UPS Sizing - Rules of Thumb Page1of1

HOME (HTTP://MYELECTRICAL.COM/) NOTES (HTTP://MYELECTRICAL.COM/NOTES) QUESTIONS (HTTP://MYELECTRICAL.COM/QUESTIONS)

Register (http://myelectrical.com/register?returnurl=http%3a%2f%2fmyelectrical.com%2fnotes) Login (http://myelectrical.com/login?returnurl=%2fnotes%2fentryid%2f16%2fups-sizing-rules-of-thumb)

TOOLS (HTTP://MYELECTRICAL.COM/TOOLS) STORE (HTTP://MYELECTRICAL.COM/STORE) SUPPORT (HTTP://MYELECTRICAL.COM/SUPPORT)

(http://myelectrical.com/) Custom Search

UPS Sizing - Rules of Thumb 

By Steven McFadyen (/users/steven)on April 30th, 2009

(/Portals/0/filestorage/legacyImages/UPS Sizing.jpg)

(/Portals/0/filestorage/legacyImages/UPS Sizing.jpg)
Not so long ago I was telling someone that I don't use rules of thumb as most things Cable Sizing Software
are easily calculated anyhow. As it turns out last week I ended up sizing some Select, size and manage your power cables
UPS using what can only be described as rules of thumb. In deference to my using myCableEngineering.
change of heart here are my UPS sizing rules of thumb.

First rule; kW and kVA are related by 0.8. This does not apply to all UPS, but it
does for many (and is the worse case). People often get confused with what this
means, so I'll try to explain it a little. Each UPS has a maximum kW and kVA it can
deliver (related by 0.8), for example a 100 kVA UPS can deliver a maximum of 100 All your cables, all your projects.
kVA or maximum of 80 kW. Some examples will make this more clear (assuming a
100 kVA, 80 kW UPS): (https://mycableengineering.com)

• load is 80 kW at 0.7 power factor = 114 kVA - exceeds maximum kVA

• load is 80 kW at o.8 power factor = 100 kVA - UPS is good
• load is 80 kW at 0.9 power factor = 88 kVA - UPS is good
• load is 100 kVA at 0.7 power factor = 70 kW - UPS is good
• load is 100 kVA at 0.8 power factor = 80 kW - UPS is good
• load is 100 kVA at 0.9 power factor = 90 kW - exceeds maximum kW
Some people work in kVA, but I always choose to work in kW. kW is the measure of power used by the equipment and it
make sense to me to use that. It can also be added arithmetically to give a technically correct answer (kVA cannot as it is a
vector quantity). Once I have the final load kW, divide by 0.8 to get the kVA and select the next largest standard UPS size.

I used to size UPS systems to run at full capacity. Many individuals and institutions like to limit the loading on a UPS to 90%
of it's rated full load current. After much arguing I have decided to hold my hand up, surrender and follow the same rule.
Given a load requirement in kW, I divide by 0.9 (90% rule) to get the kW to size the UPS.

The charging of batteries (if discharged) and losses/efficiency of the UPS itself mean that input power to the UPS is larger
than the output. UPS units are invariably rated on output power and this needs to be adjusted to determine the loading on
the supply system. Typically allowing 20% for battery charging and UPS losses is a good approach - more than required,
but not excessively so.

http://myelectrical.com/notes/entryid/16/ups-sizing-rules-of-thumb 09-05-2018
UPS Sizing - Rules of Thumb Page2of2
Finally in larger installations the above is combined with the black art of selecting the correct size and number units. Space,
HOME
cost, (HTTP://MYELECTRICAL.COM/)
redundancy, NOTES (HTTP://MYELECTRICAL.COM/NOTES)
etc. all affect the final selection. QUESTIONS
Is a single 300 kVA UPS better or worse than (HTTP://MYELECTRICAL.COM/QUESTIONS)
two 150 kVA units. How
do two 300 kVA units in N+1 redundancy compare with three 150 kVA units in N+1 redundancy. When selecting the UPS for
larger
TOOLS installation it can be difficult. Unfortunately I STORE
(HTTP://MYELECTRICAL.COM/TOOLS) don't have any rules for this. I try to look at the system
(HTTP://MYELECTRICAL.COM/STORE) as a whole
SUPPORT (HTTP://MYELECTRICAL.COM/SUPPORT)
(power to the UPS, how the UPS power is to be distributed, redundancy requirements, etc.) and put a few configurations on
paper. As these are developed into a workable concept one of the options tends to become the obvious one to choose.

