Question about lab's power consumption

zeppos

Hello, I've been reading this forum for a few days now and I took the courage to slowly start building my first lab.

So far I've ordered the following:

2x 2620XM 128/32 (WIC-1T each)
1x 2620XM 64/32 (WIC-1T)
2x 2950-24
1x 2950T-24

which I believe would be sufficient for my ICND1/2 exams.

I'm thinking in putting it all in a rack so I'd like to install a PDU as well. Just a very simple and cheap PDU with surge protection, not the expensive APC stuff. The truth is I don't know much about PDUs...

So I was wondering about the power consumption of these devices. I've read that there will no problem in connecting it all in just one plug, but these PDUs seem to come with ampere limitations, like 13A, 16A or even 24A.

Would a cheap 10A or 13A/230V PDU be sufficient or will I need more?

ehnde

I'm running about that much on a 15 amp Geist Rackmount Power Strip SPN064-15TL. It has 6 sockets. I got it for $9 on ebay. It's a standard 19" rackmount type.

If you're thinking about getting one of these the only catch is it's got a 3 prong twist lock. I cut it off and got an adapter at Lowe's. Works great.

okplaya

Yep, I have 6 devices on a standard surge protector from Target. Keep in mind that you'll unlikely need to have all 6 on at once for CCNA.

zeppos

Thanks for the answers. I saw that these Cisco devices consume about 1-1,5A each. And, like you said, I guess most of the times not all of them will be powered on.

I skipped the PDU and finally ordered a 7-way Bachmann rackmount power strip of 16A/230V (w/surge protection). Unfortunately cheap PDUs are not easy to come by in southeastern Europe, when the shipping cost only rises up to $40-50...

I also ordered a Startech 12U rack from Amazon.co.uk

Startech 12U 19 inch Desktop Open Frame 2 Post Rack: Amazon.co.uk: Computers & Accessories

A lot cheaper from its usual ebay price and Amazon ships it for free! Not the best of its kind but again I was not willing to pay more than $70-80 for the rack. I saw somewhere in this forum that the Startech was not recommended because it didn't seem to be very sturdy, however the manufacturer claims that it can hold up to 50kg (more than enough for my current equipment).