Belkin Universal UPS 1200 VA Emergency Battery Backup with AVR (F6C120-UNV) | List Price: $181.19
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Brand: Lite-On
Binding: Electronics
Warranty: 3 years warranty
Features: - Provides up to 100 minutes backup time
- Bulldog Plus Software: Compatible with Windows XP, 95/98, 2000, NT
- Provides 6 Outlets: 4 battery backup outlets w/surge protection and 2 outlets w/surge protection only
- Serial and USB Ports
- Comes with a $500,000 Connected Equipment Warranty; Comes with a 3 Year Product Warranty
OK when new, but other brands are much better [Posted on 2006-04-19]
I had this unit nearly three years and it performed fine during numerous power glitches. I never run the PC to battery depletion, I only use the UPS to filter spikes and brownouts, so my batteries (date stamped October 2002) died on 23 March 2006 -- decent life for this class of UPS.
The bad news is that despite front-panel indicator lights and Bulldog software, the UPS did nothing to alert me to the failing batteries. Only when my PC shut down abruptly did I realize that the UPS needed attention. Upon checking the Log file kept by Bulldog Software, I saw that the battery capacity had dropped to zero 10 days prior, and the battery voltage had been running at 18.5 volts. Why there was NO indication from either LED lights or Software of these serious fault conditions I'll never know.
OK, so it was time for new batteries. I took off the cover only to discover that the two standard size sealed 12 volt cells were bolted in the frame such that removal meant complete dis-assembly of the circuit board and front half of the chassis. This is Pee-poor design, even for a high-school intern level engineering type. Why would anyone bolt batteries which require replacing into the frame?
Because the unit had been running hot for 10 days due to the un-alarmed condition of the dead batteries, I decided to first test performance with the replacement batteries before wasting time taking the whole thing apart. I placed the unit on my workbench and connected the new batteries laying next to the UPS. After verifying that charging voltage was OK, I charged them overnight. Upon testing the internal voltages, all looked normal -- but then I checked the output voltage when the load is running on batteries. Instead of the expected 110 to 115 Volts AC, I'm getting 83-88 volts AC. Cool -- this UPS will now generate its own brownouts free of charge. (Perhaps it has been this way for years -- I trusted the Bulldog SW voltage reporting, but based on recent experience, I should not have).
So I'm working through Belkin Support to see if I have any options besides the re-cycling bin.... but I can tell you all that I have four APC UPS units, one dating back to 1994, others to '96 and '99. I've replaced batteries and continue to run the APC units with no problems.
This was my first, and will certainly be my last, Belkin UPS product. Shop around - you can get an 800Va APC unit for $79... a MUCH better deal than this Belkin unit for the same price. (both use the exact same batteries so don't be fooled by the higher VA rating of the Belkin - it is the battery capacity that ultimately determines your run time when the power fails) And with APC, you can replace the batteries without taking apart the unit - just slide off the cover like any kid's toy, and replace the batteries. What a concept, eh?
BA Zimmerman
10 easy ways to take advice here nad blow up UPS [Posted on 2006-05-16]
First Id like to say the product and delivery were fine. I followed all the instructions provided by Mike Murphy. They were accurate. Please add two.
1) As you remove the cover to the ups back it up a few inches and remove at least one of the battery leads. This insures there is no current on the circuit board. Then continue.
2) On re-assembly slide the cover almost all the way into place then attach the last lead before making that last inch of push on the cover.
If you don't, you stand a chance of the cover touching the back of the circuit board and cooking the whole UPS. Then you are out the cost of the batteries and you still have to replace the UPS. By the way I should know better. So those of you who don't know better you stand a chance of cooking yourself. When these batteries are live you have high curent and possible high voltage in there.
Thank heaven for APC and Amazon [Posted on 2006-05-24]
I bought two of these Belkins 2 and 4 years ago and both died in the last 6 months with no warning. Poof. One day they just wouldn't power on and were completely unresponsive. After reading the reviews here I bought a pair of APC batteries to try and both UPS were brought back to life. If it costs less to ship than to buy another pair of batteries I'll get the newer one fixed under warranty.
It's simply stupid that Belkin doesn't sell the replacement battery packs. Replacement is straightforward...You need a long, skinny philips-head driver to get the battery bracket out (in addition to a 5/16 driver with a long extension).
0) Unplug it!
1) Remove the 5 screws holding the cover, pull it back enough to disconnect one of the battery terminals, then remove it completely.
