Fremont, CA: UPS systems provide backup power for vital processes during outages, and UPS batteries are regularly checked to ensure their performance. Failure can lead to wasted time and missed safety chances. There are various UPS battery testing techniques with distinct functions and advantages.
UPS battery testing visually checks for physical damage, such as cracks or corrosion leakages. In addition, it visually checks the presence of debris on terminals or connections on the cleanliness scale to preclude damage from wear out. Although pretty simple and easy, these tests are imperative in finding problems before they start failing in the first place. Even so, they do not check the state of the battery's internal health condition but are often part of several other tests.
UPS load bank testing is one comprehensive method for UPS battery assessment. This involves controlled discharge under simulated loads that are meant to test the capacity and runtime of batteries. These figures would then predict the battery performance when disaster strikes. However, with such a procedure, there can be a long testing time. It may compromise some backup capacity. Indeed, load bank testing could still be effective, but it took time; most weak and failing batteries might still evade testing.
Impedance and conductance tests are performed on routine checks to measure internal resistance or conductance. They check for problems of sulfation, corrosion, or other forms of degradation without taking the battery away from charge. These are preferred as they are quicker and less intrusive. They also do not provide information as to whether the battery, in overall capacity or runtime under load, still has remaining capacity. Generally, they would be run between load tests to see slow changes to the battery's state over time.
Float voltage testing is one crucial method that measures the cell-to-cell voltage of a battery set to ensure it has relatively balanced voltages. Poorly balanced voltages may sometimes point to poor or low cells, leading to difficulties in the operations of a UPS system. The test will often find imbalances or failing cells before this results in complete failure; thus, this right type of maintenance could be offered instead of experiencing complete battery failure. However, it usually supplements other tests to size overall capacity.
Discharge testing fully drains a battery to test its capacity. This method applies the actual load of the battery, giving a much more realistic measurement of system performance during an outage. It is resource-intensive and needs considerable recharging time. This is carried out less often, typically each year or two, since it stresses the system.
Battery monitoring systems deliver real-time information about battery health concerning critical parameters: voltage, temperature, impedance, etc. Such monitoring systems will alert technicians if these vital parameters deviate from their normal range, facilitating proactive maintenance before this degradation fails. Therefore, such monitoring goes along with other kinds of testing.