Example

Finally here is an example of how the selection may go:

• requirements - 166 kW of UPS load, N+1 redundancy required

• selection - 90% rule requires 184 kW which at 0.8 = 230 kVA
Some options would include 2x250 kVA or 3x120 kVA or 4x80 kVA (each giving N+1 redundancy). The later options
require more units but results in less installed UPS kVA (cost would likely be comparable). I generally prefer smaller units as
they are easier to handle/move around, and in this instance I would be tempted to select the 3x120 kVA option. I think the
4x80 kVA option would be pushing the boundary; while it still maintains N+1, the chance of one of four failing is greater than
one of three (taken to extreme 23x10 kVA units is obviously not feasible).

Summary

As the example shows, the rules of thumb (90% and 20%) give a required kW on which to base UPS selection and input
power to the UPS. kW and kVA are related by 0.8. In larger installations there is no right or wrong selection of the size and
number of UPS units. Different engineers will likely arrive at different, but still workable solutions. This mixture of
experience and engineering art is not dependant on decimal accurate figures and values obtained by using simple rules of
thumb are generally sufficient.

Related Links

• Our Wiki collection of UPS articles (http://wiki.myelectrical.com/index.php?title=Category:UPS_Systems)

UPS (http://myelectrical.com/notes/tag/ups), Equipment

Ratings (http://myelectrical.com/notes?
tag=equipment+ratings), Equipment Sizing
(http://myelectrical.com/notes?tag=equipment+sizing)

More interesting Notes: Steven McFadyen (/users/steven)

◾ Famous Scientists
(http://myelectrical.com/notes/entryid/143/famous-
scientists)
◾ IEC 60287 Current Capacity of Cables - An
Introduction
(http://myelectrical.com/notes/entryid/207/iec-60287-
current-capacity-of-cables-an-introduction)
Steven has over twenty five years
experience working on some of the
largest construction projects. He has a
deep technical understanding of electrical(/users/steven)
engineering and is keen to share this
knowledge.
About the author

◾ Laplace Transform
(http://myelectrical.com/notes/entryid/173/laplace-
transform)
◾ Photovoltaic (PV) - Electrical Calculations
(http://myelectricalengineering.co.uk)
(http://myelectrical.com/notes/entryid/225/photovoltaic-
pv-electrical-calculations)
◾ Network Theory – Introduction and Review
(http://myelectrical.com/notes/entryid/179/network-
theory-introduction-and-review)

http://myelectrical.com/notes/entryid/16/ups-sizing-rules-of-thumb 09-05-2018
UPS Sizing - Rules of Thumb Page3of3
0HOME
Comments myElectrical.com NOTES (HTTP://MYELECTRICAL.COM/NOTES)
(HTTP://MYELECTRICAL.COM/)  Login
1
QUESTIONS (HTTP://MYELECTRICAL.COM/QUESTIONS)

Sort by Best
 Recommend ⤤ Share
TOOLS (HTTP://MYELECTRICAL.COM/TOOLS) STORE (HTTP://MYELECTRICAL.COM/STORE) SUPPORT (HTTP://MYELECTRICAL.COM/SUPPORT)

Start the discussion…

LOG IN WITH OR SIGN UP WITH DISQUS ?

Name

Be the first to comment.

ALSO ON MYELECTRICAL.COM

Why a Sine Wave? Periodic Electrical Installation Inspection –

1 comment • 4 years ago
Pradeep Krishnan — Why sinusoidal waveforms
is adopted for electrical systems?
What to Inspect?
1 comment • 4 years ago
Trade Certificates — Really good read about
what is required in electrical testing and
inspection, periodic testing is sometimes not …

Photovoltaic (PV) - Utility Power Grid Understanding Motor Duty Rating

Interface 4 comments • 4 years ago
4 comments • 4 years ago ben — s1 can cover s2 duty cycle?
Steven McFadyen — As I remember the standard
is limited to less than 10 kVA. I do not know if the
IEC have plans for standards above that or …

✉ Subscribe d Add Disqus to your siteAdd DisqusAdd 🔒 Privacy

View 1 Comments (old system)

