05/05/2025
How to protect your IT equipment during a power outage
With what happened in Spain and Portugal recently we thought it would be good to post some tips for businesses to follow if this happens in the UK.
What are the risks?
There are two main risks from a power outage
1: Without power, your servers, networking equipment, computers, and monitors all go dark simultaneously. This unplanned shutdown doesn't just halt productivity—it can lead to data corruption, interrupted transactions, and potential loss of unsaved work.
2: Power surge
When electricity is restored after an outage, it often returns with a significant surge of power that flows through your electrical system. This surge of power can potentially kill anything connected to a plug.
How to protect your systems?
At a minimum you should really buy plugs that have surge protection, to protect your equipment from the initial power surge. But remember they have to be replaced every 3 to 5 years.
Laptop power supplies have minimal surge protection so should also be connected to a surge protected plug.
If you are in the office and your power goes off I recommend you disconnect all electrical equipment, even if you have surge protected plugs.
If you have onsite servers or network equipment you should really protect them with an Uninterrupted Power Supply or UPS. A UPS has a battery that will give your equipment enough power to last long enough for you to switch your equipment off properly, reducing the risk of data loss or corruption.
