APC UPS won't charge new batteries

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valve1138

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I've got an APC 2200VA rack mount UPS. A Smart-UPS series.

It's almost 10 years old and the old batteries were obviously worn out so I bought new ones. They are in fact the proper replacements, I triple checked.

Installed the new batteries and plugged the UPS in with no load so they could charge up and let it charge for two days. Everything checked out according to the web interface control panel and the indicator lights.

Now that I've plugged my gear into it, no where near close to the max load btw, the battery light won't stop blinking. Started with one indicator stating no charge, and now all five of the lights are blinking.

The web control panel says my batteries are discharged, battery capacity is 100% (wtf), runtime is 0 minutes, battery voltage is 55.05 VDC.

I ran a self test and it passed. I also did the recommended calibration test because of the new batteries.

Any thoughts?
 
The old batteries were old, but did they seem to work properly at all or at least differently than these new ones?

You might have a bad UPS
 
Brak710 said:
The old batteries were old, but did they seem to work properly at all or at least differently than these new ones?

You might have a bad UPS
Click to expand...

They held a charge for about 30 seconds, but appeared to work fine otherwise.
 
Try checking the fuse. They usually have an automotive-style blade fuse in there somewhere.

APC SmartUPS usually use series-parallel banks of batteries. Figure out the nominal voltage it's expecting (probably 48V), and then connect a few batteries in series to see if there's one faulty one in there.
 
Did you run the manual calibration or the one built into the UPS? Try the manual calibration. Unplug all your gear for this calibration. Plug something into the UPS that uses approximately 30% load, like halogen shop lights or a heater. Unplug the UPS from the utility power and let the UPS discharge completely (shuts off). This resets the calibration in the firmware.
http://emea-en.apc.com/app/answers/...-battery-charge-leds-flashing-on-a-smart-ups?

edit: I haven't tried this but it sounds interesting: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pAwMRn15z60
 
Thanks Hawk, I'll give that a try.

Guess I should have bought a UPS shell at the Augusta auctions before I moved to VA :p
 
They have the same problems. And I still have them all - three SU1400, four SU1000, and one SU2200. All non-rackmount models. :(
 
Did the op or anyone else have any success?

I just installed new batteries into 2 SUA1500 units and have a similar problem with the front leds intermittently flashing that the batteries need to be replaced when they in fact hold a good charge. Watched that youtube video and do not get any activity or info displayed with the serial terminal connection. I may try the manual discharge.
 
+1 for the "Manual calibration" method - it's the only thing that's ever fixed our 2200XL's after a battery change.
 
Same thing here with a 1500RM2, trying to do a manual software calibration didn't work. Let it charge fully over a couple of days, plugged a halogen shop lamp in (500w or so), pulled the plug from the wall and let it discharge until dead. That fixed it.
 
Wow, that's so odd that I was thinking I finally need to do the manual calibration this week since I finally have some spare time.

Are you guys psychic? :D
 
Battery constant is out of range in the firmware. Using the special APC serial cable, or roll your own:
http://pinouts.ru/DevicesCables/apc_smart_cable_pinout.shtml

and this software:
http://www.apc-fix.com/page.php?al=apcfix

you can reset the battery constant. I have a SUA1500 I bought with bad batteries, pulled the battery connector out of the back and connected to 2 wal-mart trolling motor batteries for 110ish Ah. With some minor edits to the battery constant and modifying the firmware to think I have 2 external battery packs (apparently firmware is the same for non-XL models) I get about 320 minutes of runtime on a 350w load.

If you have a unit that is WAY out of range the constant will be so far off that it will not correct from a manual calibration. In this case, using the software or knowing how to reprogram it via Hyperterminal is the only way to get it going again.
 
I should probably mention, the website's in russian, but the program's in english. Look for the latest download link on that page.
 
If you're UPS is way out on calibration, and you don't feel like using the apcfix tool, you can also sometimes fix it by just running the manual calibration multiple times. It seems like the adjustment that happens during manual calibration is only a small move, so you need multiple runs to get it adjusted correctly.

