UPS: The load exceeds 100% of rated capacity. 0x0103

[Anonymous user]

Hello there,

we've got some serious problems with our 4 year old APC Smart-UPS 2200VA RM 2U LCD 230V.

Recently, the UPS shut off with the error in the subject. The load was only around 10% with one server and some network equipment connected. Nothing that should cause any problems.

I attached the event.txt - is there any additional info you need?

Thanks, Christoph 

[mitsmith_apc]

Hi Christopher,

It seems like you have a bad battery in the unit. This sometimes throws off an overload alarm when you run a self test. How old is the battery? We typically say they last 3 to 5 years. 

-Mike

[Anonymous user · Accepted solution]

The batteries are quite new (5 months), but we bought them whitebox from another supplier (and they were brand new). We already had those problems with the old batteries - that's why we bought new ones.

Is there a way we can test the batteries? Should there be one battery with a different voltage that causes problems?

[Florian_Hofmann]

I have a good old Smart-UPS 2200 RM that has been working flawlessly for the last 6 years. My current batteries are approx 1 year old.

My unit now reports an overload after self test and shuts down immediately:

04/23/2022 07:57:12 UPS: A low battery condition no longer exists.
04/23/2022 07:57:12 UPS: The load exceeds 100% of rated capacity.
04/23/2022 07:57:10 UPS: The output power is turned off.
04/23/2022 07:57:09 UPS: The battery power is too low to continue to support the load; the UPS will shut down if input power does not return to normal soon.
04/23/2022 07:57:03 UPS: Started a self-test.

The usual load is around 30% so should be fine. I did some tests after restarting the UPS:

- self test without load        --> fine

- self test with 500W load   --> fine, but capacity/run time remaining is noticeably short - 10 minutes or so

- self test with 1kW load      --> fine, but capacity/run time extremely short below 2 minutes

- self test with the original workstation (30%)  --> instant shutdown with the error above and also noticeably louder humming

I do not understand why only on my workstation the unit shuts down immediately - it does the one thing it should prevent. Has it something to do with the type of load and its power factor? The 1 kW was a vacuum cleaner the 500W an amplifier.

Can someone recommend a good test for the single cells, in case only 1 or 2 are bad ?

Many thanks

Florian

[Florian_Hofmann]

My issue was caused by the output filter capacitors, which were heavily degraded. After replacing them with new X2 rated film capacitors the unit works as expected with any load. The attached picture shows the old capacitors and a provisionary replacement.

Batteries can easily be tested with a voltmeter and a high wattage resistor of 4 - 10 Ohms. If the voltage stabilizes well above 11 Volts for a few minutes, the battery is probably okay. An AC impedance (best if < 50 mOhm @1kHz) test is also possible and in good correlation. Bad batteries can often be revived with the addition of a little distilled water. In the past I refrained from servicing those batteries as I was afraid I would break the seal and cause problems. As soon as I had seen the actual construction of 3rd party batteries, I realised that I could hardly make it any worse.