A UPS (Uninterruptible Power Supply) helps keep your CCTV system running during a power cut, maintaining continuous security and recording when mains electricity is unavailable.
When comparing traditional UPS units, it is important to understand that the quoted VA rating indicates the maximum load the unit can support, not its battery capacity or expected runtime.
Most traditional UPS units use relatively small lead-acid batteries. As a general guide, a £100 model may provide around 30Wh of usable energy, while a £200 model may offer approximately 60Wh. An average four-camera CCTV system with a single hard drive can consume up to 40W, resulting in roughly one hour of backup power.
As a rule of thumb, each additional camera adds approximately 5W of power consumption. An eight-camera system would therefore consume around 60W, assuming it uses a single hard drive.
VigorPool power stations use lithium-ion batteries, providing a longer service life and significantly greater backup capacity. The Captain 300, priced at £298, delivers approximately 177Wh through its inverter after allowing for an estimated 25% conversion loss. Although it costs around 50% more than a typical £200 UPS, it provides approximately three times the usable capacity and can power a four-camera CCTV system for more than four hours.
Estimated backup times for larger VigorPool models are:
- Captain 700: approximately 12 hours for a four-camera system or eight hours for an eight-camera system
- Captain 1200: approximately nine hours for a 16-camera system
These figures are estimates based on systems using a single hard drive. Actual runtime may vary depending on the cameras, recorder, hard-drive configuration and overall power consumption.
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