Doesn't always do the trick though, I've got a UPS right now that I'm going to need to use the apcfix tool, since even after 5 or so calibrations is way off.
 
Multiple runs of the manual calibration will shorten the battery life though, as it is a full discharge/charge cycle. Better to fix the issue in the eeprom instead of killing good batteries.

You can also change the constant with commands through Hyperterminal, but if you make a mistake or send the wrong command you could brick the UPS.
 
You could always re-charge the batteries properley with an external 3 or 4 stage charger when you`re done with the calibration/s.

As you know, the UPS`s only charge to a float level (about 13.8 - 14.1 ( 2.30 - 2.35 volts per cell) volts if I remember correctly) to get the most service life from the batteries as opposed to the most runtime/performance.

Ideally the lead/acid battery needs 2.40 - 2.45 volts per cell (14.4 - 14.7 volts) for best battery performance, but obviously the trade-off is reduced service life.

Just a thought..
 
Finally have time for this.

I've got an electric space heater plugged into it running down the batteries. Hopefully this will take care of it.
 
It took two full discharges but the UPS is finally working correctly :)

I should get about 30 minutes or so of run time at half load.
 
I have a Smart-UPS 2200... installed new batteries on Friday as the PowerChute was reporting the following:

Device Status Battery discharged

UPS Load 31.2 %

Runtime Remaining 2 Minutes

I have since done a manual calibration, and it still is reporting the same... Valve is this what you experienced too the first time? or did it improve slightly? I'm thinking of doing the apcfix... does this determine what the battery constant is supposed to be and automatically set it?
 
Manual calibration in the web interface?

I plugged a small space heater into it (and nothing else), unplugged the ups, and waited for it to run down the batteries. Ended up having to do it twice. Never needed apcfix.
 
no did the same, with a 500 watt work light... ran it totally dead yesterday afternoon... today the batteries reported being 100% charged in PowerChute... but only 2 minutes runtime still and status was Battery Discharged... just wondering is that similar to how your's was the first time you did this?
 
To manually reset batteries, get the thing fully charged, as much as you can anyway. Hook up 30% load, make sure you check it via the web interface or serial interface. The load must be greater than 25%, 30% is recommended.

Now unplug the UPS from the wall, and let it drain completely down, till the UPS shuts off automatically. Don't monkey with settings or do anything to alter the load on the UPS while it's discharging.

When done, power it back on and let it charge. That should do it.
 
well when I was doing it yesterday, I didn't have anything connected to monitor the load, but the indicator lights were at 1-2 (meaning switching between 1 and 2) out of 5.. so that would indicate more than 25% more than likely? I got the same result as before the manual calibration, and I have read on here, it sometimes takes more than one... I'm just wondering does the first calibration usually show some improvement in run-time... or no?
 
Nope, mine was still a pile of crap after the first run down, I was quite pissed.

Thankfully the second one worked :)
 
hmmm to do another manual calibration or try the APC-Fix tool... I guess I have until next weekend to decide... Is anyone familiar with the APC-Fix tool... I'm guessing it determines and fixes the battery constant automatically?
 
it plugs into the serial port, so I'm thinking a LITTLE smaller :) I'll confirm once I get it :)
 
The calibration key APC sends does the same thing as APCfix or Hyperterminal - resets the battery constant. Battery constants are different depending on the unit's model, if you google around a bit you can usually find them, or in a pinch just bug APC tech support until they tell you what the default is. Most units are near A0 (hex). If you have the special serial cable the instructions for doing this via hyperterminal are here:
http://www.rm.com/Support/TechnicalArticle.asp?cref=TEC817072&nav=0&referrer=rss

APCfix is easier and in my opinion safer. If you enter the wrong thing in a Hyperterminal session you can brick the UPS.

And to the person who asked - yes, most default constants are already in the APCfix tool. It detects the model of the unit and sets the value for you. You have to check the option to reset the battery constant in the options menu. It's labeled auto-fix I believe.
 
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