Hi, I did try to search this topic but couldn’t find anything relevant.
After getting a new X1C and now being 12 hours into a 17 hour print it dawned on me the consequences of a power outage. I do live in the country and we do have outages periodically.
I know nothing about this subject but currently searching it like my life depended on it. Does anyone have any recommendations with regards to a power unit that would kick in (technical term) in an emergency. I’ve also no idea on power required so any help in that department would be great.
In the old days, you would buy a UPS, those tend to work well when the product being powered also accepts information to say the mains power has been removed so it can successfully shut down.
The BL printers do not have this.
You may be better suited with a large capacity portable power station.
The bigger ones have mains sockets to hook up your 3D printer.
You would run the printer off the power station and leave the power station plugged into the mains.
This will then run your printer until all charge has been depleted.
You can also use it for many other purposes outside of the home/office when required. Something not possible with a traditional UPS.
So just seen this - Anker 521 Portable Power Station Upgraded with LiFePO4 Battery, 256Wh 5-Port PowerHouse, 300W (Peak 600W) Solar Generator (Solar Panel Optional), 2 AC Outlets, 60W USB-C PD Output, Outdoor Generator.
Any UPS that you might buy for a computer will also work for a 3D printer. The only thing you need to think about is how long you will need the printer to run without Mains power, and whether or not your wallet can afford a UPS with a sufficiently high capacity to meet your objectives.
Even though the printer doesn’t draw a huge amount of power (call it 400W), a UPS that can run it for 24 hours is going to be pricey. If you’re only worried about interruptions measured in minutes or an hour or so, you will have many options. Any UPS with 400Wh of capacity will run the machine for an hour (or a bit more). That’ll cost a couple $100 (I’m guessing you’re not in the US ). But to run for 24 hours, you need 9600Wh of capacity and that’s going to be something close to 24x more expensive.
The printer does have a resume-from-power-loss feature. I haven’t ever had to try it out so I don’t know how well it works. But you could start a small print job, yank the plug, then plug it back in and see how well it works.
I am plugged in to a CyberPower 950VA. I have no idea how long it will power my X1C but it is great at handling the very short blips in power we have in our rural area.
One thing to consider with a UPS is battery type. Best (IMO) is LiFePO4. Much less flammable than Li-Co. LiFePO4 batteries are slightly heavier and slightly lower power capacity per volume than Li-Co, though. The bigger the battery the scarier Li-Co is to have in a home because they are almost impossible to put out once they light off if they light off. Think burning Teslas.
Something else is switchover time. There are different strategies in different UPS designs that result in delays up to a half wave (maybe more) to no delay at all. The longer the switchover delay when there is a mains power interruption the more likely power runs out and the printer resets before the battery can take over.
Another consideration is output voltage and power draw. The heaters run from mains power and the power demand goes way up on 220V mains because of that. If you get a UPS with a 110/120V outlet, the peak power pulled by the printer will be much lower so you don’t have to buy as capable of UPS for power.
Overall power used should be similar between 110V and 220V so they should run about the same time on the same size (watt-hour) rating UPS. 220V peak power is higher but the printer will draw that for less time if that makes sense. On 110V the peak power is lower but the printer will be pulling that for longer times than on 220V.
why can’t I just post that? Weird, 25 char rule 
). But to run for 24 hours, you need 9600Wh of capacity and that’s going to be something close to 24x more expensive.