Continuous alarm/clear APC UPS

[ThEnGI]

Good morning,
NAS in signature
UPS APC BX750Mi-Gr (new) + USB cable (amazon)
Load: ISP router, Alexa echo, NAS and TV .... 40W-100W, load 10-25%, Runtime 1h - 25 min


Hoping I configured everything correctly, I keep getting "battery low" errors,
after this the clear message. The UPS is new, and from a discharge test the battery is OK.
In older emails you see the battery level at 70% as a result of the "deep" test performed the evening before with the stopwatch (CLI cmd). But this morning the battery is 99% charged (why not 100%?)
The only changes i made via CLI are: Battery installation date, % at which to start reporting LB (20%, about 5min under standard load), Remaining runtime at which to report LB (180s).

Wanting to avoid disabling the allert and not having found any solution on the forum, can anyone help me?

 

[ThEnGI]

The battery reports 100% charge now, but always alerts randomly

 

[jgreco]

The UPS is new, and from a discharge test the battery is OK.

Open up the UPS and look for the date code on the battery. Each manufacturer has various ways to mark the date the battery was manufactured; you will need to Google for your battery manufacturer (it is NOT APC).

The problem with the retail market is that a "new" UPS may have been sitting on the shelf for many months or even years; I once saw a UPS at Fry's Electronics with a manufacture date four years old.

A SLA battery is typically past its prime if left in an un-topped-off state for more than six months. That's six months from the BATTERY's date of manufacture in most cases. Those of us who care about such things measure battery voltages at time of purchase (of the UPS) and time of replacement (of the batteries) to help reject subpar batteries. Subpar batteries can absolutely report as being "okay" by the UPS and yet fail under relatively light load.

 

[ThEnGI]

Subpar batteries can absolutely report as being "okay" by the UPS and yet fail under relatively light load.

I'll see but I'm afraid I'll have to break some security seal. If so, I'd avoid it

The discharge test was performed with a load of 100W (25% of the actual power), the battery respected the indicated time (25 min). So I think it's okay

 

[jgreco]

So what's the manufacture date on the UPS?

 

[ThEnGI]

No date on the outside and I need time to (check if i can) open it (turn off nas, etc)
The strange thing is that it reports low battery and not "need to replace battery". Both parameters (% and time) are above the low battery level

 

[PhilD13]

I see in your OP you picked up a usb cable from Amazon. Many APC ups use a special usb cable for the communication cable from ups to computer but it looks just like a regular usb cable. Was the included communication cable used? Using just any regular usb cable lying around that fits may give the wrong results. It's a thought and something to try.

 

[gdreade]

I'll see but I'm afraid I'll have to break some security seal. If so, I'd avoid it

APC UPSes are designed to field-replace batteries without voiding the warranty, so there should be no security seal about which you should be concerned. In fact, they're designed so that you can hot-replace the batteries without bringing the UPS and supported systems down. (Granted, if you happen to take a power bump on the mains in the 60s or so that it takes to replace the battery, then that is a problem, but it's up to the operator to assess the risk factor in doing so.)

At least hot-replace is supported with every APC UPS I've seen. It's possible that some low-end consumer UPSes don't allow it; check your manual to confirm.

 

[gdreade]

For one of the recent 'New Alerts' log entries, are you able to expand the entry to its full text and post it? It looks like it is printing the observed threshold later in the log line, but we can't see it in the screen shot (presumably it's available via the continuation icon).

 

[PhilD13]

The model listed in the OP's first post uses a RBC17 battery. However the battery is not user replaceable in these models.
The battery typically lasts for three to five years.
Environmental factors impact battery backup life.
Elevated temperatures, high humidity, poor quality mains power,
and frequent, short duration discharges will shorten battery life.
The battery in the Back-UPS Series is not user-replaceable.
Contact SEIT Technical Support for a list of authorized service
centers near you.

 

[Davvo]

I wouldn't be so certain about the battery being the issue.
I would try a different APC driver.

Going from memory I recall being suggested increasing the pooling time in order to fix an issue, but for CORE systems.

