Old UPS, still good ?

[Markfw]

So, 7 years ago when I unplugged this from the wall (it was my dads, he died) it seemed to be be fine. So now I have a need for it. If I plug it in and turn it on, immediately it says "replace battery" and beeps like crazy. If I leave it plugged in, but turned off, will it charge the battery, and thats actually the problem ? How long does it need to charge if thats it ?

 

[VirtualLarry]

No, batteries last 3-5 years, less if not charged. You'll have to replace them.

 

[13Gigatons]

Lead Acid batteries need to be maintain or they go bad, 7 years is way to long. Replace the battery for $20+ from one on Amazon and it should be OK.

 

[XavierMace]

3 years is the general guideline for UPS batteries. Also, I have to point out that if this is your typical basic UPS from BestBuy, you're probably better off replacing it. If it's for one of the units in your sig, make sure it's even got enough power to run your rig.

 

[13Gigatons]

3 years is the general guideline for UPS batteries.

My UPS batteries lasted 10 years before needing replacing. It's how you use them that matters. I have the computer go into hibernation mode after a couple of minutes during a blackout. That way the battery does not fully discharge. Most lead acid batteries can only be recharge/discharge about 100 times before going dead.

 

[BradC]

As others have said, the batteries will be toast.

Sealed Lead Acid batteries as used in UPS units die two ways (outside of a catastrophic mechanical failure anyway).
A) Sulfation. If the cells are left under charged the lead sulfate that develops on the plates slowly turns into a much harder form which is for all intents and purposes impossible to reverse, leading to high internal resistance and the inability to re-charge. It does not take much undercharge to lead to sulfation.
B) Plate corrosion. This happens as a natural part of the charging process. A *lot* (like the majority) of UPS units float the batteries at the highest possible rated float voltage to try and extract the maximum runtime out of them. This naturally leads to plate corrosion, and as the plates corrode they lose active plate material reducing the quantity of charge the battery can hold.

So undercharge them and kill them with sulfation, overcharge them and rapidly corrode the plates or charge them properly as per the manufacturers data sheet and they'll die of one or both in time.

I too have some UPS batteries here that have > 10 years on them, but they are very expensive purpose built long life batteries and in a UPS that takes very good care of them (ie does not float charge, manages temperature and properly temperature compensates the charging voltage). Most consumer/prosumer/office UPS will kill a set of batteries in 3-5 years even with almost no discharge cycles purely by temperature and plate corrosion.

Batteries that have been left discharged (and they will self discharge pretty quickly even if left disconnected) for a matter of weeks will often be so sulfated as to be toast. If the UPS is worth saving, ehuck 'em and buy new ones.

 

[XavierMace]

My UPS batteries lasted 10 years before needing replacing. It's how you use them that matters. I have the computer go into hibernation mode after a couple of minutes during a blackout. That way the battery does not fully discharge. Most lead acid batteries can only be recharge/discharge about 100 times before going dead.

Just because your batteries lasted 10 years, doesn't mean that's a normal lifecycle, hence why it's called a guideline. APC quotes 3 years for good reason on both their consumer and business UPS's. Given you stated right before my post that 7 years is way too long, I'm not even sure why you're trying to argue.

 

[Red Squirrel]

Yep try new batteries and it might be good to go. Gel cells don't tend to have great life and seem to outright die instead of just degrade, but they can be cheap enough to get from local electrical distributors. Online they often cost too much due to shipping. Mine seem to last around 5 years or so. I think environment plays a big role. I don't know if cheap off the shelf UPSes are smart enough to do temperature compensated float charging.

If the UPS itself is failed, well they do have some fun parts in there to desolder. The big hunking transformer also makes for a nice door stop. Make sure you discharge any capacitors before playing around in there though. Normally they'll have a bleed resistor but always good to double check.

 

[13Gigatons]

Just because your batteries lasted 10 years, doesn't mean that's a normal lifecycle, hence why it's called a guideline. APC quotes 3 years for good reason on both their consumer and business UPS's. Given you stated right before my post that 7 years is way too long, I'm not even sure why you're trying to argue.

