I thought I'd come here and ask for some technical help; I got an uninterrupted power supply a few years ago and just now I saw some sparks inside the machine and can smell an odd burnt/burning smell (I saw the sparks because the machine has its back to me).
It's not showing any kind of special problems (its face has a few lights that can shine up if one of several problems are at play). I'm gonna switch it off and restart it just in case, but thought I'd come here and ask for any tips. I'd rather not try and get a new one as these are heavy and a hassle to move from a new shop to my car, and then to my room.
It's only got a load of 15% at its highest, and it's usually fully powered at 100%.
Well, I don't know a ton about uninterruptable power supplies, but I do know that any device that sparks and smells like it's burning is probably malfunctioning in some way. I'm willing to bet it has some nasty capacitors in it (along with the battery), so I would avoid disassembling it, because those can discharge with enough amps to kill.
If it's still within warranty, contact manufacturer's customer service. Otherwise, it would probably be best to get a new one.
I 100% agree! A UPS is supposed to have enough power to keep a computer on, which means some of the components could easily kill a person. If it has sparks or a burnt smell, disconnect the battery and get it somewhere that accepts electronics for recycling.
I know it's heavy and a new UPS is expensive, but it's better than dying or the house burning down.
I told my father about the UPS and he wants to take a look inside; he's an engineer and says he knows how to remain safe but I'm not sure about that. I'm tempted to just toss it and not bring it up with him again; I can get a new UPS but I can't get a new father, lol
Please don't create electronic and battery waste if you know someone who can take a look.
It's not dangerous if you know what you're doing.
It's likely you can at least reclaim the batteries and use them as spares later.
I left it outside for my father to take a look at it; I brought up my concerns with him but he indeed says he knows what he's doing. He's going to take the batteries inside it because he suspects most of them are fine, if not all of them.
Thanks, it seems it would indeed be safer to toss it immediately and just get a new one regardless of the hassle.
A house fire is a bit more of a hassle in my mind. If any electronics emit a burning smell they're not safe for function.
Thanks, I got it out of my house to be safe and will get a new one; it's not worth the danger to hold on to this thing.
what brand is it? in any case, get rid of it right away.
It's an APC; damn, I made my post after a quick Google search for what to do and everyone's advice is the same about getting a new one, I'd really hoped to see folks say it was fine but it seems like the safest option is indeed to get a new one and especially to toss this one immediately. Thanks for the advice, I'll get it out of my room right now.
what was the power rating on it? like how much VA? im just curious if it was a higher rated or lower rated one, although that shouldnt really matter. they do just tend to crap out eventually, but usually its just the battery that goes out and those are usually replaceable.
I don't really know much about how this stuff works; I asked the PC shop I bought it at to give me a power supply that can keep my PC running for at least 2-4 hours after the power cuts out.
For what it's worth, it has up to eight connections in the back for up to eight devices. I think it was strong enough to power my treadmill along with my PC.
i see. maybe i dont know how much power a treadmill uses, but usually a home UPS is just to keep the PC on for a bit for you can shut down. My UPS would let me run a PC with monitors for about 38 mins. Mine is 1500VA.
If the electronics are broken but the battery is fine, save the battery. You can put them into a new UPS that lacks a battery (verifying compatibility first).
