Bad luck since I started folding again

[MisterEd]

I started folding again two weeks ago with two computers. Everything seemed to be going fine except the UPS would beep a few times a day on one computer. I couldn't figure out why. Last night the UPS started beeping a lot at 4am. Today I realized that the beeping must have signified something bad going on with power. Checking I found that both my central HVAC and refrigerator had failed. I just realized something else happened last night at 4am. I was woken up by the sound from my main TV in the living room. I was sure I had turned it off. Tonight the TV started acting up again. It started turning off and on every few seconds. It seems the TV is also starting to fail.

I have now shut down both folding computers. Is it just a coincidence that both computers were folding when several things failed in my home?

BTW, both folding computers have a UPS. Only one UPS was beeping. The beeping UPS is only 600VA. I wonder if folding caused excessive power to be drawn from it. Note the room with the computers has its own dedicated circuit to the breaker box.

 

[unsafesteagle]

Fully verify the load to the panel box. 15 or 20 amp breaker?

I had this issue last summer. The 120 volt circuit was being overdrawn. The UPS would start beeping and then both the PC would lose power and the breaker in the panel box was tripped.
This scenario was a 20 Amp breaker and the panel box was not labeled corrrectly. An interior partiton had recepticals in a different room than the labels in the panel box identified.

 

[EarthDog]

First thought was tripping a breaker...but unless I worked your house, I doubt you're folding on the same line as things in the kitchen. Still, check and make sure nothing tripped. If it is a 'too much power use' issue, you can find out by moving one system to a different circuit. If the problem doesn't happen, you knkw that was the issue.

How much power does your two systems use?

 

[Farwalker2u]

I am not an electrician. Do you know whether your electrical system has been subject to power surges due to power outages recently? Having a UPSs on each of your computers may have saved them.
Apparently, there are devices that can be installed to protect your entire house's electrical system. For example, Siemens FS140 Whole House Surge Protection ($240.00) or the Eaton CHSPT2SURGE SPD Type 2 Chsp Whole Home Surge Protector ($59.50)

From this article: https://www.bobvila.com/articles/best-whole-house-surge-protector/

The Best Whole-House Surge Protectors of 2023 By Bob Beacham | Updated Oct 26, 2022​

"Type 1 devices offer the highest level of protection from external sources and also provide general protection from internal power surges. Low-power spikes might get through, but those are generally nondestructive. These surge protectors are installed where the supply from the utility company meets the main breaker box, what’s termed the “line side.” This means power cannot get into the home without flowing through the SPD, so only safe levels of electricity make it through."

Perhaps an investment in a whole house surge protector would save you in the future from having to replace TVs, refrigerator, HVAC, and such; it could be useful.

 

[orion456]

You can have other problems with power coming into your house.

A few years ago my daughter complained that the lights were too bright in the house. I made fun of her because I claimed there is no way the lights could be any brighter today vs yesterday. While i was laughing I leaned against the aquarium light hood and suddenly burned my arm on the melting plastic of the hood. I was shocked, that aquarium had been fine for years. Suddenly my UPS started beeping and saying it was turning off external power and going on battery only. I was trying to figure out what was happening when I remembered that I had another UPS in the basement that showed the exact input voltage I took a look and to my surprise instead of 120v it showed the voltage into my house was 160v. I called the power company and they immediately sent someone out to fix the problem, a transformer problem. Meantime my aquarium light melted, my fridge died and I learned another lesson in life - my daughter learned dad isn't infallible after all.

 

[dfonda]

You can have other problems with power coming into your house.

A few years ago my daughter complained that the lights were too bright in the house. I made fun of her because I claimed there is no way the lights could be any brighter today vs yesterday. While i was laughing I leaned against the aquarium light hood and suddenly burned my arm on the melting plastic of the hood. I was shocked, that aquarium had been fine for years. Suddenly my UPS started beeping and saying it was turning off external power and going on battery only. I was trying to figure out what was happening when I remembered that I had another UPS in the basement that showed the exact input voltage I took a look and to my surprise instead of 120v it showed the voltage into my house was 160v. I called the power company and they immediately sent someone out to fix the problem, a transformer problem. Meantime my aquarium light melted, my fridge died and I learned another lesson in life - my daughter learned dad isn't infallible after all.

I appreciate what your saying. Yet that can't be the explanation. The voltage into the house (USA) is 240 volts. The main breaker should trip if it exceeds that...Otherwise house's would burn down.

If a 120V circuit read more.... Then it should be a service panel problem. IMHO.

It sounds like a loose or "open" neutral in the panel...That could lead to 160V.

