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Fujielectric
india.fujielectric.com › resources › technical-guide › ups-sizing-calculation
Fuji Electric | UPS Sizing Calculation
When the loads are operated in sequence, the UPS capacity is selected based on the summation of rms currents of all the connected loads and the maximum rms peak current of the load as shown in the below formula UPS Capacity in KVA =√3 X VX ((∑1 N I rms)+ Imaxrms-peak)
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CalcPanel
calcpanel.com › tools › ups-runtime
UPS Runtime Calculator — Estimate Battery Backup Time at Your Load
Formula: minutes ≈ (V × Ah × strings × efficiency × safety × 60) ÷ load (W). Use the calculator below, compare minutes to your shutdown or generator-start target, then size amp-hours in the UPS battery calculator.
Discussions

Calculate UPS size
UPS capacity for how many VA/watts it can handle and how long it will run are completely unrelated. A lot of UPS models in the same line will all use exactly the same battery packs. A typical setup is 2 to 4 7Ah sealed lead acid 12v batteries. If you have a 2-cell battery pack, that's 2*12v*8A == ~170 Watt/hours. Assuming the inverter is 90% efficient, and your 380 watts of power need, expect about a 20 minute runtime. More on reddit.com
🌐 r/homelab
14
15
October 21, 2023
How to calculate runtime on a UPS
It all comes down to energy. Energy is stored in batteries, and used up by devices doing work. The way that energy is transferred is by pushing electrons. Current, measured in amps, is how many electrons are flowing through in a given time. Voltage, measured in volts, is how hard the electrons are being pushed. Power, measured in watts, is the amount of energy transferred in a given time. kilowatt-hours (kWh) is a measure of energy, in more convenient units. So to calculate runtime, you start by measuring the power input into all of your devices. You can get that a couple of different ways. measure the number of kWh used over a time period, and then divide by the number of hours in the time period to get kilowatts. measure the current and multiply by the voltage (power = voltage * current) Once you've got that, you know how fast the energy is draining out of the battery. Now you need to know how much energy is in the battery. According to the specs of the UPS you posted, it has "Battery Volt-Amp-Hour Capacity 845". A volt-amp is the same as a watt (sort of, the difference exsts but isn't important here) so that means the battery has a capacity of 0.845 kilowatt-hours. If the load was 0.845 kilowatts, the battery would last exactly one hour from full charge. If the load is 2.535 kilowatts, the battery will last 20 minutes from full charge. Your power draw in that screenshot is 207.5 volts at 8.6 amps, which is 1.7845 kilowatts. So your battery runtime will be 0.47 hours, or about 28 minutes. There are two caveats for this! The first is that the calculation gives you the theoretical maximum runtime. In reality, it will be less - batteries don't like discharging to zero, and there's always losses in the system. The second is that the calculation is crucially based on that current figure, which will vary from second to second. Device power consumption is never constant, it varies with different computing loads, environmental conditions, which devices are in use and other factors. The most accurate way to get runtime is to measure your total energy consumption over a long period, and then divide by that time period to get an average power consumption. I suspect that the 19 minute runtime remaining is because the UPS is averaging the measured power consumption and that figure is higher than the consumption at the time the screenshot was taken. For your new site calculations, is the site up and running already or do you have to calculate consumption theoretically? More on reddit.com
🌐 r/sysadmin
8
0
April 19, 2024
People also ask

