Types of Power Problems

Different types of power problems and their effects:

Power Surges: These are voltage spikes above 110% of the rated RMS voltage range, lasting one or more cycles. They are caused by the turning off of heavy electrical equipment and can result in memory loss, data errors, flickering lights, and equipment shutdowns.
High Voltage Spikes: These are rapid voltage peaks reaching up to 6,000 volts with a duration of 100 milliseconds to 1/2 cycle. They are caused by lightning strikes, switching operations, arcing faults, and static discharge and can result in memory loss, data errors, data loss, component stress, and burned circuit boards.
Switching Transients: These are rapid voltage peaks up to 20,000 volts with a duration of 10 milliseconds to 100 milliseconds. They are caused by lightning strikes, switching operations, arcing faults, and static discharge and can result in memory loss, data errors, data loss, component stress, and burned circuit boards.
Power Sags: These are voltage drops below 80% to 85% of the rated RMS voltage for one or more cycles. They are caused by the turning on of heavy equipment, starting large electrical motors, or switching power mains and can result in memory loss, data errors, flickering lights, and equipment shutoff.
Frequency Variation: This refers to a change in frequency of more than 3 Hz. It is caused by erratic operation of emergency power generators or unstable frequency power sources and can result in data errors, data loss, keyboard lockup, storage loss, and system lockup.
Brownout: This is a steady state of RMS voltage below the nominal value by a relatively constant percentage. It is caused by heavy equipment being turned on, starting large electrical motors, switching power mains, or over-loaded circuits and can result in disk crash, keyboard lockup, program failures, data corruption, premature hardware failure, data loss, and corruption.
Power Failures: This is a zero-voltage condition lasting for more than two cycles. It is caused by a circuit breaker tripping, power distribution failure, or utility power failure and can result in file corruption, hardware damage, and data loss and corruption.
System Personnel: This refers to someone who tends to forget things or be absent-minded. They can cause incorrect operation of equipment and UPS/power products, which usually leads to heart failure in company accountants.