New UPS Battery has loads of scratches !?

[Anonymous user]

I just bought a new UPS BR1500G, and when i opened the battery compartment i can see loads of scratches on both sides of the battery. Is their a chance i got some used battery ?
There is also 100 written on both battries with a felt-pen.

Message was edited by: zinbart

[BillP]

@Chrisri30

You mean if there is a white sticker in the UPS body, then that is refurbished/used? Same goes with the battery?

[Anonymous user]

The UPS is having serial/model info. but no stickers on the battery itself.

[BillP]

Is there a white sticker with a model/serial # on it(the UPS and the battery)? The battery may have one, especially if it was used but the UPS definitely will.

[BillP]

no, every UPS has a white sticker with the UPS model and serial number. sometimes the battery will have one of its own.

[BillP · Accepted solution]

So how will you know if it is used?

[dfnet]

Regrettably, I do not find an answer to the original question on this SE Community page.  😞

It would be most helpful to learn how to determine if a recently purchased (fro Staples) APC replacement battery with extensive scuff marks on the ABS (plastic) case is new or if it is recycled/refurbished. As a rule, I would have expected the ABS case to be pristine on a new battery.!

[Teken]

It’s not clear as to if this RBC is APC OEM or third party?? You also don’t indicate how the RBC was packaged if at all.

Meaning was it loose on the shelf . . . 

Regardless, you will not find Staples selling a RBC as refurbished. You have a higher chance of buying an expired RBC due to the lack of stock rotation and slow sales though.

Every original APC RBC will have a production sticker affixed to the cartridge. All third party battery (cells) will also have a manufacturers production date stamped / embossed onto the plastic case.

You do not want to purchase any RBC / Third Party cells that are more than twelve months old!

As it relates to the appearance of the outer case. It really comes down to how the cells were packaged, received, and handled during the production of the unit.

Almost every Back-UPS Series will show what appears to be wear marks.

Which is directly caused by inserting the RBC into the housing as the plastic grooves are sharp and not beveled.

Regardless of all the above only a capacity test and measuring the internal resistance based on the battery makers data sheet will provide you a snap shot of the health of the cell(s).

Questions Ask . . . 👍

[dfnet]

My case is slightly different than that of the OP, who purchased a new UPS and then examined the battery inside it.

I purchased a "new" APCRBC154 replacement battery for my APC BE600M1 UPS, from a Staples store in Connecticut, and found the entire bottom of the ABS case to be badly abraded / scuffed / scratched. Since it was packaged with multiple layers of corrugated cardboard inside an APC-labeled box, and then inside a Staples outer box, one cannot attribute the condition to packaging or handling by the shipper (Fedex).

As this was supposed to be a new replacement battery, the dubious scenario described by *Teken (i.e. battery getting scratched at the factory while being inserted into a UPS, due to sharp and unbeveled plastic grooves on the UPS) should not apply. A battery's ABS case should be pristine, smooth and unmarked at the factory.

I have my doubts regarding posts in this or other forums, postulating that all those scratches are caused by factory workers sliding the battery across a table during assembly. That would constitute careless and improper handling. Besides, how rough a surface would such a table have?

Many electronic items sold in the modern age will feature plastic film applied to component surfaces, to protect units against abrasion, fingerprints, etc. — film that can be peeled off by the end user.

If APC factory workers are so prone to careless product handling, then I'd suggest they should alter their procedures, or APC should consider adopting the method of applying protective plastic film on surfaces, as described above.

In any case, I was obliged to return the first APCRBC154 to Staples, and ordered another one, which unfortunately exhibited the exact same profuse scratches covering the entire bottom of the ABS housing. Both the Tech Supervisor and the General Manager at the Staples store agreed that the condition was unacceptable for a supposed "new" item, so they processed a return and refund of the second unit.

At this point, I'm planning to order an APCRBC154 for a third time from a different merchant, and if it exhibits similar markings, I'll return that one as well. In such a case, I'd be inclined to purchase either (1.) a different brand of replacement battery for the BE600M1 (although an after-market piece is not my preferred solution), or (2.) buy a brand-new UPS from a different manufacturer than APC.