Smart-UPS 1500 Green Mode Issues

[NickFranklin]

We have a Smart UPS 1500 thats is bout 6 years old and doing very well.

In the last week or so I have been getting On Battery/Off Battery warning which I've not had before. Viewing the Event logs it appears linked to the On Line (Green Mode) Entered and Exited, although this correlation doesn't always seem true. Below is a sample of the last few days of our event log: -

6/4/21 08:48:56 No Longer On Battery
6/4/21 08:48:55 On Battery
6/4/21 08:48:55 On Line (Green Mode) - Exited
6/4/21 03:52:07 On Line (Green Mode) - Entered
6/4/21 02:16:20 No Longer On Battery
6/4/21 02:16:19 On Battery
6/4/21 02:16:18 On Line (Green Mode) - Exited
6/1/21 17:04:20 On Line (Green Mode) - Entered
6/1/21 15:42:35 A new version is available. URL :<a href=https://www.apc.com/pcbe>https://www.apc.com/pcbe</a>
6/1/21 15:41:38 Communication Established
6/1/21 15:41:35 Monitoring Started
6/1/21 15:40:30 Monitoring Stopped
6/1/21 15:37:07 <a href=https://www.apc.com/pcbe>https://www.apc.com/pcbe</a>
6/1/21 15:36:10 Communication Established
6/1/21 15:36:07 Monitoring Started
6/1/21 15:36:02 Monitoring Stopped
6/1/21 15:22:40 No Longer On Battery
6/1/21 15:22:39 On Battery
6/1/21 14:46:15 On Line (Green Mode) - Exited
6/1/21 14:28:21 On Line (Green Mode) - Entered
6/1/21 12:54:42 No Longer On Battery
6/1/21 12:54:41 On Battery
6/1/21 12:54:41 On Line (Green Mode) - Exited
5/30/21 12:04:35 On Line (Green Mode) - Entered
5/30/21 09:46:27 <a href=https://www.apc.com/pcbe>https://www.apc.com/pcbe</a>
5/30/21 09:42:28 Self Test Passed
5/30/21 09:42:16 Self Test Initiated
5/30/21 09:42:16 On Line (Green Mode) - Exited
5/23/21 09:46:26 <a href=https://www.apc.com/pcbe>https://www.apc.com/pcbe</a>
5/16/21 11:47:58 On Line (Green Mode) - Entered
5/16/21 09:46:26 <a href=https://www.apc.com/pcbe>https://www.apc.com/pcbe</a>
5/16/21 09:45:25 Monitoring Started
5/16/21 09:45:26 Communication Established
5/14/21 18:13:41 Monitoring Stopped
5/12/21 18:59:16 <a href=https://www.apc.com/pcbe>https://www.apc.com/pcbe</a>
5/12/21 18:58:19 On Line (Green Mode) - Entered
5/12/21 18:58:17 Communication Established
5/12/21 18:58:15 Monitoring Started
5/12/21 18:55:00 Monitoring Stopped
5/9/21 11:39:44 On Line (Green Mode) - Entered
5/9/21 09:20:17 Self Test Passed
5/9/21 09:20:06 Self Test Initiated
5/9/21 09:20:06 On Line (Green Mode) - Exited
5/8/21 11:56:51 <a href=https://www.apc.com/pcbe>https://www.apc.com/pcbe</a>

Why is this occurring? Can Green Mode be disabled? I cannot see how to do this from the Powerchute Business Edition web interface. Does it need to be disabled? do I need to be concerned about anything?

[TonKei]

Hi Frank

Just based of the logs, I believe the correlation is not, that the green mode changes are having an effect on the battery, but instead it is the other way around.

As soon as the unit goes on battery, green mode is deactivated which happens almost simultaneously with the unit going into battery operation. 

as an example:

6/1/21 14:28:21 On Line (Green Mode) - Entered
6/1/21 12:54:42 No Longer On Battery
6/1/21 12:54:41 On Battery
6/1/21 12:54:41 On Line (Green Mode) - Exited

The green mode exit and the initiation of battery mode happens in the same second. Once the battery mode is stopped, the unit returns the Green Mode after a while.

The same thing happens during the selftest, as the test will push the unit into battery mode during the test:

5/9/21 11:39:44 On Line (Green Mode) - Entered
5/9/21 09:20:17 Self Test Passed
5/9/21 09:20:06 Self Test Initiated
5/9/21 09:20:06 On Line (Green Mode) - Exited

So, basically, you have no need to worry in regards to the green mode, but it is worth noting that the unit has been on battery for a few short occasions (1-2 seconds) during the last couple of days. 

Best regards

Tonny

[NickFranklin]

Hi Tonny

Thanks for the reply.

I'm getting an electrician to test the mains circuitry to our server room. Could the UPS be malfunctioning at mains power in to cause the unit to switch to battery mode for such short periods. This is only a recent behaviour.

Regards

[TonKei]

Hi Frank

I'm a tech, so you will not be hearing me say that the UPS cannot fail.

But based on my experience, these short battery mode instances are typically caused by some sort of "hick-up" in the incoming power. If the UPS is failing, in regards to the incoming power, you would almost certainly have other alarms and/or fault messages in you log.

Best regards

Tonny

[NickFranklin]

Many thanks for the heads up Tonny.