Someone finally did it. - Page 2 - RC-Monster Forums

2genewb · **you're welcomed -** 08.21.2011, 01:05 PM

in the end it's your call. your point on the safety of lipo might be valid, but i'm not that paranoid. nor do i assume anyone posting in this thread is likely to burn their house down with one.

simply put, the insurance companies have to qualify any reasoning for not paying your claim. in the event it's possible they can't do so, it's only going to cost them more if the victim is intelligent, educated and driven enough to fight it. if they see lack of intelligence and drive, they're going to run you over no matter what equipment failed.

you're right... they are among the most profitable businesses. they didn't become that way by fighting frivolous, useless battles, either. that would highly effect the bottom line and they're very weary of that whether you'd like to believe it or not.

the squeaky wheel gets the lube. people who don't fight their insurance companies get the shaft all the time. people who call their local news station and get their story on the 10 o'clock news get immediate action. it's your choice.

if you're not interested in the battle, buy what you want... but in the event it fails, hire professionals with good reputations to fight your fight for you. if it appeals to you, that's your prerogative. if i ever need anything even remotely close to this power, i won't be buying this unless i first put a dedicated 240V line with a dedicated breaker in my house, personally. adding the almost $600 price tag to that work is good motivation for me to just wire up a couple server PSU's, but that's just me. i won't knock you for your decision.

i have stated how it's done 99% of the time and how public adjusters win your case for you. if that's not good enough for you, that's acceptable to me. i've seen it, i've done it, i'm sure i'll be in a position to do it again eventually. take that for what it's worth, but i'd rather not argue the information i put up for the benefit of others any further.

_paralyzed_ · 08.22.2011, 06:22 AM

12 volts dc is 12 volts dc, and a power supply is a power supply. The power supply in question wasn't "designed for lipos", it was designed to supply power.

magman · 08.22.2011, 10:25 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by _paralyzed_

12 volts dc is 12 volts dc, and a power supply is a power supply. The power supply in question wasn't "designed for lipos", it was designed to supply power.

Good point....what you do with that power is up to you

JERRY2KONE · **Opinion -** 08.22.2011, 11:02 AM

Everyone has an opinion but just because you believe that it should be viewed that way, does not make it so. I get what your saying and I agree to a point. A PSU is a PSU, right? The second you have to modify wiring, or any of the components of a peice of electronic equipment that was designed for a specific purpose in order to make it work for your personal desire it no longer meets the intended use prescribed by the manufacturer. Regardless of how simple you may think the modification is, or whether it is still being used to convert power or not. Yes the PSU still converts power, but computer server PSU's were not designed for charging batteries regardless of whether you or I think it will make no difference to its operation. We can split hairs all day long arguing back and forth trying to make each others point heard, but when you are dealing with the letter of the law in a law suit there has to be no doubt that whatever modification you might do meets the intended use of the manufacturer. I can garuntee you that no manufacturer will stand behind your changes to his design if burns down a house.

This particular disagreement reminds me of the "No helmet" laws in various states. Yes millions of motorcycle riders ride every single day without squashing their mellons, but there are still motorcycle deaths every week atributed to not wearing a helmet. You may use your home made rig every day to charge your Lipos and never ever have a problem with it, but if it does short circuit and burn your home down or even kill someone in the process you will be kicking yourself in the arse every single day after you lose everything in a fire caused by your insistance that it is OK. Just call me the Devil's advocate.

snellemin · 08.22.2011, 11:54 AM

The Server power supplies are top of the line products. Not some dinky crap that goes into consumer pc's.

If the server power supplies fail into a fire, boy that is just a lawsuit on the PSU company. These power supplies go into expensive servers that store valuable information. There are multiple safety features installed to prevent the psu to go into catastrophic failure. And if it does fail, there are backups.

If there are any electrical shorts, the server PSU just turns off or does not supply output. A good charger will do the same. So the only thing left is your batteries that can go up in flames, which can be taken care of with a lipo bag. MA knows this too, which is why they sell their 24V server setup. It's dummy proof.

bruce750i · 08.22.2011, 01:55 PM

$20 12vdc or $600 12vdc. I'm not going to bed charging at 5c anyways. I'll still be around baby-sitting lipos as I work.

JERRY2KONE · **Correct -** 08.22.2011, 01:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by snellemin

The Server power supplies are top of the line products. Not some dinky crap that goes into consumer pc's.

