Ups Power Supply

[rak sa_ngop]

Apologies for the tautology in the title, but my cheap 1750 baht UPS (PowerMatic MATE-700S from IT City bought 2 years ago) has apparently died on me. I had it unpowered for several weeks whilst away but now even after leaving it connected for 4 hours there are no lights or beeps.

I have changed the fuse and tried another power lead but still dead.

Is it worth repairing and where to go (in Bangkok)? I don't fancy carrying a 6kg weight round the backstreets of BKK looking for the distributor located somewhere in BKK 10100

Is 2 years a good life for a UPS?

I suppose that if I leave the UPS next to the garbage bins somebody will come and recycle it.

[lopburi3]

All you probably need is a new battery - they do not normally last more than two years. Most brands seem to have a phone number that you can call and maybe (have never done) they can send someone to change out the battery. Last year I bought a spare battery and installed in one of mine - requires removal of cover/battery clamp/and loosing of PC board in my unit but was not hard to do. But probably better to let someone do if you are not comfortable inside electric things.

[Daffy D]

Sounds like the battery.

Inside the UPS there is a battery about the same size as a motorcycle battery and it sounds like yours needs replacing.

Usually there are four screws on the bottom of the case that let you get inside. Once inside it’s pretty easy to remove the battery.

The battery though it looks like a motorbike battery it is not the same, something to do with the plates inside, but many computer and electrical shops will have this kind of battery.

Daffy.

[rak sa_ngop]

Thanks for swift replies.

So if I take it to Pantip it should be easy to find somebody to replace the battery on the spot?

(2 years sounds like a pretty short lifespan to me. Or maybe that is what you get if you buy cheap?)

[Crossy]

Yep, another vote for a duff battery. Sealed lead-acid batteries tend to die after a couple of years and leaving the unit un-powered for extended periods accelerates the process.

Remove the lid and check out the type, get a new one / two. Reverse the disassembly process.

DANGER The internals can easily KILL, once you have the new batteries installed treat all wires as potentially lethal and put the lid on before attempting to test.

[Thanh-BKK]

Hi

I too would say it's the battery - because i had the same situation with a cheapo "Orbit" UPS. It too died after being off the mains for little over a week and it was then just over two years old (few weeks over the warranty!)

But is it worth the fix? The battery costs roughly 900 Baht.... There's a shop on the ground floor of Panthip (if you come thru the main entrance, just keep right and go to the end of the building, the shop will be at your left side) which is specialized on UPS batteries. The one i got was the same brand and type as the one originally in the UPS which i brought there.

Best regards.....

Thanh

[elkangorito]

Apologies for the tautology in the title, but my cheap 1750 baht UPS (PowerMatic MATE-700S from IT City bought 2 years ago) has apparently died on me. I had it unpowered for several weeks whilst away but now even after leaving it connected for 4 hours there are no lights or beeps.

I have changed the fuse and tried another power lead but still dead.

Is it worth repairing and where to go (in Bangkok)? I don't fancy carrying a 6kg weight round the backstreets of BKK looking for the distributor located somewhere in BKK 10100

Is 2 years a good life for a UPS?

I suppose that if I leave the UPS next to the garbage bins somebody will come and recycle it.

Would a dead battery in a UPS cause this? Is this "typical"?

[Thanh-BKK]

Yup.

Because it won't take charge anymore - a bit like a dead battery in a mobile phone. Phone turns off the moment you disconnect the charger (had that plenty with old phones, specially Siemens).

Some UPS's charge as soon as you plug them into the mains, yet some (like my current one!) need to be actually switched ON to charge. Both have their good and bad sides...... but each of them has the same problem: The battery is never quite power-cycled and hence loses it's ability to charge over time. As long as you keep it on the mains you won't notice, if the mains fails for the few minutes it takes for the power to return or for you to shut down the computer they work. But keep them off the mains for days or weeks, the battery "deep-discharges" (the older they get the faster this happens!) and after that won't charge anymore. My "Orbit" behaved exactly that way - the moment the mains failed it was plain and simple "off", no LED, no "beep", nothing. Worked again with the new battery

Best regards....

Thanh

[Crossy]

Would a dead battery in a UPS cause this? Is this "typical"?

Quite likely. Cheapo UPSs use the battery to operate the electronics and have a simple charger to charge the battery.

If the battery goes into deep discharge due to age and/or being left un-powered for an extended period the simple charger cannot bring it to a level to allow the electronics to function, resulting in a totally dead unit.

You can sometime budge the batteries out of deep discharge by charging with an elevated voltage (24V or so, current limited to < 1A), once the terminal voltage recovers to 12V or so the on-board charger can take over. To be honest once in this state the batteries are really scrap but if a spare isn't readily available.... well it's a bodge.

It's certainly worth taking it to a man for a quick look if the expertise/tools to check battery voltage etc. are not available.

[admiraldy]

I baught a cheap UPS (1,250bht) from Panthip 4 years ago , and untill today it is still working perfectly .

I believe it is a matter of luck with the life of the battery .