In the previous article we analyzed generator maintenance. But as we know, a generator usually needs 10 to 15 seconds to start up and provide power. During these 15 seconds, the "gap" is covered by the UPS (Uninterruptible Power Supply System).
UPS is the ultimate protector of your IT equipment, server and cameras. However, the heart of the UPS—its battery—is the most expendable and vulnerable component in your entire network.
Many owners buy an expensive UPS, put it in the Rack and forget about it for a decade. When the power outage comes, the UPS shuts down instantly along with the rest of the machines, causing huge frustration. Let's look at why batteries "die" quietly, the danger of blown batteries and when you should change them.
Most home and business UPS (except very modern and expensive Lithium models) use Sealed Lead Acid (SLA - Sealed Lead Acid or VRLA) batteries.
These batteries are based on a chemical reaction between lead plates and sulfuric acid.
This chemical reaction degrades the internal materials over time, even if the UPS is never used. Simply put, from the day the battery leaves the factory, the meter on its life starts counting down, regardless of whether you experience frequent power outages or not.
The average, industry-accepted life cycle of a UPS battery is 3 to 5 years.
However, this number is only valid under ideal conditions, i.e. an environment with a constant temperature of 20°C - 25°C. Here comes an inexorable law of physics:
For every 10°C that the temperature of the room (or the inside of the Rack) exceeds 25°C, the battery life is cut in half! * If, for example, you have shut down the UPS in a warehouse that reaches 35°C in the summer, a battery that would normally live for 4 years will be completely destroyed in just 2 years. That's why we insisted so much on the correct ventilation (Cooling) of the cabin.
If you ignore changing the batteries after 5 years, you don't just run the risk of running out of power. You risk the safety of your space due to the phenomenon of Thermal Runaway.
As the battery ages, its internal resistance increases. The UPS charger, trying to keep it charged, is constantly sending power to it. Because the battery cannot store it, this current is converted into extreme heat.
The heat boils the liquids inside it, producing gases (hydrogen and oxygen). Because the battery is sealed, gases cannot escape, the pressure increases dramatically and the plastic casing of the battery deforms, inflating like a balloon.
A blown battery can burst, leaking toxic sulfuric acid that will destroy the UPS electronics. Additionally, because the batteries "slide" into the Rackmount UPS, if they inflate, they wedge into the metal chassis. Often technicians have to destroy the entire UPS (worth hundreds of Euros) with crowbars, just to get a 30 Euro jammed battery out!
Synchronous UPS is contacting you. Don't ignore their signs:
No need to throw away the entire UPS when the battery "dies"!
Most professional and good home UPS (eg APC, CyberPower) have drawer batteries. You can open the front cover, pull out the battery cartridge and put in a new one, without even turning off the power to your computers (Hot-Swap).
Lead-Acid batteries are 100% recyclable, but at the same time extremely toxic to the environment. It is strictly forbidden to throw them in the common bins or packaging recycling bins. They must be delivered to special battery recycling bins (e.g. at electronics stores) or to metal recycling yards.
A UPS is only as good as its battery. Treat UPS batteries like your car tires: they are a completely predictable consumable. Mark the date purchased on the UPS with a marker. When you reach 3 to 4 years of operation, order new batteries proactively, before they blow up and leave you exposed to the next blackout.
Return to category.
Go to categoryReturn to the central guide.
Go to guide
