Research: 5V USB UPS (Power Backup Systems)

[rootzoll]

I node running in production should be protected from (short) power outages. Like blackouts in cities, downtimes of re-newable powersources or you just unplugging the wrong cable at home. So this is a research topic to look into for the future - input and prototypes welcome.

This wiki shows some inspiration on how to get a UPS for a RaspberryPi going:
https://www.enigma14.eu/wiki/5V_UPS_for_Raspberry_Pi

First step would be to check at least if simple USB Powerbanks can be a first quick and cheap option.

[rootzoll]

Check this Video: "5v USB UPS Module - 12v Solar Shed"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jecgoBqOrhk

[born2los3built2win]

Pijuice hat
Output voltage - 3.3V and 5V
https://uk.pi-supply.com/products/pijuice-standard

[rootzoll]

@PapaCoderNit nice :D will see when back in stock to try out.

[rootzoll]

Also the Pi-Juice seems to have good software support:
https://github.com/PiSupply/PiJuice

But around 60 EUR - thats half the RaspiBlitz ;)

[fluidvoice]

Also the Pi-Juice seems to have good software support:
https://github.com/PiSupply/PiJuice

But around 60 EUR - thats half the RaspiBlitz ;)

Great if you need all that functionality but seems overkill for 99% of people that just need battery backup for power failure. Better to be an outboard solution that any SBC can use with any case. HAT's are too restrictive depending on which case and other HAT's you have.

[rootzoll]

Just investing a bit more (around 80 EUR) and you get a standalone UPS at amazon:
https://www.amazon.de/dp/B00T7BYRCK

With such a device you can power backup the Router AND the RaspiBlitz - and procides the chance to even keep your internet up. Router+Blitz should be around 20 Watt - so it should give you around 1,5h power backup. Also it has USB port to connect to the Raspberry and someone could write a small script/service to shutdown the Blitz once the UPS signals low power over USB.

But also still interested if someone can recommend a cheap power bank that is able to load and procide at the same time - that would be the most low cost solution to protect the blitz against small power outages.

[rootzoll]

The cheapest solution to protect your RaspiBlitz against Power Outages seems still to go with a simple Powerbank that supports "Charge Through" / "Durchgangsladung" .. being able to load and provide at the same time without breakup of power (no switching time) when the main power goes off.

This site shows a great test setup:
https://raspi-ups.appspot.com/en/index.jsp
And there is the interesting idea, that the RaspiPi can detect a power outage by the Network Connection going down for a certain time.

HELP WANTED: We have to find a cheapest brand name Powerbank to order from Amazon, that supports 'Charge Through'. Everything under 20 USD with Prime delivery should be valid. Please post your test-results and Amazon links here or on twitter with @rootzoll - much thanks.

[rootzoll]

An idea to keep in mind: If the RaspiBlitz has a Powerbank UPS and detects a Network Outage it could at least shutdown the LND/Bitcoin services so that the state of the Lightning Node is stored secure to the HDD, reduces Power Consumption and keeps monitoring if the Network is coming back to restart the LND/Bitcoin services.

[unic0der]

HELP WANTED: We have to find a cheapest brand name Powerbank to order from Amazon, that supports 'Charge Through'. Everything under 20 USD with Prime delivery should be valid. Please post your test-results and Amazon links here or on twitter with @rootzoll - much thanks.

Most powerbanks with "charge-through" that I have seen actually break up the power (for a few milliseconds or even a full second) while switching from mains to battery. Not even sure if ones that don't do that exist. In any case, it's never advertised or part of a spec sheet. So we might have to do trial-and-error buying until we find a suitable powerbank.

With a bit tinkering/modding though, even a powerbank with a short switching-time might be feasible. Depending on the power requirements of the storage connected to the Pi an additional larger cap as part of the Pis power supply might help. Idea here: http://www.johnes.eu/rpi/pages/power/kondensator.php