It’s safe to say that a vast majority of homeowners aren’t too familiar (or at all) with the emergency and standby power systems. They may have heard about them, but in most cases, they do not have the slightest idea of what they represent and how they can be distinguished.
But the truth is that there are several differences between these two, and one of the biggest ones lies in the fact that when it comes to emergency systems, the building owner is obligated to finance the installation and maintenance expenses, whereas that isn’t the case with the standby system.
It’s of huge importance to gather as much useful information regarding both of these systems, so you can properly determine which one is most suitable for your building. Therefore, if you’d like to learn more, then just keep reading and you will!
What Can Be Said About Emergency Power Systems?
One of the biggest perks of an emergency power system lies in the fact that it instantly kicks in, as soon as a particular building faces a power outage. That’s because these systems are designed to act promptly the moment the power is out, and, thankfully, they do not need too much time to become activated.
The National Fire Protection Association demands emergency power systems under the National Electric Code. These systems are obligated to power features that are intended to safeguard people. This includes the following:
- Elevators
- Emergency communications
- Smoke detectors
- Exhaust fans for toxic fumes
These types of power systems must be situated far away from the main power supply. These generators use their own fuel supply, either diesel or gasoline that can be delivered, or stored on-site, depending on the situation.
Covering The Basics Regarding The Standby Power Systems
Standby power systems can be split into two main categories, legally required and optional. Legally Required Standby Power System, as the name suggests, these systems are demanded by law.
A legally required standby power system has up to one minute to power connected devices in case a power outage happens. Although these systems are required by code, they do not need to necessarily be divided from the standard system.
In addition, a legally required power system boosts lifesaving efforts, like firefighting operations, however, they do not power the devices that are perceived as critical to these efforts.
The next on the list, as far as this goes, is the optimal standby power system, which, as the name suggests is completely optional. It is designed to offer backup power to particular devices that are essential for business operations in case a power outage occurs.
What’s considered pivotal, highly depends on the business owner and their primary goals. Lots of companies these days, resort to industrial diesel generators because they are generally very long-lasting, yet affordable and effective. Since their fuel efficacy is out-of-this-world, they are an excellent choice for industrial-scale operations.
Backup Power Systems
Even though keeping everything powered at any given moment may seem like a good idea in terms of productivity, it definitely isn’t a great option when it comes to your financial health. How come, you’re probably wondering?
Well, that’s because keeping all the devices connected to a power supply is very costly, meaning that all your funds will basically go into energy consumption because you won’t have anything left for any other aspect of your company, which will definitely negatively affect the overall productivity and business operations.
As mentioned above, emergency power systems are considered mandatory. For every construction, this refers to lighting emergency egress stairs and pathways and keeping the fire alarm system functional.
When it comes to hospitals, various pieces of equipment like respirators, must be connected to the emergency power system. Additionally, police stations and radio systems designed for firehouses are also linked to emergency power systems to make sure that the emergency services are capable of responding in a timely manner.
Furthermore, an optional standby power system is another choice that’s been very high in demand in the past few years. Fridges and freezers are usually tied to backup power, however, there are companies that prefer to link lighting to these systems.
The Importance Of The Backup Generators
Backup power is provided by leveraging a generator. These generators can be perceived as engines that basically release fuel to make enough electricity to power the devices
Although many people have been using turbine engine-style generators before, in the past couple of years, most of them turned to reciprocating generators because they are a lot more energy-efficient and do not take too long to blast off, unlike turbine engine-style generators.
A whole building generator that is employed for commercial buildings is generally much bigger than the one that is utilized for residential buildings. This just goes to show that they are able to hold a lot more fuel in order to power a huge number of devices.
Maintenance, along with the generator testing play a huge role in providing enough power when that’s necessary. This refers to both residential and commercial generators. Depending on the make and model of the generator, there are a couple of different fuels that you can leverage, starting from gasoline, diesel, natural gas, and liquid petroleum.
Furthermore, since fuel is usually stored on-site, in various tanks, it’s essential to have enough space for all of it. Day tanks are normally placed close to the whole building generator to ensure the power is instantly provided at a constant rate.
And Then There’s Uninterruptible Power Supply (UPS)
This represents an electrical unit that supplies computers, telecommunication equipment, and many others with power. It isn’t solely intended to provide emergency power backup, but it safeguards the device that’s been used too!
Unlike a standby generator or a classic emergency power system, UPS is capable of providing almost instant protection from input power interruptions by employing the energy that’s inside the batteries, which is the thing that makes it so effective.
Today, this article did its best to cover the essential pieces of information that are related to the emergency and standby power systems, and we honestly hope that certain things are properly explained and clearer now.
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