My APC 12V 140Wh Lithium UPS is dying. Both it and the 120V leaden ones for long run time are long discontinued. The last power outage was about 3+ hours, and my system failed. The older gear was good for 8-12 hours originally (3 separate UPS in 2 locations). Most all of the modern leaden UPS are only good for 60-90 minutes due to the cheesy designs. Generator power is not feasible. I found some low capacity Chinese Li-ion 12V UPS in the Jungle store, but the quality and safety is dubious. I don't want a conflagration. Thanks for any product ideas.
Low powered UPS
- Thread starter LunarMist
- Start date
CougTek
Hairy Aussie
I only consider on-line UPS to protect my equipment. AFAIK, line-interactive UPS won't properly protect against brown-outs. The cheapest models I can find are those :
The prices I see are in the order I placed them above. None are cheap, but I suspect the hardware you want to protect isn't either.
The prices I see are in the order I placed them above. None are cheap, but I suspect the hardware you want to protect isn't either.
Thanks, but the first two links are bad. The third one is rather pricey and unfortunately my post was not so clear.
I don't know how much the telco Fibre equipment costs, but I'm not concerned about that. I just don't want to be without internet/TV/VOPI (phone) during the longer power failures we have. My computer stuff is on the old-school TrippLite 1500VA with internal batteries+external battery pack (total 6x 12V 8Ah) that I just replaced last summer. Unfortunately that room is a distance from where the fibrous gear is, and I'm not moving it. Connectivity is with hardwired ethernet from the Wi-Fi and that works fine at 1GbE for internet and video.
I have three power setups for the Fibre equipment (two total for the ONT, Wi-Fi and phone) and another one for the main STB that contains the DVR function (about 20 feet from the main equipment). The main STB was on the APC lithium that was nice and compact, whereas the first two are goofy lead-based sitting by the Fibre equipment. I know everybody probably thinks that the DVR is archaic, but I like to record the LIVE sports and many of the programs are not like a TV show that you can stream yourself later on.
I don't know how much the telco Fibre equipment costs, but I'm not concerned about that. I just don't want to be without internet/TV/VOPI (phone) during the longer power failures we have. My computer stuff is on the old-school TrippLite 1500VA with internal batteries+external battery pack (total 6x 12V 8Ah) that I just replaced last summer. Unfortunately that room is a distance from where the fibrous gear is, and I'm not moving it. Connectivity is with hardwired ethernet from the Wi-Fi and that works fine at 1GbE for internet and video.
I have three power setups for the Fibre equipment (two total for the ONT, Wi-Fi and phone) and another one for the main STB that contains the DVR function (about 20 feet from the main equipment). The main STB was on the APC lithium that was nice and compact, whereas the first two are goofy lead-based sitting by the Fibre equipment. I know everybody probably thinks that the DVR is archaic, but I like to record the LIVE sports and many of the programs are not like a TV show that you can stream yourself later on.
What about an alternate suggestion to augment what you already have with your current ups setup...
What if you kept your ups but plugged it into something like an EcoFlow Delta 2 or Delta 2 max? That could give you another1-2kwh or go for the pro which allows you to expand to to 25kwh. Keeping the ups in the chain allows for the fast switch over to battery if the EcoFlow is slow to respond.
us.ecoflow.com
What if you kept your ups but plugged it into something like an EcoFlow Delta 2 or Delta 2 max? That could give you another1-2kwh or go for the pro which allows you to expand to to 25kwh. Keeping the ups in the chain allows for the fast switch over to battery if the EcoFlow is slow to respond.
EcoFlow
Get power outage ready, go-off-grid and more with EcoFlow portable power stations & solar panels. Click to learn more!
us.ecoflow.com
My 12142 APC is kaput it seems. Somehow it kept running 8 hours even though only 750g and 3x4x4".
I have looked at those large power bank/solaris generators, but it is not clear if they can constantly run and pass through 12V when being powered by the 120VAC. The whole point is that it has to run all the time, whether I am in country or not.
I have looked at those large power bank/solaris generators, but it is not clear if they can constantly run and pass through 12V when being powered by the 120VAC. The whole point is that it has to run all the time, whether I am in country or not.
My thought was that you would plug the UPS right into it using the standard 120v plug. Leave the EcoFlow on all the time so that when power goes out, the EcoFlow takes over until it runs out and then the UPS takes over after that. Granted this is less efficient but simpler than worrying about using it as 12v.
I only want to use one device. I am now plugging the AC adapter into an old Back UPS 1300, which has the TV and A/V system. According to the display it only runs 90 min. at most without load, but probably less. I have a few ancient UPS that might have a decent run time, but really don't want to get into all that with new batteries, etc.
It looks that the CyperPowered CP900AVR might not be too bad for the price of $140, but it is 10kg. due to having two of the usual 12V batteries. It doesn't have a fancy display or other nonsense that cuts into the low-load runtime.
