Back-UPS Pro Not Working During Outage

[Armchair]

I have a Back-UPS Pro BR1350MS that is about 4.5 years old. It has worked fine until recently.

During an outage (or if I unplug it), it switches to battery power, but then turns off after 1-2 seconds. It still works perfectly fine while running on outlet power.

It displays no errors and the battery capacity bar is full. Despite this, I bought a new battery; thinking that the 4.5 years old battery must be due for replacement. However, I have the same exact behavior with the new battery.

Is there something else I should try? 

[Teken]

A couple of things to check and do on this unit. Connect the unit to a computer running APC Power Chute Personal Edition (PCPE) software.

Call out any active faults / errors that may be present. If there are no errors update the battery replacement date.

Disconnect all connected loads. Remove AC Mains from the wall outlet. Disconnect the internal battery cartridge. Press and hold the power button until you hear a click / beep.

You may not hear anything at all either. ☝️

Reconnect everything besides the loads. Connect the USB cable to the computer running APC Power Chute Personal Edition (PCPE) / Power Chute Serial Shutdown (PCSS) software.

Turn on the unit by pressing the power button. Watch Power Chute Software it should indicate a Self Test and pass. If so, verify the unit is charging the new battery and call out what it says for capacity.

Once the battery is 100% charged initiate a battery calibration. You’ll need at least 30% attached load on the unit. Once the battery calibration has completed and the battery is recharged call out how the unit behaves now. 👍

[Armchair]

I did actually try Power Chute. There were no faults or errors.

I had already tried the 'cold start' like you suggested, too. I never heard a click or beep, if that means anything.

I hadn't performed a start up while connected to Power Chute, but I do watch the UPS display perform the self test every time it starts up. It also passes the self-test in Power Chute.

The battery is charged to 100%.

I don't see any way to perform a calibration in Power Chute. Are you sure that's available in the personal edition?

I've also tried to perform a reset. (Disconnect power, disconnect loads, disconnect battery, hold power button)

I called APC support, yesterday, and they concluded that the UPS has failed in some way and will need replaced. I reached out to coasttec about the possibility of a repair/replacement.

[Teken]

There should be a battery calibration option in PCPE / PCSS software. If not you can do so manually by simply removing AC Mains from the wall outlet.

Ensure there is at least 30% attached load on the UPS outputs. Disconnect the USB cable connecting to the computer system and insure it’s NOT attached to the UPS during this time.

Report back how long the unit continues to operate for before shutting down. Once the unit has turned off apply AC Mains to the unit and power up.

Let the unit recharge to 100% and report back how the unit behaves now. 

[Armchair]

You're saying to unplug the UPS from the wall outlet while the UPS is supplying 30% load, correct?

The UPS turns off after about 1 second after being unplugged, regardless of load.

[Teken]

You’re sure the battery is fine along with the fuse, cable, connector? What does the system indicate is the current battery voltage / capacity?!?

[Armchair]

I guess I can't say that I'm certain, but I've troubleshooted it with both the old battery and the new battery and have gotten the same behavior. APC did confirm that my new battery is genuine. The cables and connectors look fine.

I think this unit has a breaker only, not a fuse. If a fuse or breaker was the issue, wouldn't the UPS fail to supply power even from wall outlet power? I have pressed the fuse button multiple times, but it doesn't seem to be tripped.

The UPS display shows full battery capacity and about 179 minutes of estimated runtime with about 3% load.

I don't remember what voltage the display shows. I did check the old battery with a multimeter and got 26 V. I didn't test the new one with the multimeter.

[Teken]

Please install PCSS software to see if the battery calibration is available. Also, check in both PCPE / PCSS software if there is a battery replacement date.

If so update it to the current month / year. Once done initiate a Self Test and let it pass.

Once that has completed remove AC Mains from the wall outlet. Report what happens and how long the unit operates for while (30%) load is attached. 

[Armchair]

I installed PCSS and see no battery calibration option.

The battery replacement date was already set to the current month and year.

It passed the self test and shows 100% charge and estimates about 20 minutes of runtime at about 30% load.

It still lasts for about 1 second when unplugged from the wall outlet.

[Teken · Accepted solution]

It’s time to trash the unit and purchase another higher quality UPS. You may consider the APC Trade Up program to reduce the sting on the next purchase should that be under consideration:

https://www.apc.com/shop/tradeups/us/en/tradeups/overview.jsp

Sorry we couldn’t find a solution to this problem. ☹️

[Armchair]

Would you not consider the BR1350MS to be high quality? I don't really need more capacity or features.

I started a trade in with Coast Tec. This was what the APC rep suggested over the phone. They didn't mention the trade up program. I got another BR1350MS for $160.

[Teken]

The Back-UPS is the entry line of hardware from APC which uses modified sine wave (PWM). This line is a good balance of value, performance, and features.

The next level is the Smart-UPS which offer pure sine wave voltage output like you see from the wall outlet. These units offer more robust voltage regulation, RFI / EMI filtering, and surge protection. 

They use high quality (internal components) that are intended to operate in an enterprise setting 24.7.365.

Regardless, you’ve made your choice and hope very much this unit offers you many years of service & protection! 👍