Hi Guys,

We bought an InFoucus IN83 and have been absolutely LOVING it so far. Anyways, during our travells between various shops deciding on what projector to buy, one place told us that we should have our projector plugged into a backup power supply incase of a power outage. His reasoning was that a sudden power outage could destroy the bulb. Is this true, or it is not necessary to hook the projector up to a UPS?

Thanks in advance,

Mark

It is a good safety precaution so that the un-natural internal heat build up that would occur immediately after a power outage doesn't cook the bulb or other internal parts ($$).

There is a reason why the fan keeps running for a few minutes after you turn off the projector. Without the air circulation the temperature would actually spike inside the unit.

It is a good safety precaution so that the un-natural internal heat build up that would occur immediately after a power outage doesn't cook the bulb or other internal parts ($$).

There is a reason why the fan keeps running for a few minutes after you turn off the projector. Without the air circulation the temperature would actually spike inside the unit.


Thanks for your reply - that makes a lot of sense (I should have thought of that haha).

Any idea what would be a good model of UPS for a home theater setup? Ideally it would look like a component and fit into the rack, and not be outrageously expensive (I would want it to cost less than a bulb, otherwise it may not be worth it).

Thanks again,

Mark

Not trying to be smart but searching the thread for UPS will get you a long discussion of various opinions. There are many brands and models with pros and cons of each.

Even the least expensive could buy you enough time to let the projector cool the bulb and shut down.

Not trying to be smart but searching the thread for UPS will get you a long discussion of various opinions. There are many brands and models with pros and cons of each.

Even the least expensive could buy you enough time to let the projector cool the bulb and shut down.

Thanks, I will do a search - I did not know this was a hot topic (pun intended haha).

Mark

It's not necessary. Unless you are paranoid.

Thanks, I will do a search - I did not know this was a hot topic (pun intended haha).

Mark

Best way to search is using advance search. There is a drop down window for "title search only"...use that filter. Limit search words to one or two. Pural variations on a word will bring up different results. Make sure to highlight the appropriate forum from the list to the right.

In this case, try both projector forums, accessories and dedicated construction forum. This topic has come up numerous times over the years. "Usually" whatever general topic one can come up with...it's been discussed at one time or another.

Good Luck

I guess it depends on where you live and how often you have power outages. I have accidentally shut off my projectors incorrectly several times and while nothing bad ever happened, I wouldnt want to rely my luck when it comes to that. The only thing I would suggest is to buy a UPS that is made for HT and not the ones built for computers

It's not necessary. Unless you are paranoid.

Aren't we all paranoid about our projectors? Why else are we here?

If spending a hundred or so to save a 3-5 hundred dollar lamp, than you can count me in the ranks of the paranoid. Interesting topic, since a lot of us have our pj's plugged into a ceiling outlet that is not directly tied into the equipment rack, than how do you back up that ceiling outlet? Do we tuck up a ups above the ceiling and plug the ups to that outlet and then to the pj? Some have a hard ceiling so the former is not even an option.

Yes, I have done a search for ups and none of the ones i've found will back up a circuit directly out of your electrical panel. Since I have a dedicated circuit for the pj, a single backup for that circuit (hard wired out of the panel) would all that would be needed. Sorry for the hijack Mark S., but your topic caught my eye and I couldn't resist :D

There's hundreds of thousands of projectors in the US.

Show me one story from one being damaged because the power went out.



Don't use your cell phone near gas pumps either. You might die a fiery death :rolleyes:

Tryg

I have no idea whether it makes a difference or not, but the theory is that it decreases lifetime not that it causes instant failure.

Some projector manuals seem to imply this when they say not to unplug the PJ until the cooling cycle ends or you could suffer premature lamp failure or shortened lifetime.

Why do they program a cooling cycle if it serves no purpose?

There's hundreds of thousands of projectors in the US.

Show me one story from one being damaged because the power went out.



Don't use your cell phone near gas pumps either. You might die a fiery death :rolleyes:

OK: we use projectors in some of the products we sell. We have had several cases of bulbs blowing when the power went out suddenly to the system. These were Epson mid-price business/multimedia projectors (about $10K each). Out of 25 or so projectors, possibly 3 or 4 bulbs blown as a result of 30 or so power failures/emergency shutdown "events" (where an event is one projector getting power lost). I've also personally heard a bulb blow on two occasions when using regular business desk-top projectors when someone has accidentally kicked out the power plugs.

Absence of evidence is not evidence of absence. Most people won't lose power enough times over the lifetime of the projector to suffer a blown bulb. However, I bet there are plenty of people that have suffered a blown bulb from power outage - they just don't post here on AVS to report it (most probably because they are not AVS members).

IMHO, and IME (in my experience), YMMV,

shinksma

I thought the primary reason for the fan running after shutting down the projector was to reduce the cool down time, so that the projector can be restarted much sooner, not to save the machine from overheating.

Bottom line, if the projector cycles through a cooling mode AFTER you click the off button then there's a reason the manufacturer designed it that way. It's cheap insurance to cough up the the few dollars for the ups and just call it a day. How's that old sayiing go- stumble over dollars to save a dime? No, a backup is not necessary but sure as s**t that power will go out sometime and possible just take out the lamp or pj, then what did you save...

