Should I trust this UPS?

[Kelvarr]

So I had a MGE 1500VA UPS that all of my computer stuff is connected to. I've never had a problem with it, other than the regular battery maintenance/battery replacement.

Last week, we were on vacation. I got a call one day from my friend (who was keeping an eye on the house...feeding the lizard, watering the garden, etc) saying that my UPS was beeping. He went outside to water, and when he came back in, it was no longer beeping. No LED's were lit weird, or anything...it looked perfectly normal. I asked him the next time he was there, to turn it off and I would look at it when I got home.

So said friend calls me two days later. He said the UPS was beeping again, and he turned it off, but it continued to beep. So he disconnected it from the wall. He also told me that it was "really hot...like, I couldn't keep my hand on it hot". This worried me slightly.

That worry was answered when I got home the next day. I figured it was the batteries. I went to remove them and they wouldn't budge. I took the UPS apart, and then I silently said "Oh fuck...". Every single battery was bulged. Not only bulged, but it looked like the caps were melted. Nothing was leaking though. I had a bitch of a time removing the batteries because 3 of the 4 were wedged in the battery tray because of bulging. The 4th had actually melted to the battery tray! I took the entire battery tray out, and noticed that it was all warped and melted. Well, that explains why it was so hot.

My question, is should I trust this UPS now? I did some precursory research and answers for this vary from "it could have just been the batteries that critically failed...in all likelihood, the UPS is fine" to "you should discard the UPS, as it may be the charging circuit that has failed". I have no additional batteries to test with, and would prefer to not waste money on batteries if it is the UPS. Batteries are 3xUB1280 F2.

My best hope is someone local in metro Detroit has some of these that I could possibly test with. Unless you guys think it is just not worth it and trashing it would be best. The UPS has already been replaced with an APC SUA1500.

 

[plupien79]

a UPS is about Trust and Insurance...
If in doubt, replace it

 

[Jorona]

I'd get new batteries and then witch the charging voltage with a multimeter. Its a four cell setup,so it's likely a 24v setup. Should be charging at approx. 26-28v DC. It'll likely start lower then that while the batteries are first charging, but should top out around there once they are full.

I've pulled bloated cells out of my ancient Back-ups 850 acouple times over the years. Hell, I think when I first got it used, it had bloated cells in it. It's still truckin though.

 

[Dantrax]

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16842102134 -Try one of these. I used to use APC but switched to Cyberpower because of the simulated sine wave it produces when on battery power instead of the modified square wave.

 

[Kelvarr]

I'd get new batteries and then witch the charging voltage with a multimeter. Its a four cell setup,so it's likely a 24v setup. Should be charging at approx. 26-28v DC. It'll likely start lower then that while the batteries are first charging, but should top out around there once they are full.

I've pulled bloated cells out of my ancient Back-ups 850 acouple times over the years. Hell, I think when I first got it used, it had bloated cells in it. It's still truckin though.

Oops. I said 4 cells. It actually only has 3 cells. 3xUB1280 F2.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16842102134 -Try one of these. I used to use APC but switched to Cyberpower because of the simulated sine wave it produces when on battery power instead of the modified square wave.

I already have the replacement, a APC SUA1500. My boss had it laying around, so I got it for cheap.