New BX1300LCD smells?

[Anonymous user]

I bought a new BX1300LCD unit (serial: BB0833004869) for $129 at Fry's yesterday. (I hope it is new and not a re-furb... Fry's has a rep for doing that and not telling customers.) It's been on now for about 18 hours. It has this faint noxious "hot plastic" smell which still fills the room. I try to ignore it, but it's just enough to be irritating. The top of the unit near the back is comfortably warm to the touch, but NOT hot. The front is much cooler. I don't hear any fans. Unit works fine. Unit is on floor with about an inch of clearance from the wall. It is not hot here...about 72 in the room.

I thought the smell would dissipate by now. Is this going to last forever? If so, it's going back. (Fry's will give me 30 days I think.) I like the unit because I can plug my Mac Mini, router, modem, printer, phone, and monitor in to it and have them all backed up. I don't think there is an overload that would cause this smell. If it does not go away, I'll have to return it for a different brand.

Any advice about this smell? Has anyone had this problem with this unit?

Thanks,
CAL

Message was edited by: caltuna

Message was edited by: caltuna

[Techie_apc]

As far as I know, smell from new the unit will go away after some days. Please let it run for a few days and check if the unit smells. The new unit smell will not cause any problem, and it will fade away after it has started working for some days.

[Anonymous user]

I don't remember having a problem like this with my old TrippLite. My Mac didn't smell. A bought the APC on recommendation from a friend. He said he didn't have this kind of issue. I'm rather disappointed in APC. I know the 1300 is made in India (says so on the carton) so that makes we wonder about the quality of the parts and whether or not this off-gas has some minor toxic issues. I would have thought that APC would have fixed this off-gas issue by now since it is not a new one.

CAL

[Anonymous user]

Cal,

I just bought the same unit at Fry's on Friday (10/23) on sale for $99.97. Take your receipt back an they will refund your difference. I just plugged mine in so I will monitor for smells.

Good luck.

[Anonymous user]

Do you really think they will give me a credit? I rather doubt it. But thanks for the info. I will check it out first thing in the morning since I have to be up that way to see a client. (I'm in the ins. biz... www.insol123.com)

Let me know if you get "the smell." It's not acrid like rotten eggs, it just smell like hot plastic. Fortunately mine has mostly worn off in the week that I've had the unit... it is still faint. But I've also kept the windows open all week in my office as it has been warm here.

Cal

Message was edited by: caltuna

[Anonymous user]

Cal,

Yes, they will at least give what they call a store gift certificate. They have a 30 day price guarantee policy. On Friday I brought in a receipt for a CPU cooler that was on sale for ten bucks cheaper and I used the credit to get the UPS for $89 - I was surprised but they did it without hesitation. With this economy they finally seem to be getting a little more customer friendly.

And two hours and only a faint plastic smell, though I'm doing the recommended 16 hour charge before I plug in any devices so no load yet.

[Anonymous user]

I didn't do the 16 hour thing because when I started it up and pressed the buttons it seems that the battery was fully charged... at least that's how the LED looked to me. So I just went and plugged everything in.

Cal

[Techie_apc]

CAL,

No, the smell which you described is NOT toxic. Secondly, I have not seen any cases that the units which made in India causes any issues. Because the unit should have gone through all the quality checks before packaging.

If you are concerned about the UPS, then I recommend you to call in the APC Customer Care Center as they can provide the replacement unit in case if the unit is defective.

[Anonymous user]

Tech:

Thanks for the reply. I've had the unit running now for about 36 hours and still have the same off-gas odor. I'll keep it another 48 hours and if it still smells I'm going to have to contact the Customer Service. I suppose I could return it to Fry's as I think they will honor a the return but I'd have to get another brand. I swear, over the years almost everything I've bought at Fry's I've had problems with. I'll bet you lunch that this is a re-furb unit or a factory 2nd. I won't buy from them anymore.

CAL

[Techie_apc]

Is the UPS still smelling?

If it is smelling, then I recommend you to call in the APC Customer Care Center(1-800-800-4272 or [Live chat|http://www.apc.com/support/chat.cfm]) to get the New Replacement unit under factory DOA warranty support.

[Anonymous user]

Most of the smell has gone. It is still a bit faint but nothing like it was before. I think you are correct when you say it will go away. It will be a week on Saturday.

Should the top of the unit be warm? It is not HOT. It's like a cup of coffee that has been sitting for ten or fifteen minutes. The front-top of box is cool. It is warm where the vents start.. as well as on the sides toward the back. I have Mac mini, Samsung flat monitor, router, modem, cordless phone, and small ink-jet printer all on and plugged into the battery-backup outlets and two tiny speakers plugged into the surge plugs on the back of the APC box. I've not checked the front panel as it is hard for me to get down on the floor with my bad knees to check the LED. I doubt it is an overload. Wouldn't something blink or sound?

Anyway, I can hardly smell it so that's a good thing.

Thanks,

Cal

[Techie_apc · Accepted solution]

Cal,

As far as I know, the top of the unit is normally warm to touch as the unit may be dissipating the heat which the electronic components and battery generate while it is operating. However, it should not be hot to touch.

Whenever the connected equipment exceeds the UPS rated capacity, it will be overloaded. If the unit is overloaded, it will make a shrill constant tone. If the overload is strong enough, the UPS may shut down turning off its output in order to protect its circuitry from damage.

I hope that this helps.