Why do they program a cooling cycle if it serves no purpose?

Of course the cooling cycle serves a purpose. It protects circuits from overheating and getting damaged when you power down the bulb.

Will an occasional power out destroy your projector? not likely. Would it harm the surrounding circuits if it didn't exhaust the heat every time you powered down from regular usage? probably.

It's about how often. every projector is different.

Does your cars engine get harmed every time you start it and the oil is just sitting in the bottom of the pan? yes. Why dont they put an oil pre-circulator to reduce this wear and tear? not necessary


Unless your power goes out once a month I wouldn't worry about it

OK: we use projectors in some of the products we sell. We have had several cases of bulbs blowing when the power went out suddenly to the system. These were Epson mid-price business/multimedia projectors (about $10K each). Out of 25 or so projectors, possibly 3 or 4 bulbs blown as a result of 30 or so power failures/emergency shutdown "events" (where an event is one projector getting power lost). I've also personally heard a bulb blow on two occasions when using regular business desk-top projectors when someone has accidentally kicked out the power plugs.

Absence of evidence is not evidence of absence. Most people won't lose power enough times over the lifetime of the projector to suffer a blown bulb. However, I bet there are plenty of people that have suffered a blown bulb from power outage - they just don't post here on AVS to report it (most probably because they are not AVS members)

IMHO, and IME (in my experience), YMMV,

shinksma

Hey thats alot of power power outages. You guys get them from the storms, how many each year?

When you say 3 or 4 bulbs blown from 30 or so power outages, are you saying the pjs with the blown bulbs had several outages before the bulb blew, or did some/all occur from one outage?

Some people here seem to think cutting the power to the bulb harms it. FALSE
In fact there is only one way to turn the bulb off...cut the power to it!

The bulb is perfectly capable of handling extreme heat. The fan is there to protect the other circuits and projector internals.

Some people here seem to think cutting the power to the bulb harms it. FALSE
In fact there is only one way to turn the bulb off...cut the power to it!

The bulb is perfectly capable of handling extreme heat. The fan is there to protect the other circuits and projector internals.

Thats good to know since I've tripped over the chord over a dozen times causing aburpt outages, and had a few power outages as well and its still going strong

The fan is there to protect the other circuits and projector internals.

The internals (polarizers etc.) are what concern me. Being paranoid about the life expectancy of the PJ the $72.00 spent on a UPS seems well worth the potential peace of mind I could convince my self it should give me LOL

We each have to deal with our fears in our own way :)

BTW how long (hrs) do you think a 6500UB should last if it's given respect and TLC.

BTW how long (hrs) do you think a 6500UB should last if it's given respect and TLC.


Just long enough till you want to upgrade. So about 1 year :)

Just long enough till you want to upgrade. So about 1 year :)


Yea that's what every one says but that's not the kind of income bracket I'm in. And really I wish that weren't so. But sad reality is I have to think in terms of cost of ownership over time, so life expectancy really is a critically important issue for me. :(

Hell you haven't even been around here long enough to make those kind of determinations. Please, just let the more experienced addicts dictate how you will think and act in the future ;)

Since you've been here 6 months I'm pretty sure you are well on your way to neurotic addiction :)

Hey I neurotically obsessed over what speakers to get for over a year. LOL I've had them for five years now and have not the slightest interest in trading them in. I expect the same for my "TV" selection.

I expect the same for my "TV" selection.

Don't be so sure :eek:

Don't be so sure :eek:

Our last TV was a 50" Hitachi Ultravision that lasted 10 years. It died last month. Only in the past 6 months had I begun to think about replacing her. And that was probably what broker her heart and killed the poor old thing.:rolleyes:

I agree, and for that matter I have been in my house for two and a half years and have not lost my power once. Oh and if you lose power you have to watching something on the projector when the power goes out. If the storm is that bad I won't been sitting in front of my big screen. I will be watching the cheap TV... :-)

I must be one of the paranoid ones... haha. I have a double conversion UPS made by TrippLite for both of my projectors. So far no problems with blown bulbs.

The bulb is perfectly capable of handling extreme heat. The fan is there to protect the other circuits and projector internals.

The bulb is ok with the extreme heat but those other internal parts might suffer on the projector if you have a power cut and the cooling process doesn't start....Better to be safe than sorry...

As an example let's say you are in a marathon film watching session and intend to keep the projector on for eight hours....It's a reasonably hot day and the internal temperature shows up in your onscreen menu as being very high after running it for almost eight hours but whooa whats this at the seven hour and fifty fourth minute the power cuts and the projector switches off.....Well it's real hot at this point....I would be worried.

Oh and it's not just storms that can cause power cuts.

The UPS could also be used as an additional extra to your home cinema kit to finish watching the movie all dependent on which type you buy....I wonder how much extra it would cost the manufacturers to throw something like a UPS into each projector as standard policy.

As an example let's say you are in a marathon film watching session and intend to keep the projector on for eight hours....It's a reasonably hot day and the internal temperature shows up in your onscreen menu as being very high after running it for almost eight hours but whooa whats this at the seven hour and fifty fourth minute the power cuts and the projector switches off.....Well it's real hot at this point....I would be worried..

