Can a Back-UPS CS650 be modifie from single phase 230v to single phase 120v

[Anonymous user]

I have been given three identical APC Back-UPS CS 650's. They are all brand new in the box and seem to work fine. The only problem is.. they are rated for single phase 230V, and I live in the US.. so this doesn't work out for me. Is there any way to modify them to make them run at the US standard? I have no problem tinkering around inside of them if needed so that's not an issue, I just don't know where to start or if it is even possible without basically rebuilding the entire UPS. Any Ideas??

Thanks,
HaIrLeSsHoBo

[BillP]

this would also void the warranty.

[Anonymous user]

The unit can't be converted to run off of 120v. If new then you may be able to return them to the reseller or person you purchased from for the proper North American units?

[Anonymous user]

I just checked online and the all of the UPSes are already out of warranty. They were manufactured over 4 years ago, yet they were never opened. I received them as hand-me-downs from a large corporation in the city I live in. I assume they ordered them, and once they received them and discovered they were 230v, they probably just sent them to disposal instead of returning them for others. I know that it would void the warranty, and that isn't a problem. I just wasn't sure if it was even possible. Worse case scenario, if I can't use the battery backup, I will dispose of the UPSes and just keep the batteries, which are identical to my other two APC Backup-UPS ESes that I am running.

[BillP]

oh ok..

Maybe KVar has done/seen something like this before? I have not.

[Anonymous user]

What is KVar? I looked it up on google but I don't exactly understand what it is or how it works... Seems interesting, at least what little I understand about it.

[voidstar_apc]

KVar is a non-APC person who frequents this board and often has interesting things to say about subjects like this.

[BillP]

thanks voidstar..

sorry i wasnt clear on that.

[BillP]

If these units have been sitting in boxes for 4 years, the batteries will have been damaged due to severe discharge. I wouldn't think you would be able to save the batteries and dispose of the UPS chassis.

[Anonymous user]

Oooh ok, I thought you were talking about the Kvar that is supposed to return unused power or whatever. Seems kinda sketchy to me. Has anybody ever dealt with these systems, and do they actually work like they are supposed to?

Yeah I had never considered that the batteries are probably weak/nearly dead already. I will give them a shot and if I don't have any luck, I will just recycle the things altogether. I would use the APC trade-in program, but it only works for single-phase UPSes. Thanks for all the information.

Message was edited by: HaIrLeSsHoBo

[BillP]

If you like DIY, you could consider a kind of transformer ( like step-down trafo) and some more electronics to convert voltages. But this is very expensive in terms of time and not a good solution for home...., it suits better for an electroinics student.
Sorry

[BillP · Accepted solution]

You can still use those 230v UPSs in the Trade-UPS program. When you get to the [Trade-UPS webpage|http://buy.apc.com/commerce/storefronts/tradeups/default.aspx?storefrontcode=apcetu&countrycode=us&l...], click the Other radio button so that you can manually enter the data for each of your 650VA UPSs. You can generally buy a UPS, or combination of UPSs, whose combined VA rating is up to double the combined rating of what you're trading in.

You can also get lots of accessories at a significant discount in addition to the UPSs you choose to buy.