How accurate is this UPS runtime estimate?
Directional planning only. Temperature, discharge rate, age, and model-specific curves change real minutes—load-bank or OEM data is best for binding designs.
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calcpanel.com
calcpanel.com › tools › ups-runtime
UPS Runtime Calculator — Estimate Battery Backup Time at Your Load
How to increase UPS runtime?
Add parallel Ah, reduce kW load, improve batteries, or justify a higher safety factor only with engineering evidence.
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calcpanel.com
calcpanel.com › tools › ups-runtime
UPS Runtime Calculator — Estimate Battery Backup Time at Your Load
How much does it cost to run a UPS 24/7?
Budget loss kW ≈ no-load kW + (1 − efficiency) × protected kW, then multiply by hours and your $/kWh in the energy estimator. Example: 0.15 kW no-load + 5 kW at η=0.92 → ~0.55 kW loss → ~400 kWh/month at continuous operation before critical load energy.
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calcpanel.com
calcpanel.com › tools › ups-runtime
UPS Runtime Calculator — Estimate Battery Backup Time at Your Load
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Everexceed
everexceed.com › blog › how-to-calculate-the-required-ups-load-capacity_b470
How to calculate the required ups load capacity?
October 19, 2023 - That is to say, one only runs the uninterruptible power supply system around 80% of the capacity to support the load calculated. For example, if the total required capacity/load is 200 W, it is better to choose an UPS with a capacity of 250 W (250 W x 0.8 = 200 W) or so.
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Facilitygateway
facilitygateway.com › how-do-i-calculate-what-size-ups-i-need
How Do I Calculate What Size UPS I Need?
To convert watts to volt-amperes, use the formula: VoltAmps = Watts / Power Factor. You can also calculate the Power Factor (efficiency) of your equipment by dividing True Power (measured in Kilowatts) by Apparent Power (measured in VoltAmps).
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Facilitygateway
facilitygateway.com › how-to-calculate-ups-runtime-and-load
How To Calculate UPS Runtime and Load | Facility Gateway
Understanding the backup time allows ... to battery power. The calculation would be: battery Ah rating x battery voltage (v) rating x the number of batteries x battery efficiency....
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Eaton
upsselector.eaton.com › Load
UPS Load Calculator, How Much Power Will Your UPS Use? - Eaton
How Much Power Will Your UPS Use? Choose the right UPS, uninterruptible power supply, based on your total power consumption, Eaton UPS Selector
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ElectronicsHub
electronicshub.org › home › how to calculate ups runtime calculation
How To Calculate UPS Runtime Calculation
July 3, 2024 - Here is a practical example of the Cyberpower CP1500PFCLCD UPS. Start by calculating the total load from all the devices in watts. You can refer to the formula Wt = W1 + W2 + W3…
Find elsewhere
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Prostar New Energy
prostarsolar.net › article › how-to-calculate-the-required-ups-load-capacity.html
How to calculate the required ups load capacity?
January 2, 2025 - Therefore, the actual power formula for AC circuits is watts = volts x amps x power factor. Unfortunately, the PF is rarely stated for most equipment, but it is always a number of 1.0 or less, and about the only thing with a 1.0 PF is a lightbulb.
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National Pension System Trust
npstrust.org.in › ups-calculator
UPS Calculator | NATIONAL PENSION SYSTEM TRUST
Disclaimer : The UPS calculator is intended solely as an indicative tool to assist subscribers in making an informed choice. The results generated by this calculator are based on assumptions and input values chosen by the subscriber. Please note that the calculator does not guarantee any specific ...
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Aforenergy
aforenergy.com › ups-operation-time-calculation-and-optimization
UPS Operation Time: Calculation and Optimization - Aforenergy
March 5, 2025 - To figure out how long your UPS will run, use this formula: UPS Runtime (in hours) = (Battery Capacity in Ah * Battery Voltage in V) / Load in Watts. This gives you a basic idea. But, you can get a more precise estimate with more detailed ...
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UPS
ups.com › us › en › support › shipping-support › shipping-dimensions-weight
Shipping Dimensions and Weight | UPS - United States
April 8, 2026 - Dimensional weight may apply to all UPS domestic and international package services. To calculate dimensional weight: Dimensional Weight = (L x W x H) ÷ Divisor
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Server Room Environments
serverroomenvironments.co.uk › ups-sizing-calculations
How To Size UPS Systems | Server Room Environments
May 8, 2022 - Power Factor formulae include: Power Factor (pF) = Real Power (W) ÷ Apparent Power (VA) = CosØ · If we know the Power Factor and Real Power we can calculate: Apparent Power (VA) = Real Power (W) ÷ Power Factor (pF) If we know the Apparent ...
Address   St. Andrews Business Centre, Bromfield Industrial Estate, Queen's Lane, CH7 1XB, Mold
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Stulz Ozeania
stulzoceania.com › stulz oceania › newsroom
Stulz: UPS Selection Guide & Sizing Calculator (With Checklist) | STULZ
Online UPS: Delivers seamless, clean power for critical equipment. 3. How do I calculate the right size UPS for my needs? Add up device wattage, divide by the power factor (usually 0.9), then add 20–30% as a safety buffer.
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Reddit
reddit.com › r/homelab › calculate ups size
r/homelab on Reddit: Calculate UPS size
October 21, 2023 -

Hi all,

I know the average amps and watts of my server and NAS. I want to buy a battery backup UPS but I can't figure out how to calculate how long it will last on battery.

The server draws 140W on average and 1.1 amps (let's say 280 to be safe), while the NAS does about 100 (this is way higher than its actual draw, just trying to be safe).

If I want the battery to last 5 minutes, how many VA would that be?

Yeah I tried finding calculators or formulas on Google. There were no calculators I could find and I was not understanding the equations for manual calculation.

Any help would be appreciated!

 

Edit: u/NoConfidence946 sent me a very helpful chart! Got it figured out :) https://www.apcguard.com/Smart-UPS-Runtime-Chart.asp