I wonder what the run time would be at 24W, maybe 3-4 hours?
It looks that the CyperPowered CP900AVR might not be too bad for the price of $140, but it is 10kg. due to having two of the usual 12V batteries. It doesn't have a fancy display or other nonsense that cuts into the low-load runtime.
I wonder what the run time would be at 24W, maybe 3-4 hours?
| Load (Watts) | Run Time (min.) |
|---|---|
| 50 | 142 |
| 100 | 53 |
| 200 | 23 |
| 300 | 12 |
| 400 | 8 |
| 500 | 5 |
| 600 | 3 |
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I assume it'll technically work but given that each unit is doing the DC > AC inverter, it's not super efficient to stack them. There my be another technical reasons not to do this but I assume it'll work as long as all devices are in spec with the electrical ratings.
The explodings of the LIONs all over the Amazons are a concern. 
I was kinda shocked to find that the APC has 12 cells configured 2S6P. Each group of 6 cells are welded in parallel to a large plate. The cells are LG INR 18650 3300mAh with a warning that the user will be disfigured by messing with them. I suppose that the APC knew what they were doing and used good quality cells and there are a lot of parts on the circuit board that I suppose provide some safety.
It is strange that the battery pack is at 8.15V. It's operation is oddly.
I was kinda shocked to find that the APC has 12 cells configured 2S6P. Each group of 6 cells are welded in parallel to a large plate. The cells are LG INR 18650 3300mAh with a warning that the user will be disfigured by messing with them. I suppose that the APC knew what they were doing and used good quality cells and there are a lot of parts on the circuit board that I suppose provide some safety.
It is strange that the battery pack is at 8.15V. It's operation is oddly.
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I charged the 2019 UPS with a WD 1.5A power adapter overnight and then discharged at 2A with the computer battery analyzer. The result is ~85.5% theoretical capacity.
The original STB has a 12V/2A power adapter and I had installed a 12V/3A power supply in 2019 to ensure that there was enough extra to charge the UPS which only pulls 1A and charges slowly. The output curve has a linear drop just due to resistant and is good up to at least 4.5A. I replaced that 12V/3A power adapter with a new one of similar specs, but looking cheesier. I tested that one today and it is fine up to about 3.6A then a bit funky after that. Now I'm stumped as to the actual problem. It may be that something is up with the STB itself.
The original STB has a 12V/2A power adapter and I had installed a 12V/3A power supply in 2019 to ensure that there was enough extra to charge the UPS which only pulls 1A and charges slowly. The output curve has a linear drop just due to resistant and is good up to at least 4.5A. I replaced that 12V/3A power adapter with a new one of similar specs, but looking cheesier. I tested that one today and it is fine up to about 3.6A then a bit funky after that. Now I'm stumped as to the actual problem. It may be that something is up with the STB itself.
I made a different UPS for another location, using eternal 2x parallel 12V on a BGE70 or similar. The run times should be about 2.8-3x of the website graph (not mine), which had only one smaller battery (5.8Ah vs. 2x8Ah). I figure it is good for about 6 hours at 24W.
I noticed a very hot and vastly expanded 14x12 battery in an older long run 900 UPS. The battery was cracked in about 20 places and 1cm wider than original width. I had to take the whole unit apart drastically to remove it, down to the bolts that go through the huge transformer plates. Now the UPS is kaput, though it may have already occurred since the bad battery function did not stop the decrepit battery from drawing excessive current and superheating. The replace battery light never turned on.
Mercutio
Fatwah on Western Digital
Quality!
The UPS is from ~2006 and the battery is from 2021.
Test results when new were like this, which is about normal given the Peukert effect.
I've never seen an AGM battery expand and rupture like that. The charge was about 13.65V which is within the float range for the AGM (13.5-13.8V). These are the same Viennese Duracells I usually use, though it is a Deep Cycle version (14 vs. 12). Since I designated that UPS for long runs at low loads the battery type should not be an issue. My experiences with both the 9Ah (instead of 8) and 14Ah (instead of 12) high capacity 12V AGM batteries have not been great, so I'll only buy the regular ones in the future.
I keep a couple of 4s LiFePO4 78Wh battery packs (not UPS) on hand to power various 12V devices. They lose very little charge just sitting on the shelf.
Test results when new were like this, which is about normal given the Peukert effect.
I've never seen an AGM battery expand and rupture like that. The charge was about 13.65V which is within the float range for the AGM (13.5-13.8V). These are the same Viennese Duracells I usually use, though it is a Deep Cycle version (14 vs. 12). Since I designated that UPS for long runs at low loads the battery type should not be an issue. My experiences with both the 9Ah (instead of 8) and 14Ah (instead of 12) high capacity 12V AGM batteries have not been great, so I'll only buy the regular ones in the future.
I keep a couple of 4s LiFePO4 78Wh battery packs (not UPS) on hand to power various 12V devices. They lose very little charge just sitting on the shelf.