 

[unsafesteagle]

I'm not an electrician. 160 volts is outta "dirty current" range aye?

 

[WhitehawkEQ]

You can have other problems with power coming into your house.

A few years ago my daughter complained that the lights were too bright in the house. I made fun of her because I claimed there is no way the lights could be any brighter today vs yesterday. While i was laughing I leaned against the aquarium light hood and suddenly burned my arm on the melting plastic of the hood. I was shocked, that aquarium had been fine for years. Suddenly my UPS started beeping and saying it was turning off external power and going on battery only. I was trying to figure out what was happening when I remembered that I had another UPS in the basement that showed the exact input voltage I took a look and to my surprise instead of 120v it showed the voltage into my house was 160v. I called the power company and they immediately sent someone out to fix the problem, a transformer problem. Meantime my aquarium light melted, my fridge died and I learned another lesson in life - my daughter learned dad isn't infallible after all.

Here is something you may or may not know, 120VAC is not the peak AC voltage, what we call 120VAC is RMS voltage. To get the peak voltage you multiply 120 by 1.414, that comes out to 169VAC peak
As to why your UPS was reading 160VAC RMS I don't know and you need to get out of that house.
RMS is the voltage that you need for a AC motor to get the same working power that a DC motor of the same voltage, like 120VDC=120VAC RMS.

 

[MisterEd]

On Saturday after everything was back to normal I checked the voltage with a good DVM. It showed 125 VAC. This morning the power company came by and verified the voltage was normal at the breaker box.

On Saturday my main TV started restarting all by itself every few seconds. After three times I used the remote to power it off. It has been OK ever since then. Note if the TV were to lose power for more than a second it should just power off until I manually turn it back on. I speculate that restarting by itself seems to be a bad or low voltage condition. Unfortunately, I have no way to verify any of this because everything seems to be back to normal now.

In any case to be on the safe side I will no longer be folding for Team 32 because this has caused me many thousands USD. With my low income it will take me years to recover.

 

[dfonda]

On Saturday after everything was back to normal I checked the voltage with a good DVM. It showed 125 VAC. This morning the power company came by and verified the voltage was normal at the breaker box.

On Saturday my main TV started restarting all by itself every few seconds. After three times I used the remote to power it off. It has been OK ever since then. Note if the TV were to lose power for more than a second it should just power off until I manually turn it back on. I speculate that restarting by itself seems to be a bad or low voltage condition. Unfortunately, I have no way to verify any of this because everything seems to be back to normal now.

In any case to be on the safe side I will no longer be folding for Team 32 because this has caused me many thousands USD. With my low income it will take me years to recover.

Sorry for the troubles...It is true that fah takes disposable income.

 

[superducky]

I'm sorry to hear that folding induced some added strain to your home electrical system, and potentially harmed some electronics, MisterEd. I agree with other posters that getting a qualified electrician to investigate is probably a wise course of action, here. 160 VAC is far out of range for household power in the US and anything you plug in is in jeopardy if that's really what is running through your wiring.

 

[EarthDog]

Yeah, the electric bill can be a kick in the pants. Sorry to hear you feel like shutting it down. Hopefully you get someone qualified out there to check it out and see what's up. I'm not a qualified electrician either, but I don't see the relationship between too high of a voltage at the house and what you're using inside it. Would love to learn what caused it...and how did this cost you thousands already?

 

[MisterEd]

I'm sorry to hear that folding induced some added strain to your home electrical system, and potentially harmed some electronics, MisterEd. I agree with other posters that getting a qualified electrician to investigate is probably a wise course of action, here. 160 VAC is far out of range for household power in the US and anything you plug in is in jeopardy if that's really what is running through your wiring.

I don't remember ever saying my voltage was 160 VAC. I believe I said it was 125 VAC which is normal.

The only symptoms with the computers was the UPS on one of the computers going off occasionally. The other computers UPS gave no alarms. It is possible the computer with the problematic UPS overloaded the UPS. I wonder if that caused chaos in the whole house's power? If it did that would surprise me since I would have suspected the UPS to simply shut down.

 

[WhitehawkEQ]

I don't remember ever saying my voltage was 160 VAC. I believe I said it was 125 VAC which is normal.

The only symptoms with the computers was the UPS on one of the computers going off occasionally. The other computers UPS gave no alarms. It is possible the computer with the problematic UPS overloaded the UPS. I wonder if that caused chaos in the whole house's power? If it did that would surprise me since I would have suspected the UPS to simply shut down.

It was Orion that said his power was 160VAC not yours
Also you don't have to fold 24/7 like us nut cases , you can fold during the day and turn off at night.