Top answer
1 of 4
19
UPS capacity for how many VA/watts it can handle and how long it will run are completely unrelated. A lot of UPS models in the same line will all use exactly the same battery packs. A typical setup is 2 to 4 7Ah sealed lead acid 12v batteries. If you have a 2-cell battery pack, that's 2*12v*8A == ~170 Watt/hours. Assuming the inverter is 90% efficient, and your 380 watts of power need, expect about a 20 minute runtime.
2 of 4
4
Calculate your budget based on how desperate you are to keep it running. If you can afford an APC 3000 class, get it. If not scale down. No matter how long you think you'll be out, it's longer than that. If you just need to be able to run a shutdown, then any desktop APC with a USB communication will allow it to send a shutdown signal to the PC. If it's critical to you or someone else, you need a big APC and a generator. Since we're in /rhomelab, I'll assume that the desktop version is good enough. FWIW, at work I have APC 3000's backed up by a generator the kicks on in 30 seconds. Which is great on a normal day for peace of mind. But a few years ago Dallas had an ICE storm and we couldn't get diesel to the generators on contracts. The backup to the backup to the backup was a 7kw gas generator and some long 50 amp cables that we ran up the stairwell to the MDF. FWIW part 2, the reason I keep saying the name brand APC instead of generic UPS is that I've never had good luck with the brands like Cyberpower that you can get in stores. I had a new office suite that we just needed to power 1 2960x POE switch off of and it would turn off at least once a week. Apparently it wasn't seeing enough load and just went turned off after a while. We stuck a little APC 1000 in there and never had another issue with it.
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Server Room Environments
serverroomenvironments.co.uk › ups-sizing
UPS Sizing Guide and Calculations | Server Room Environments
This measurement refers to the Apparent Power drawn by a load and is calculated as follows: Apparent Power (VA) = Supply Voltage (V) x Amps (A) In the formula (V) is the Root Mean Square (RMS) of the supply voltage and the Amps is the current ...
Address   St. Andrews Business Centre, Bromfield Industrial Estate, Queen's Lane, CH7 1XB, Mold
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FS.com
fs.com › blog › how-to-figure-out-the-required-ups-capacity-5280.html
How to Figure Out the Required UPS Capacity?
November 16, 2024 - There would be no wiggle room at all if one bought a 1kVA UPS with a 900W UPS capacity (PF = 0.9) to support a calculated load of 900W. Under such circumstances, the whole system would be run at 100% capacity. Actually, regardless of how the PF ratings are stated (even if the PF is 1), a 100 kVA UPS will never support an actual full 100 kW load in the real world of the data center.
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Unified Power
unifiedpowerusa.com › home › ups › how to calculate ups load and runtime
How to Calculate UPS Load and Runtime | Unified Power
March 14, 2025 - Many UPS manufacturers offer online UPS calculators and sizing tools that make it easier to match a backup power supply to your needs. However, if you don’t have immediate access to a UPS selector, you can calculate the load by gathering measurements and completing a series of simple steps.
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Reddit
reddit.com › r/sysadmin › how to calculate runtime on a ups
r/sysadmin on Reddit: How to calculate runtime on a UPS
April 19, 2024 -

Hey,

We have an APC UPS and I'd like to get a better understanding on how runtime is calculated.

I don't know jack shit about electricity but have recently been trying to learn more about voltage/amps/watts/ WHR/kWH.

I have been looking at the different formulas for getting total watts/WHR and logged into one of our UPS out of curiosity.

Here is what I see on our unit now. The runtime is pretty low:

https://ibb.co/tMbFdvm

We need to buy another UPS for a smaller site and I am trying to figure out the formula APC uses(hopefully using he number here in the status page) to determine runtime. The UPS we are replacing has the same GUI. We'd like to get at least 30 mins runtime.

Thanks

Top answer
1 of 2
3
It all comes down to energy. Energy is stored in batteries, and used up by devices doing work. The way that energy is transferred is by pushing electrons. Current, measured in amps, is how many electrons are flowing through in a given time. Voltage, measured in volts, is how hard the electrons are being pushed. Power, measured in watts, is the amount of energy transferred in a given time. kilowatt-hours (kWh) is a measure of energy, in more convenient units. So to calculate runtime, you start by measuring the power input into all of your devices. You can get that a couple of different ways. measure the number of kWh used over a time period, and then divide by the number of hours in the time period to get kilowatts. measure the current and multiply by the voltage (power = voltage * current) Once you've got that, you know how fast the energy is draining out of the battery. Now you need to know how much energy is in the battery. According to the specs of the UPS you posted, it has "Battery Volt-Amp-Hour Capacity 845". A volt-amp is the same as a watt (sort of, the difference exsts but isn't important here) so that means the battery has a capacity of 0.845 kilowatt-hours. If the load was 0.845 kilowatts, the battery would last exactly one hour from full charge. If the load is 2.535 kilowatts, the battery will last 20 minutes from full charge. Your power draw in that screenshot is 207.5 volts at 8.6 amps, which is 1.7845 kilowatts. So your battery runtime will be 0.47 hours, or about 28 minutes. There are two caveats for this! The first is that the calculation gives you the theoretical maximum runtime. In reality, it will be less - batteries don't like discharging to zero, and there's always losses in the system. The second is that the calculation is crucially based on that current figure, which will vary from second to second. Device power consumption is never constant, it varies with different computing loads, environmental conditions, which devices are in use and other factors. The most accurate way to get runtime is to measure your total energy consumption over a long period, and then divide by that time period to get an average power consumption. I suspect that the 19 minute runtime remaining is because the UPS is averaging the measured power consumption and that figure is higher than the consumption at the time the screenshot was taken. For your new site calculations, is the site up and running already or do you have to calculate consumption theoretically?
2 of 2
1
The UPS manufacturers all have runtime calculators on their websites, to compute that for you. https://www.apc.com/us/en/tools/ups_selector/server/load https://tripplite.eaton.com/products/load-calculator https://www.vertiv.com/en-asia/support/tools-applications/vertiv-ups-interactive-runtime-tools/