery voltage without additional, external voltage regulation.

There are a number of cheap solutions for building your own DC-DC UPS.  Grab one of these, for example, add a 12V battery and a suitable charger and your
good to go.

http://www.mini-box.com/picoUPS-100-12V-DC-micro-UPS-system-battery-backup-system

Here is a sample implementation: http://e.molioner.dk/projects/ups/

Basically, the device takes a 15V-18V DC input and outputs 12V DC to the device while charging the battery.  If the DC input gets cut (power outage) the device will draw from the battery.

The OpenUPS and OpenUPS2 do basically the same thing, but add support for Windows monitoring and custom programmability if you want to pay for it: http://www.mini-box.com/OpenUPS?sc=8&category=981, http://www.mini-box.com/OpenUPS2?sc=8&category=981.

There are a variety of solutions available on that site (and elsewhere) that will allow you to build your own UPS with varying levels of features.  Personally I would go cheap and grab the picoUPS, a 12V deep discharge scooter battery or two, and appropriate charger.... could put something together for $100 or so that might give you hours of runtime.

I took a look at those two links (thanks!).  Apparently, that little circuit board is only capable of switching between a DC power supply's input, and the battery's input; it is not stepping down (bucking) the DC voltage to 12VDC.  So, if any of the attached equipment can't handle >12VDC, then that solution is useless.  Just a warning.

Also, with regard to the type of batteries to use:  I would strongly recommend against using a standard automotive battery indoors in a residential environment (as opposed to a data center/industrial environment with proper ventilation and fire suppression systems).  In the unlikely event of a water landing in the unlikely event of a fire, you have a box full of liquid sulfuric acid and hydrogen gas reaching dangerous temperature levels.  Aside from that, hydrogen is off-gassed at some level -- not good to have in the house.

Instead, use batteries designed for UPS service:  valve-regulated, absorbed glass mat, sealed lead-acid batteries.  These batteries use an electrolyte suspended in fiberglass, recombine almost all gas, and are non-spillable.

Here is an example spec sheet:  http://www.bb-battery.com/images/MANUAL/technical%20manual(VRLA).pdf

UPS products designed for extended runtime will have a battery connector on the back panel, allowing more VRLA battery packs to be added.  These products also have sophisticated battery charging systems designed to prolong battery life.  Building a safe and reliable UPS is not a DIY project.

[mrcinaz]

Not everyone can afford a Cell phone and that is why they use a free or low cost voip provider.

Anyone that can afford an Obi device can probably afford a cell phone. Not everybody needs the latest iPhone or Samsung, and not everybody needs continuous 4G data downloads. My wife and I use factory refurb Huawei smart phones I picked up on eBay at $35 each. Android OS, I forget which version. 

We use an MVNO (look up the term) that buys and resells Verizon 3G bandwidth. We have no contract. We prepay 2,000 minutes at a cost of $80, which are good for a full year, 4 cents per minute of telephone. Data use costs 5 cents per megabyte. We don't use much of that. We buy the $80 minutes from a wholesaler for $72. Unused minutes roll over if you refill before time runs out. My wife recently refilled and now has over $100 in unused minutes. Cheaper phones are available, and at $6/month for usage, I will repeat that I think anyone that can afford an Obi can probably afford not only a cell phone but a smart phone. It is a matter of knowing what options are out there.

(Our MVNO is Page Plus, but there are numerous others. You don't have to use CDMA phones.)