Popular Tags
Automation (http://myelectrical.com/notes/tag/automation) Batteries (http://myelectrical.com/notes/tag/batteries)
Buildings (http://myelectrical.com/notes/tag/buildings) Cable Sizing (http://myelectrical.com/notes?tag=cable+sizing)
Cables (http://myelectrical.com/notes/tag/cables) Circuit Breakers (http://myelectrical.com/notes?tag=circuit+breakers)
Commissioning (http://myelectrical.com/notes/tag/commissioning) Control Systems (http://myelectrical.com/notes?tag=control+systems)
Earth Fault (http://myelectrical.com/notes?tag=earth+fault) Editing (http://myelectrical.com/notes/tag/editing)
Education (http://myelectrical.com/notes/tag/education) Electrical Installations (http://myelectrical.com/notes?tag=electrical+installations)
Electronics (http://myelectrical.com/notes/tag/electronics) Energy (http://myelectrical.com/notes/tag/energy)
Equipment (http://myelectrical.com/notes/tag/equipment)
Equipment Data (http://myelectrical.com/notes?tag=equipment+data)
Equipment Ratings (http://myelectrical.com/notes?tag=equipment+ratings)
Equipment Sizing (http://myelectrical.com/notes?tag=equipment+sizing) Fault Calculation (http://myelectrical.com/notes?tag=fault+calculation)
Fundamentals (http://myelectrical.com/notes/tag/fundamentals) Generation (http://myelectrical.com/notes/tag/generation)
High Voltage (http://myelectrical.com/notes?tag=high+voltage) History (http://myelectrical.com/notes/tag/history)
IEC Standards (http://myelectrical.com/notes?tag=iec+standards) Innovation (http://myelectrical.com/notes/tag/innovation)
Lighting (http://myelectrical.com/notes/tag/lighting) Materials (http://myelectrical.com/notes/tag/materials)
Medium Voltage (http://myelectrical.com/notes?tag=medium+voltage) Motor Control (http://myelectrical.com/notes?tag=motor+control)
Motors (http://myelectrical.com/notes/tag/motors) myElectrical (http://myelectrical.com/notes/tag/myelectrical)
Off-Topic (http://myelectrical.com/notes/tag/off-topic) Power Quality (http://myelectrical.com/notes?tag=power+quality)
Power Systems (http://myelectrical.com/notes?tag=power+systems)
Protection (http://myelectrical.com/notes/tag/protection) Protective Devices (http://myelectrical.com/notes?tag=protective+devices)
Relays (http://myelectrical.com/notes/tag/relays) Safety (http://myelectrical.com/notes/tag/safety)
Scientists (http://myelectrical.com/notes/tag/scientists) Software (http://myelectrical.com/notes/tag/software)
Standards (http://myelectrical.com/notes/tag/standards) Switchboards (http://myelectrical.com/notes/tag/switchboards)
Testing (http://myelectrical.com/notes/tag/testing)
Theory (http://myelectrical.com/notes/tag/theory)
Transformers (http://myelectrical.com/notes/tag/transformers) Voltage (http://myelectrical.com/notes/tag/voltage)
Wire Sizes (http://myelectrical.com/notes?tag=wire+sizes) Writing (http://myelectrical.com/notes/tag/writing)

http://myelectrical.com/notes/entryid/16/ups-sizing-rules-of-thumb 09-05-2018
UPS Sizing - Rules of Thumb Page4of4
View All Tags (http://myelectrical.com/notes/viewtag/true)
HOME (HTTP://MYELECTRICAL.COM/) NOTES (HTTP://MYELECTRICAL.COM/NOTES) QUESTIONS (HTTP://MYELECTRICAL.COM/QUESTIONS)

TOOLS (HTTP://MYELECTRICAL.COM/TOOLS) STORE (HTTP://MYELECTRICAL.COM/STORE) SUPPORT (HTTP://MYELECTRICAL.COM/SUPPORT)

Click here to view the notes list in a table format

Have some knowledge (/notes/notes-table-view)

to share
If you have some expert knowledge or Click here to view the notes indexed by tag
experience, why not consider sharing this (/notes/notes-index-view)
with our community.

By writing an electrical note, you will be educating

our users and at the same time promoting your
expertise within the engineering community.

To get started and understand our policy, you can read

our How to Write an Electrical Note
(/notes/entryid/149/how-to-write-an-electrical-note) .

COPYRIGHT (C) 2018 MYELECTRICAL HOME (/) CONTACT (/HOME/CONTACT-US) TERMS OF USE (HTTP://MYELECTRICAL.COM/TERMS)
PRIVACY STATEMENT (HTTP://MYELECTRICAL.COM/PRIVACY)
REGISTER (HTTP://MYELECTRICAL.COM/REGISTER?RETURNURL=HTTP%3A%2F%2FMYELECTRICAL.COM%
2FNOTES)
LOGIN (HTTP://MYELECTRICAL.COM/LOGIN?RETURNURL=%2FNOTES%2FENTRYID%2F16%2FUPS-SIZING-
RULES-OF-THUMB)

http://myelectrical.com/notes/entryid/16/ups-sizing-rules-of-thumb 09-05-2018