 

[jgreco]

I wouldn't be so certain about the battery being the issue.

I don't think anybody's saying that. But it's a reasonable thing to doublecheck especially given the tendency of UPS systems to rot on retail shelves or warehouses for a year or two.

 

[ThEnGI]

I can move/disassemble the UPS now, but i will try a SW configuration (see below)

Was the included communication cable used? It's a thought and something to try.

OK, the included cable was short but i will try to move the UPS closer to the NAS.
If it were a special cable though I would expect nothing to work

For one of the recent 'New Alerts' log entries, are you able to expand the entry to its full text and post it?

Code:

TrueNAS @ truenas

New alerts:

UPS ups battery level low.

UPS Statistics: 'ups'

Statistics recovered:

1) Battery charge (percent)
     battery.charge: 100

2) Battery level remaining (percent) when UPS switches to Low Battery (LB)
     battery.charge.low: 20

3) Battery runtime (seconds)
battery.runtime: 3496 (1320@25% load)

4) Battery runtime remaining (seconds) when UPS switches to Low Battery (LB)
     battery.runtime.low: 180
Current alerts:

UPS ups battery level low.

UPS Statistics: 'ups'

Statistics recovered:

1) Battery charge (percent)
     battery.charge: 100

2) Battery level remaining (percent) when UPS switches to Low Battery (LB)
     battery.charge.low: 20

3) Battery runtime (seconds)
     battery.runtime: 3496

4) Battery runtime remaining (seconds) when UPS switches to Low Battery (LB)
     battery.runtime.low: 180

• As I was saying, both parameters (% & time) are well within the margins

Going from memory I recall being suggested increasing the pooling time in order to fix an issue, but for CORE systems.

Added pollinterval=10, via gui in ups.conf.

Let's wait 24 and hope we'll be lucky and that the software modification will be enough.

I take this opportunity to thank everyone!

 

[ThEnGI]

After the modification, the number of alerts has decreased, but the situation has not resolved.
In the afternoon I'll try the supplied cable.
The battery is not officially replaceable by the user, but I saw that it is 4 screws!

 

[Davvo]

iirc the pollinterval value was suggested to be set at 30, don't really know if it would make any difference.

 

[ThEnGI]

I turned off and forget to turn on Wireguard so no VPN.......
This evening i will try 30 sec

EDIT: changed the parameter and the alarm immediately stopped. Fingers crossed

 

[ThEnGI]

Christmas doesn't help, I'm busy getting fat and buying gifts XD
The alert have been greatly reduced but they arrive at least a couple of times a day.
As soon as I have time (27/28 December) I'll do the tests with the supplied USB cable.

Happy Christmas holidays to everyone !

 

[keithsplace]

I see in your OP you picked up a usb cable from Amazon. Many APC ups use a special usb cable for the communication cable from ups to computer but it looks just like a regular usb cable. Was the included communication cable used? Using just any regular usb cable lying around that fits may give the wrong results. It's a thought and something to try.

I'd defiantly check with another known good USB cable, as some "Amazon" cheap cables are just charge only cables.
I'd try a know good cable from like a printer, scanner or some other device that uses data on the cable as well.
And if possible connect it to a Windows PC or where you can open the devices actual software to see if a setting is available.

 

[ThEnGI]

I used the Windows APC software and the Amazon basic cable (the same i'm using to the NAS) to set the battery date.
I think the cable Is a "data" cable... If It was a charging only cable the command from Shell should not work.

 

[Batmanzi]

I used the Windows APC software and the Amazon basic cable (the same i'm using to the NAS) to set the battery date.
I think the cable Is a "data" cable... If It was a charging only cable the command from Shell should not work.

Hello there, have you been able to solve this? I got a brand new "APC Back-UPS BX2200MI" and I'm getting constant messages about "UPS ups battery level low" and "UPS ups Battery needs replacement", which they clear on their own within a few minutes.

Using the original cable, a highly rated one from Amazon didn't fix the issue, connecting the UPS to Windows and using the "PowerChute Serial Shutdown" software doesn't show any problems with the UPS.

Don't know what to do next.