I'd be more worried if the projector couldn't maintain a safe temperature inside whether it was on for 40 minutes, or 40 hours.

And given the size of the batteries in a UPS, coupled with the weight, the added circuitry, I'm not in favor of a built-in UPS.

I use two APC J15's in my system. I bought them when I moved to FL and experienced random brown outs frequently. The power would just flip off for a few seconds and just flip back on. In this case, it made sense b/c I have always heard that you should wait a while before turning a projector back on. Plus, it alleviated my worries about a prematurely blown bulb and cleans and regulates the power.

I'd be more worried if the projector couldn't maintain a safe temperature inside whether it was on for 40 minutes, or 40 hours.

Yes and I'd be very surprised if it took as much as an hour for a PJ to reach equilibrium temperature..

Besides dealing with the issue of damaged equipment, it is my understanding that clean power will also improve picture quality.

Besides dealing with the issue of damaged equipment, it is my understanding that clean power will also improve picture quality.


That would be a misunderstanding, in general.

There's a certain writer in Widescreen Review that seems to practically make a living "reviewing" power conditioners in that mag.

There's much more to a high end UPS than just keeping it going long enough to cool down. I have a giant APC rack mount UPS in my theater equipment rack. It runs everything in my theater and is accessable from and programmed to trigger a event in my Crestron system to shut down my projector and theater in a timely way so as to not cause any harm. It also kicks in when brown-out's and spikes occure with features called "smart trim and smart boost". Over the last 20 years, I've had more then my share of equipment failures due to power problems but none since I installed my big UPS. There's much more at stake then just a projector in a high end home theater. If Tryg thinks there's no value in protection, he's sadly mistaken:rolleyes:

If Tryg thinks there's no value in protection, he's sadly mistaken:rolleyes:

Or you've got much less reliable power than he does.

There's a certain writer in Widescreen Review that seems to practically make a living "reviewing" power conditioners in that mag.


But has he ever measured any of the improvements that he claims, or tried to isolate the source of the claimed effects? I quit reading it after the first review that I saw that was nothing but subjective blather. IMO, the only thing I ever read in that Mag that was worth my time were the reviews by Greg Rogers of displays.

There's much more to a high end UPS than just keeping it going long enough to cool down. I have a giant APC rack mount UPS in my theater equipment rack. It runs everything in my theater and is accessable from and programmed to trigger a event in my Crestron system to shut down my projector and theater in a timely way so as to not cause any harm. It also kicks in when brown-out's and spikes occure with features called "smart trim and smart boost". Over the last 20 years, I've had more then my share of equipment failures due to power problems but none since I installed my big UPS. There's much more at stake then just a projector in a high end home theater. If Tryg thinks there's no value in protection, he's sadly mistaken:rolleyes:

As a tech who has repaired hundreds of units damaged by lightning and power surges, I know that there is great value in protection. I also know that you can protect equipment with inexpensive surge protectors and that expensive UPS and power conditioners are rarely needed. We have hundreds of installs that never have problems, using only reasonably priced protection. I have never been able to document the efficacy of filtering in improving the video of any system unless there was a severe noise source. Even then, it can usually be dealt with with good grounding practice.

Or you've got much less reliable power than he does.


Perhaps I do have less reliable power than he. My UPS is a $500.00 bought on e-bay insurance policy that I can live with. It's also neat to be in my theater when a power outage occures. Other then a warning that pops up on my Crestron touch screen, there is no interruption in the movie watching experiance:D

Hey thats alot of power power outages. You guys get them from the storms, how many each year?

When you say 3 or 4 bulbs blown from 30 or so power outages, are you saying the pjs with the blown bulbs had several outages before the bulb blew, or did some/all occur from one outage?

Finally getting back to responding:

The projectors in question were in the Toronto area (my previous location), used in simulators and training equipment, and the power outages were the result of two primary causes: CBs tripping due to too much load (lots of equipment running simultaneously and something finally getting grumpy) killing all units at once; and folks accidentally tripping the safety kill-switch on a particular unit. And one (maybe two) real power outages.

Some PJs had multiple outages prior to the bulb blowing, some were first-time lucky. Kinda like getting pregnant. ;)

Maybe these were prone to failure more often than is typical in the industry, but nonetheless were the none-zero events being solicited.

shinksma

If anyone is curious, we found a Tripp Lite home theater/computer UPC/surge protector at COSTCO for around $150 or so. It sits sideways and fits nicely in our rack. It will also protect cable and ethernet. We plugged our projector and PVR into the battery back up, and left the rest out so we would know if we had a power outage. It is rated at I think 500W, and claims a 180min backup time for home theaters (not sure I believe that!) but all we need is enough time to properly shut down the projector. Chances are nothing would ever happen anyways that would ruin the projector, but for $150 we figured what the hell.

Mark

I'm about to order the TRIPP LITE INTERNET750U 750 VA 450 Watts 8 NEMA 5 for a little less than half that. Only the PJ will be on it. Thoughts, other than than I'm paranoid ( I know that LOL).