He didn't charge the battery for 7 years. That will ruin any lead acid battery. Most batteries will last 5+ years if kept charged up and not allowed to discharge too much. My PC's go into hibernation mode after a couple of minutes during a blackout.
The only UPS that gets abuse is the one attached to the router & switch. The battery in that only last a couple years before needing to be replaced. Last time it died I just bought a larger replacement model that was on sale.

 

[Hans Gruber]

I have my main computer on a Tripp Lite UPS. Have replaced the battery once and I have a backup battery in reserve. Buy in bulk, then you don't have to worry.

 

[WilliamM2]

I have my main computer on a Tripp Lite UPS. Have replaced the battery once and I have a backup battery in reserve. Buy in bulk, then you don't have to worry.

Batteries will die just sitting in storage, even if you charge them once a month or so. Best to buy them when you need them, and no sooner.

 

[HutchinsonJC]

I have a 6 year old CyberPower CP1500PFCLCD UPS that I bought in February of 2012 that's been the UPS on my personal main rig with pretty close to 100% up time (aside from things like windows updates) and it still gets ~8mins of backup time while running F@H on the GPU (down from about 15 when it was brand new). I've purchased close to 15 more UPS of the same brand (CP850PFCLCD) since March 2017 that are all on actively used machines from day to day, so I'll get to see how they hold up on a bigger scale over the next few years. My expectation is that they will be good for 5 years, easy.

Other than that, I agree that batteries that just sit there unused will go bad in fairly short order, in part because basically all battery chemistries have a self-discharge rate while sitting unused. Some chemistries are worse than others. Once a lead acid battery hits a level of discharge where sulfation kicks in, it's pretty much done sir done for that battery if left in that condition... and something like 7 years with a battery left unused will definitely leave the battery pretty much unusable.

 

[Hans Gruber]

In defense of my previous post. i have 3 identical Tripp-Lite UPS battery backups. Similar to the Cyber Power UPS listed above. I buy my batteries in bulk at the modest price of I think around $10 a pop. I am waiting for one of my two other battery backups to fail requiring a new battery. I am not losing sleep as to when that happens.

I have a garage door opener with battery backup as well.I relish the days when power goes out simply so I can open and close my garage door countless times confusing my neighbors as to why their garage doors do not open with the absence of power.

 

[bigboxes]

I appreciate the replies. This is qualifies as the new thing I learned today. I always replace my UPS batteries every 3-5 years and now know why.

 

[BonzaiDuck]

I'm sure there are lots of good battery replacement outfits to choose from.

I'm only volunteering information based on my satisfaction with this one:

RefurbUPS

I have some UPS units that must be ten years old or older. As long as the electronics within them continues working properly, you only need to replace the batteries. So a battery kit costing maybe $25 in a kit will give new life to a UPS that may have had a price-tag of $150.

 

[IndyColtsFan]

I appreciate the replies. This is qualifies as the new thing I learned today. I always replace my UPS batteries every 3-5 years and now know why.

This. The 3-5 year number is the right number to use. You may have a UPS that has older batteries and isn't telling you to replace them, but you might find out that the batteries are junk once the power goes out and you actually need the UPS to work.

I have several APC units, including 3 SmartUPS 900 models I bought around 20 years ago for $5 each at a company "garage sale." I have a spreadsheet and track all of the battery dates in the spreadsheet and now, when I replace them, I also print a label and stick it on the top of the UPS with the last replacement date.

 

[Red Squirrel]

On small UPSes I tend to just run them until they fail and deal with it then. But I don't tend to put stuff that's too critical on those. For my big UPS that does my servers, I sometimes turn the breaker off to run a test then watch the voltage for about an hour to see how fast it goes down. Flooded cells are more reliable though. I don't have much control over the charge cycle as the inverter-charger is not really that fancy, so doing this also sorta forces an equalize charge.