Smart-UPS 1400XL constant alarm and won't power up

[Anonymous user]

Hello,





I have a UPS Smart-UPS 1400 XL with three add on battery packs. A week ago I shut down the unit because I was going on vacation (yes, this was my first mistake). After turning the unit off (pressing the off button) I noticed that its internal fan continued to spin for sometime. In a moment of brain freeze I simply unplugged the unit.




All was fine until I returned today and tried to start it up. I plugged the unit in and had a constant alarm with all the warning lights lit. I tried pressing the reset and off buttons, to no avail. Eventually I unplugged it again. Now when I plug it in the alarm sounds for 5 seconds, then turns off. The battery indicator only has one light lit (indicating the batteries are very low I believe). I wait a few minutes and try to turn it on and the alarm sounds. Can anyone tell me how to fix this? I promise to never shut the unit off again! Please let me know if you have any questions. I am borrowing a neighbor's laptop since with no power my server, internet and everything else is dark in my office.






I am really in a bind here and could use some timely help. Thanks!!




P.S. The battery pack inside the SMart-UPS will not come out. I am not sure, but it looks like the battery may have swollen a little.




UPDATE: I disconnected the battery pack inside the 1400XL. Now when I plug the UPS in the wall the alarm sounds continuously and all the red LEDs are lit. The alarm goes off when I press the off button on the UPS.




Second Update: There is a white powder substance (corrosion) visible on both sides of the UPS. It looks like the battery has swollen up. I cannot slide the battery out to physically inspect it. Would a failed battery pack cause the unit to act this way?




Message was edited by: MrChip for additional information (and formatting corrections)

Message was edited by: MrChip for more data

Message was edited by: MrChip

[Anonymous user]

A complete shutdown is called "dead-ing the UPS". After turning it off and unplugging it from the wall, press and hold the OFF button until you hear a click. At that point it should be safe to leave it. Note that if you will be shipping the UPS, look for a battery jumper on the back of the UPS and unplug it. Make sure you don't lose it! This will either be a connector with a loop of wire or a small plug inside a cap - consult the manual for details on your specific model. Older units don't have this jumper.

Yes, having dead or bad batteries will cause startup problems. Depending on the model and date of manufacturer, you'll get different results. Some units will cold-start without batteries if powered on via the front panel from the "dead" position and holding the power-on button down until the load turns on.

If you have swollen or leaking batteries, replacing the batteries may or may not help. You don't know if the UPS caused the batteries to fail or not. If you buy a RBCxx battery pack or 3rd-party batteries, you may wind up with the same problem in as little as a few months. Or it will work for the 2-to-5 year expected life of a battery pack - there's no way to tell. Because of that, people sometimes buy a whole new UPS, particularly if it is for business or other mission-critical use.

[Anonymous user · Accepted solution]

Thanks for the help. I decided to buy a refurbished unit with new third party batteries. The current batteries were so swollen they would not come out of the unit.