If the server power supplies fail into a fire, boy that is just a lawsuit on the PSU company. These power supplies go into expensive servers that store valuable information. There are multiple safety features installed to prevent the psu to go into catastrophic failure. And if it does fail, there are backups.

If there are any electrical shorts, the server PSU just turns off or does not supply output. A good charger will do the same. So the only thing left is your batteries that can go up in flames, which can be taken care of with a lipo bag. MA knows this too, which is why they sell their 24V server setup. It's dummy proof.

Once again you are correct. The PSU's that are being used are some of the best on the market. No argument there. BUT when you jerry-rig two of them together with a couple pieces of wire you completely bypass the safe design put into these PSU's by the manufacturer to keep them from failing. These PSU's are made to be inserted into a server cabinet where they do not touch anything else, and the connections are made in a very specific way. In fact I am willing to bet that the manufacturer has provided specific instructions with these when they are packaged new that state if they are used in any other configuration not prescribed by them that it is a violation of its intended use, which relieves them of any responsibility for failure and/or any incident caused by such a violation including but not limited to fire.

Like was said before your going to do whatever your going to do. You may never have a problem. Best of luck.

snellemin · 08.22.2011, 02:33 PM

600 bucks is hard to swallow for just a 2000W capacity. Profit margin is huge on this thing.

2genewb · 08.22.2011, 05:04 PM

once you plug this thing in all bets are off in the event of a fire. you're starting with the same predicament as you would with a modified power supply. the chance that something is going to be used outside of what it's made for. only in this case, if you harness the full 2000 watts on a (one) 110V line, it's your house that probably wasn't made for the application. it's all too easy to guess wrong about which outlets aren't on the same breaker.

if you have anything else plugged into the line that feeds back to the same breaker, you're just asking for it.

just to reiterate; i like the concept. the product looks to be very useful and versatile. the price is actually competitive for a ready made model, actually.

i just think that;
1) it's an accident waiting to happen selling this to your average joe in a home most likely comprised of 110v 15 amp lines.
2) anyone capable of putting together the server power supplies is much more likely to be capable of operating this thing within it's safety constraints.
3) the PS's can be had for 1/10 the price.
4) i like tinkering... especially when it can save me 90% or more of the price of a NIB component i can make myself.

for the record... my "argument" (it was supposed to be friendly/helpful information from an industry professional) is 100% sound for every homeowner who's ever faced the insurance company with the help of my associates and i. i'd hate to tell you what some of them got paid for when it comes to the blatant misuse of microwaves alone.

1truckerdan · 08.22.2011, 05:19 PM

If they are selling it on line at amainhobbies doesn't it HAVE to be UL listed?
Just a thought.
Daniel

JThiessen · 05:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 1truckerdan

If they are selling it on line at amainhobbies doesn't it HAVE to be UL listed?
Just a thought.
Daniel

Not as far as I know - we have equipment inspected at work to make some items UL.

2genewb · 08.22.2011, 05:23 PM

underwriters laboratories cannot keep you from plugging 2 plugs into the same breaker.

simplechamp · 08.22.2011, 06:23 PM

I do think the manual should include a note about ensuring the input circuit can handle the potential high load. They definitely could be leaving themselves open to some legal problems by not addressing that.

That said, I think it's 100% the consumers responsibility to understand the risks of any product they use. There are countless scenarios in which a product can be used, the manual can't possibly address all of them. This is where the consumer has to take over using common sense and research to find out what is safe. Sadly, I don't think many share this view, judging by how "sue happy" our society is. Why take responsibility for your own bad judgement when you can blame it on someone else and make money in the process?

_paralyzed_ · 08.22.2011, 11:30 PM

why is a house burning down even brought up in this discussion? I don't think a power supply has been the cause of a house fire ever anywhere in the history of the world. Feel free to prove me wrong.

Why not argue liability if the power supply were used as a blunt instrument in a murder?

Why not argue that this power supply is a terrorist? Apparently server power supplies are weapons of mass destruction

It's an awesome power supply Jerry, and would look great on my bench. But it is the difference between driving an old beat up Ford and driving a porsche.

If you can afford and want to have the porsche of power supplies do it! I'm sticking with my rusty trusty Ford. If I had unlimited income I'd have 2 and a dedicated 220v outlet!

josh9mille · 08.23.2011, 08:02 PM

Like i said earlier, if you want to spend more money on a power supply than you really need to, get the MA unit (for around 1/3 the price of that other one). If it burns your house down then you can show the insurance company who made it and designed it. Then it would be up to the insurance co to go after MA.