URGENT: XS1200 flashing "Overload" LED

[SweetBearCub_apc]

This was originally posted on APC forums on 12/19/2010

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Warning, a bit long. If some of this seems a bit disjointed, please forgive me, I'm on some very strong painkillers.

My Office Depot house brand UPS ("Ativa", a rebranded APC unit) has been experiencing issues for the last 36 hours or so. It has been going on battery for 1-2 seconds anywhere from 1 to 4 times in a row in rapid succession. Sometimes it won't do it for an hour or more. I went into the PowerChute software and reduced the sensitivity to medium and set the upper and lower transfer voltage points to the least strict values possible, but it didn't make it switch any less. So far, it has shut down hard 3 times, powering off all of my connected equipment. When it does so, a continuous alarm sounds and the red "Overload" LED flashes 4 times quickly. When I turn it off, it turns back on rather quickly and the tone and flashing light happen all over again. After several tries, I managed to turn it off and back on normally, where it did its version of a POST and returned to normal function, except still with the fast battery/utility switching - Even with 98% of my connected load turned off. (The other 2% is things like powered speakers and an alarm clock) After the third time, I unplugged it from the wall and bypassed everything hooked up to it. While that works, I have no UPS protection for now. Once I unplugged it, the sound of the alarm changed slightly. Since unplugging it and turning it off, it has so far stayed off. About 30 seconds after unplugging it and turning it off, the unit emitted an audible "click", the same sound you would hear when switching to or from battery power.

I noted that the software was not reporting the power issues as electrical noise, but rather, as blackouts. I ran a manual self test from the software; it passed. According to the software, the entire connected load varies between 122 and 156 watts, well within range of what this unit can support. I have nothing connected that could cause that to suddenly spike to a level high enough (over 720w ?) that would overload the UPS.

Also, when it would briefly switch onto battery power and back, I noticed that a light on the same circuit (but not connected to the UPS in any way) would flicker noticeably. We're having quite a bit of rain/bad weather, so I thought that the light flickering indicated power fluctuations, which the UPS was responding to. It now seems obvious that the UPS is defective in some way.

If memory serves, the first 6 of the serial number are JB0747. Unless I'm mistaken, this indicates a late 2007-era battery - Yet it has passed several self-tests, before today and including today. Why is it indicating an overload when this connected load has been well under its maximum load for months, and what can I do to fix it?

Thanks!

[BillP]

This reply was originally posted by Angela on APC forums on 12/20/2010

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can you tell us what the charge capacity is according to the powerchute software? my initial thought is something is causing it to go to battery so often, draining the battery to a low percentage, thus it does not have a lot of on battery runtime and turns the attached load off.

also, if it is older, yes, it may be a time for a new battery, depending on usage, if you have frequent power fluctuations.

please let me know what you see for a battery charge percentage, especially after you turn it back on or just right now what you see.

oh, i forgot about the overload LED flashing. can you tell me if any of the other LEDs are on at the sametime overload is flashing? Also, can you provide the exact model of the UPS from the white sticker? is it BX1200?

[SweetBearCub_apc]

This was originally posted on APC forums on 12/21/2010

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The charge capacity varies between 98% (that last 2% to 100% seems to take an hour or 2) and maybe 80% at its lowest.

I do have frequent blackouts here, but usually for no longer than ~52 seconds on average, and I have the UPS set to shut down after 5 minutes. It's never gotten to the 5 minute point on a single outage.

It's been disconnected since I last updated the post, but it's still connected to my PC via USB. I just turned it on to check the charge level. At 0 watts load (and discharging) it showed a 93% charge level.

No other LEDs were on while the Overload light was flashing. It's impossible for me to get to the UPS right now due to a medical issue (thus the afore-mentioned very strong painkillers) but I did check the technical data as reported by Powerchute.

Model: Back-UPS XS 1200
Serial number: JB0747005944

[BillP · Accepted solution]

This reply was originally posted by Angela on APC forums on 12/21/2010

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honestly, based on the continuous tone with the flashing overload and other symptoms, i think there is a fault condition with this UPS. do you know when you purchased the UPS?

you could try to do a braindead on the UPS or have someone else do it if you cant really get to it..

• turn off and unplug all load/remove all data cables
• turn off the UPS itself
• remove UPS from APC power
• disconnect the internal battery while simultaneously holding down the off button
• reconnect the UPS and attach all load and monitor

if it still does it, i'd have to recommend a replacement, either if still under the three year warranty or via Trade UPS.