2) Disconnect the large 5-pin connector from the circuit board on the opposite side from the battery connectors (you have to squeeze both sides and pull on it) I used a flathead screwdriver to lever it out instead of rocking back-and-forth since I was worried about flexing the circuit board too much.
3) I had to cut the zip-tie holding the iron-core "donut" to the case to allow the front-panel wiring to move out of the way.
4) This gives you enough slack to remove the 4 screws holding the circuit board to the frame then pull the circuit board forward allowing the rear-panel connectors to clear the back of the case, then you can lift it up and push it to the side near the batteries. The cables are heavy-gauge wire but will bend enough.
5) With the circuit board out of the way, remove the 5/16 nuts holding the battery bracket at the bottom and the two philips-head screws holding it to the front.
6) Carefully lift the bracket up to free the batteries, being careful not to nick the insulation on the various wires.
7) Pop out the old batteries.
8) Clean up any acid residue in the bottom of the unit (one of the sealed batteries on my 4-year-old unit leaked a bit!)
9) Pop in the new batteries and reassemble.
10) Leave the last battery connector unconnected until you get the case cover almost all the way in place to avoid shorting the exposed circuit traces with it. When you reconnect the last battery connection, don't be surprised if there is a small spark since there doesn't seem to be anything to limit the inrush current to the unit as it recharges from the now-working batteries.
11) If nothing's smoking yet, plug the unit in and try turning it on.
12) If it's still not smoking, hang around for a few hours to let it charge, then try returning it to service.
Overall, these units have worked well for a couple years, providing lots of backup time when called upon, but you simply cannot trust the battery life reports from the unit. Once a month after running your backups I recommend taking the unit out of service for a few minutes to run a test. You can configure the software to do this automatically, but I prefer doing it manually when I know there won't be any impact from a loss of power.
Battery Replacement [Posted on 2007-07-01]
I stumbled across these reviews in my search to figure out what was wrong with my F6C120-UNV UPS. I purchased it about 5 years ago and noticed that my clock radio was flashing after a power disconnect. That was odd as it was plugged into the UPS. Then I witnessed the UPS try to switch to the inverter while I was using the computer and the PC shut off. I surmised that the batteries were dead. The UPS doesn't tell you this if you are running the tests from the Bulldog software. Only after running the test using the button on the front of the UPS did the dead battery light illuminate on the front. Unfortunately there is no easy replacement kit available like the UPS model that eventually replaced this Belkin.
Following the instructions provided here, I replaced both batteries using APC RBC17 batteries. I bought them for less than $60 plus shipping for both. The UPS works like a champ again and passed the deep battery test providing 30 minutes of power to my bloated PC, 22" LCD, and clock radio. I ended up using a right angle phillips head screwdriver as I didn't have an appropriate length standard one available.
A Super UPS [Posted on 2008-09-08]
My apologies to Amazon..I bought this item elsewhere. I purchased this unit just before Christamas 2005. It was a refurb and the carrier that delivered it managed to bang it up a quite a bit. I pushed the front panel back in place, plugged it in and it's worked continously without a hitch for nearly three years. It has carried a very complex and power-hungry PC gaming tower and a G4 Sawtooth Mac as well as a 20" LCD monitor, a cable modem, a router, a switch, a Linksys PAP2 VOIP adapter & a telephone and finally, a Buffalo wireless access point. I live in county north of San Francisco that has a very dicey power grid and this device has served me well many times. The batteries ARE replaceable but I have never had to do so-they're hard to get at but then the unit itself is very compact. It's a marvel of packaging. As for the folks that shut the UPS down when they power off the connected equipment..how do you expect the batteries to hold a charge when the UPS is shut down? When it's initialized it's doing it's job. Do these folks keep an Adirondack chair next to the power company's meter and monitor dial movements? Gads!
Other strong points..this thing is plug and play (over USB) in OS X (Tiger), Windows XP & Vista. The case is well-ventilated and the unit runs cool. And you CAN mute the alarm-the manual explains how to go about it
Though it appears that Belkin has given up the UPS segment in the US
they seem to be active in Europe and the UK. In fact, Belkin UK has the latest Vista-compatible Bulldog software(vers. 4.0.2), I downloaded it and installed it on my Vista 64 Business machine and it's working fine.
As I write this, the Belkin is recovering from a deep-battery test @ 43% load. Twenty minutes later and it's nearly topped up. I call that excellent performance. If you find a new one going cheap..grab it. This is a first-rank UPS.
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